Inclusive Youth Arts Programme

Part of Attenborough Cultural communities: funded by the Peter Sowerby Foundation.

We provide much-needed opportunities for children and young people with complex needs and disabilities to be creative, to feel great about themselves and to enjoy being with others.

All our workshops and performances are FREE to children and young people aged 0 – 18 years old with complex disabilities and needs from Leicester and Leicestershire, our programme takes place at weekends and during school holidays.

Our building is designed to be welcoming and accessible for a range of needs, and our staff are trained to be understanding and supportive. We have disabled parking bays and a changing places facility.

Tailored to the individual needs of our participants, our workshops are limited to small groups of 6 young people and run by skilled professional artists experienced working with young people with disabilities. We also host performances designed for children and young people with disabilities, in particular immersive theatre for people with PMLD by companies including Frozen Light, Oily Cart and Bamboozle.

Children on our programme experience a range of disabilities that without additional support, make it difficult for them to participate in the arts, including but not limited to PMLD (Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties), Autism, ADHD (Attention Deficiency Hyperactive Disorder), Auditory, speech and visual impairments, Down’s Syndrome and Global Developmental Delay.

Our programme has been running since 2015 funded by BBC Children In Need and in August 2021 became part of the Attenborough Cultural Communities programme funded by the Peter Sowerby Foundation.

To register on the programme and gain access to our events, please contact our Project co-ordinator Hannah Pillai on hmpp1@le.ac.uk.

(Please note that Hannah works part time and her working days vary). For general information about the centre please contact the Front of House team on 0116 252 2455 arts-centre@leicester.ac.uk