What does Arts Award offer your museum?

Audience developmentArts Award can help you engage young audiences

Support for projectsArts Award offers motivation, and gives young people an outcome to take away

A framework for regular activityArts Award provides structure and accreditation for your existing offer

Evidence of impactAs a qualification, Arts Award helps demonstrate impact and progress

New partnershipsArts Award can open the door to new relationships with education, youth and arts organisations

How can museums get involved with Arts Award?

Be an Arts Award SupporterHighlight parts of your offer to young audiences

Arts Award Supporter is a great audience development tool that allows you to badge parts of your programme that are relevant to Arts Award. Museums offer a wide range of activities and resources that could contribute to a young person’s Arts Award such as:

◗ workshops, curator talks and behind-the-scenes tours

◗ opportunities to see and review exhibitions

◗ objects to inspire creative responses

◗ learning and research resources

To register as an Arts Award Supporter simply complete our short online induction tutorial at www.artsaward.org.uk/supporter

How can Arts Award help engage young people in museums? www.artsaward.org.uk

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In a museum context Arts Award can offer a rich and diverse arts and cultural programme with an achievable end result that participants feel is of worth to them as individuals

Sarah Cate Blake, Education Officer, Fitzwilliam Museum

The Holburne Museum in Bath ran three week-long projects, funded through the Heritage Lottery Fund’s Young Roots programme, that gave young people ‘at risk’ the opportunity to learn about the heritage of Sydney Gardens. Drawing on the history of the site and the museum’s portrait collections, young people responded with animated films, costumes and photography. Their work was shared with the public at an open day and displayed at the museum.

Run Arts AwardYou can decide how you want to run the award and how many young people to support

If you choose to run Arts Award, your museum becomes an Arts Award centre. At least one member of your team will need to train as an Arts Award adviser by attending a half or one-day training course, depending on the level(s) you want to run — available across the country, throughout the year. You can also book a trainer to come to your museum or group of museums to train six or more people at a time to suit you.

Advisers can be members of the learning team, other museum staff or volunteers working with the museum — anyone who has experience of working with children and young people. If you work with freelance educators, check whether they’ve already trained as Arts Award advisers.

Find out more at www.artsaward.org.uk/booktrainingFor information on running costs, visit www.artsaward.org.uk/costs

Work in partnership with an Arts Award centreEncourage new young visitors and build stronger links

A museum can partner with an existing Arts Award centre, such as a school, college, arts organisation or youth club. This can offer a rich experience of culture and provide exciting evidence for Arts Award portfolios. Every aspect of the award encourages young people to engage with the creative and cultural sector, to meet people that work within it, and to take part or lead activities.

About Arts AwardArts Award’s unique qualifications support young people to develop as artists and arts leaders. The programme develops creativity, leadership and communication skills, and is open to anyone aged 7 to 25.

Arts Award has five levels, four of which are accredited qualifications on the Qualifications and Credit Framework. Gold Arts Award carries 35 UCAS points and young people work at A level (QCF Level 3) standard. Arts Award Discover and Arts Award Explore introduce the arts to children aged 7 upwards.

The Arts Award Guide is published annually and describes the qualifications in detail, including costs. Download at www.artsaward.org.uk/guide

The Arts Award helpdesk offers support and advice on 020 7820 6178 or enquiries@artsaward.org.uk

Our website provides information, case studies and ideas for running Arts Award in cultural settings at www.artsaward.org.uk/artsandculture

Arts Award is managed by Trinity College London in association with Arts Council England working with 10 Bridge organisations, which are responsible for Arts Award regional development in England.

What museums say

The Museum of London’s Youth Panel, Junction, worked with museum staff and creative practitioners to co-curate a new exhibition taking a fresh view of London’s Roman history through the eyes of young Londoners. Arts Award provided a quality framework to support the work being produced by the museum’s Community Collaboration and Inclusion team.

The Higgins Art Gallery and Museum, Bedford, ran their ‘Medieval Manga’ project with a local school, using manga and other drawing techniques to enable young people to discover and explore their local history and introduce them to the collections. The school noticed increased enthusiasm for art in school as a result and the young people achieved Bronze Arts Awards.

A short term Arts Award project to engage young people in new opportunities at the museum led to long term participation: most of the participants stayed by joining our Youth Advisory Group

Shauna-Aine O’Brien, National Maritime Museum

A flexible scheme to enable us to accredit young people’s achievements at the museum. A good way of demonstrating ‘worth’ to funders!

Melissa Hawker, Ancient House Museum of Thetford Life

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