An exciting transnational collaboration with Werkhaus e.V in Krefeld, Germany, funded by the Cultural Bridge programme.
Common Values, Shared Dreams is a transnational collaboration between us here at The Mighty Creatives and Werkhaus e.V, a cultural organisation which works with local partners and initiatives to reach people from all social classes, different age groups and nationalities. In Krefeld, Germany, they run a Cultural Centre, a Centre for Child and Youth Work, a Centre for Cultural Youth Education, an Education Centre and a Neighbourhood House.
After originally meeting in Krefeld in October 2023, supported and made possible by The City of Leicester European Twinning Association (CLETA), we recognised shared beliefs and values about how to support young people.
Funded by the Cultural Bridge programme, this collaboration will see an exchange of ideas, concepts and best practices, drawing on our expertise in developing cultural programmes for children and young people experiencing disadvantage in our respective countries.
Our Creative Mentoring model and Werkhaus e.V’s activities both adopt a young person-centred approach. Through our work, we’ve learnt how this approach empowers young people to have positive agency on the world they live in, and enable them to make positive changes for both themselves and their communities.
We want to share our expertise in the development and delivery of arts and cultural programmes that have been designed specifically for children and young people in need – those experiencing disadvantage.
In April 2024, we’ll be visiting Krefeld, Germany with three of our Creative Mentors to explore and learn from Werkhaus’ work including their centre “SpieDie“, where accessible activities for children, who mostly are socially disadvantaged, are offered. We’re also take part in a discussion with professionals from the Children and Youth Work services at Intercultural Centre Südbahnhof.
Then in November 2024, we’ll be welcoming members of the Werkhaus team to our offices in Leicester. Here, we’ll be introducing them further to the practice of our Creative Mentoring service and the child-centred social pedagogical approach we use throughout all our work during a two-day skills and knowledge sharing session. We’re also delighted to be offering the opportunity for the Werkhaus team to experience the Diwali celebrations in our city.
It’ll be a fantastic opportunity to meet with the responsible authorities for youth protection in both the East Midlands and Krefled, who will be invited to attend project meetings.
Our transnational collaboration will see the exchange of ideas and best practices across artists, educators and cultural organisations. Through this partnership, we will:
But that’s not all! Once the exchange has completed, we plan to have established a long-lasting partnership that fosters the creative potential of young people in need in both Krefeld and Leicester and to support sustainable social and cultural development in our communities. We want to continue sharing our learning and best practice approaches beyond Leicester and Krefeld to reach more children and young people experiencing disadvantage.
