Attenborough Arts Centre awarded £250,000 by Paul Hamlyn Foundation for flagship SENsory Atelier programme
We are proud to announce that it we have been awarded £249,400 to secure the future of our groundbreaking SENsory Atelier programme.
Our landmark arts-based learning initiative brings artists to collaborate with pupils in SEN schools, with proven transformational impacts.
The programme has been supported by Paul Hamlyn Foundation since 2016 in two separate grants, which have developed SENsory Atelier from initial concept to an award-winning pedagogical model implemented in nine Leicestershire SEN schools.
Over its lifetime, the programme has engaged 3,289 young people in formal SEND school settings, delivered over 3,025 hours of cultural learning activity, supported the training and development of 735 teachers and support staff, developed the practice of 358 artists, and led to two partner schools being awarded Platinum and Gold Artsmark national kitemark respectively, with the delivery of Arts Awards for pupils across all 9 member schools. The new phase of the project is expected to significantly increase cultural engagement for SEND children and young people in Leicestershire over the next three years.
This latest grant will expand the programme further, with the existing partners becoming Affiliate Schools who will co-lead the development of the new phase of SENsory Atelier across our own networks, embedding the programme across more SEN and mainstream settings.
A new community strand of creative sessions and events for SEND children and their families at weekends and during school holidays will be developed, connecting with the organisation’s longstanding Inclusive Youth Arts Programme.
We will also expand our commitment to reflect the ‘super-diversity’ of Leicester across all aspects of the programme, by developing the representation of its workforce and ensuring that the materials and subject matter of the programme reflect the school pupil participants’ breadth of cultural backgrounds.
Andrew Fletcher, Director of Attenborough Arts Centre, said:
‘SENsory Atelier embodies our mission to make art accessible to all and demonstrates the power of creativity in education. We are extremely grateful to Paul Hamlyn Foundation for their continued belief in our vision for SEND pupils across Leicestershire and beyond. At a time when the SEN schools sector, children and their families are at increasing risk of marginalisation and exclusion, this crucial funding secures the future of our inclusive practice for our communities.’
Marianne Scahill-Pape, Learning & Outreach Manager at Attenborough Arts Centre who conceived and has led the programme since 2016, said:
‘The magic of this programme is that it is co-designed and led by SEND children and young people, working in collaboration with artists to discover and develop pupils’ creativity. Over the last eight years, our person-centred approach has delivered sustained transformational impacts in pupils’ attainment, learning, confidence and communication. We know from our local communities how much this work is needed by them, and are thrilled to have the opportunity to continue to embed and enhance our inclusive youth arts programmes for children and young people both in and out of school.’
Catherine Sutton, Head of Programme – Education, Paul Hamlyn Foundation said:
‘Over the past eight years, SENsory Atelier has developed an innovative model for SEND education, putting the arts, creativity and culture at its heart. It has grown to become a flagship programme of dynamic learning, practice sharing and advocacy. We hope this grant will support the SENsory Atelier to continue to deliver exceptional arts-based learning opportunities for children with SEND in Leicestershire for the long-term and to advocate for a more inclusive and creative approach to education.’
This new grant from Paul Hamlyn Foundation follows a number of recent achievements for SENsory Atelier, including a national symposium held in May 2024 at Attenborough Arts Centre and the publication of its Special Educational Needs and Disabilities national code of practice and evaluation framework. SENsory Atelier also won the HEIST Gold Award for Widening Participation 2023 and a Falling Walls International Award 2023 for public engagement in science.