Launch event for AccessHE Creative Network

December 9, 2016

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On Wednesday 30 November, AccessHE hosted an event at Lewisham Southwark College to launch the AccessHE Creative Network.

The event brought together our partners from member HEIs, schools and colleges as well as cultural organisations to hear from invited guest speakers about the importance of working collaboratively to promote widening access to the creative arts in HE, and gave us an opportunity to promote the AccessHE Creative Network as a means to facilitate this.

The speakers included Marcus Davey, Artistic Director and Chief Executive at the Roundhouse. Jacqueline Rose, Acting Head of Culture at the GLA and Steven Kavuma, Founder and Executive Director of the Diverse School and the S+K Project respectively and also a performing arts student at the Royal Central School for Speech and Drama.

At the event, AccessHE also presented our new piece of research about the barriers facing students from under-represented backgrounds in accessing the creative arts. The findings from the report “The more colours you add, the nicer the picture” demonstrate the need for the development of collaborative work to support such groups into creative arts higher education courses and are an underlying reason for the creation of the AccessHE Creative Network.

The Network aims to bring together stakeholders to work together to address the barriers identified in the report and will offer members CPD events, a range of networking opportunities with other cultural organisations, universities and other schools and colleges to support and develop project and strategy work in this area. The Network has already developed an online IAG resource for prospective students, parents/carers and teachers/advisors to find out about the opportunities available in creative HE and how to develop skills and build cultural capital in preparation for applying to courses. The site can be found here: www.accesshecreative.co.uk. Those who wish to sing up to the AccessHE Creative Network can sign up here.