Thanks to a new partnership, young people in Ealing will have more opportunities to participate in arts and cultural activities, or create their own.

Ealing Council has been awarded £50,000 to develop a Local Cultural Education Partnership (LCEP) in the borough. This will provide children and young people aged up to 25 with increased access to arts and culture, support and opportunities.

Ami Kourouma, 19, who attends Bollo Brook, said: “I’m so happy that Ealing has received this funding because, for me, art has been a great way to express myself and unlock my creative mind.”

“Sharing experiences with peers starts a conversation without words. I hope that now more young people will have the opportunities like the ones I have had.”

Ealing Together – Joining forces

To secure the funding, the council joined forces with groups and organisations from the cultural, education and voluntary sectors. The funding is coming from A New Direction and Challenge London Fund, supported by the Arts Council, England.

The aim is to join-up local programmes and resources and make them more accessible by bringing them all under one umbrella partnership.

Key partners include Ealing Learning Partnership, Young Ealing Foundation, Pitzhanger Manor and Gallery, Gunnersbury Museum, University of West London and a group of diverse youth organisations such as Bollo Brook Youth Centre in Acton, that will lead on setting up a Youth Forum.

Councillor Kamaljit Dhindsa, the council’s cabinet member for Culture, said: “We are so excited about this wonderful news. At a challenging time like this, it’s definitely something for our young people to look forward to.

“Central to this partnership is our young people, and building a lasting legacy for Ealing. We want to ensure young people like Ami are empowered and have a voice in this partnership, and particularly those that are marginalised or hidden.

“We hope that the Cultural Education Partnership will also encourage positive mental health and well-being in our young people across the borough during this pandemic.”

Next Steps

The Partnership will start early January, and will last for 18 months.
There will be a dedicated co-ordinator post that will develop the Youth Forum, and it will be run by an apprentice.

Plans also include the creation of a site that will show a pipeline of progression opportunities for young people who want a career in the creative and digital industries.

To find out more about Local Cultural Education Partnerships, visit the A New Direction website.