Did you know...?

Immediately we have to ask... why? Is it a stereotype that sticks? Is it school grades? Is it the cost of higher education? It would be wonderful to wave a magic wand and remove all barriers for the 70%. But if we don’t have that wand (where did I leave it?) then what can be done for these individuals to ensure that they are still progressing and developing their skills and opportunities?

Without support or an alternative to higher education young people can find themselves unemployed. Worse still, unemployed for a very long time. Plus there is a particular trend for young people aged 16-17 entering the world of work but then reaching 18 and hitting unemployment. Unfortunately for some employers jobs become too expensive as an increase in employers NI is rejected for the benefits of recruiting younger workers.

With little or no qualifications and little chance of training, young people from inner city areas can become part of a cycle of unemployment, low confidence, low self-esteem and becoming trapped in areas of deprivation and low economic growth, falling far behind their peers.

Often inner city areas have far fewer resources, especially in terms of technology, making the challenge for an individual wanting the opportunity to learn new skills and take their life in a new direction an even harder task. There is a strong relation between the digital divide and social imbalances such as exclusion, isolation and the increasing skills divide for members of communities experiencing disadvantage compared to those living in more affluent areas.

Future Arts' aim is to ensure that we offer the best and most up to date technology along with inspirational role models that will allow people (young people and adults) to learn at a fairer and more competitive level. Through the variety of projects and training Future Arts offers we target those from areas of disadvantage in need of support and work towards building peoples skills in technology and IT by taking them through a creative process.

Future Arts offers a learning experience that is modern and innovative whilst developing the progression routes to move people forward on to work experience opportunities, further education and employment. Future Arts is working towards offering and sustaining a real alternative for the 70% of young people not entering further education and supporting learning and development for all at all stages.


Did you know...?

These are the findings by The Prince's Trust report released in January 2009. This is a startling statistic and anyone reading this would surely have to ask why and what can be done to change this?

When we at Future Arts look at this statistic that "life is not worth living” we see there is a deeper routed problem. Young people are not only moving towards being young adults, finding their place in the world and finding what they want out of their lives being a scary task and sometimes too daunting to face, young people are also (and unfortunately) constantly portrayed in the national media as a nuisance or violent, and living in a society where stripping young people of their dignity using ASBOs and Mosquitos are the 'answers.' Do we live in a society that has lost the meaning of respect; where we demand respect from young people without actually showing and giving respect first?

From the experiences young people have shared with us we have also learned that many young people who have not had a good experience in education or in any training they have under taken have written themselves off with self destructive comments like “I’m just no good”, “but I’m stupid”. How can any person who has such negative self-judgement feel that life is worth pursuing? The challenge is to find the right approach to learning that boosts self-esteem and understanding that this is different for every individual.

By improving a young persons self worth it can help them to visualize their futures and begin to allow themselves to have goals and ambitions. We all need something to look forward to make this moment right now, even if bleak, more bearable and more enjoyable.

Future Arts is helping to combat this statistic in the way we know best – through creativity, through technology, through fun, through sharing and through involvement.

We work to help improve of the well-being of all the young people we engage with. We can help young people find their confidence by encouraging them to take on new and often complex tasks with multi-media. With the support and guidance we offer ensuing that they succeed and find new self-belief in their own (sometimes hidden) talents.

Through the Future Youth initiative, steered by a panel of young people, we aim to keep projects targeted for young people youth interest focused, relevant, modern, innovative and credible. We aim our projects particularly at those who are facing difficulties where our resources and skills can have the greatest positive impact possible.