exploring possibility through creativity and culture
WHO WE WORK WITH
We define a ‘young person’ as anyone up to the age of 30.
Whilst we welcome the participation of all young people within our work, we principally design our work with the needs of 3 core groups of
young people in mind, which can intersect and overlap
The local young people of Balsall Heath and surrounding areas
Balsall Heath is an inner-city area of Birmingham home to a mostly working class and low-income population with heritages of migration from an incredibly diverse range of places around the world.
Whilst the area is well celebrated for its cultural diversity and community spirit, structural inequalities around race, class, migration status, religion, etc mean that levels of access and opportunity for the people living here have historically been limited. Our work aims to address and challenge these inequalities through quality cultural and creative provision.
Young asylum seekers,
migrants and refugees
This group of young people has experienced the sharpest end of world events in their formative years, often separated from family in the UK whilst fleeing from danger at home. Drawn out legal processes and uncertain futures make building a new life and new connections in a new community incredibly difficult and slow. We are committed to making every young asylum seeker, refugee and migrant feel truly welcomed into The GAP community, to facilitating their creativity, learning and well-being, and to holistically supporting them as valued human beings of great value and potential.
Young artists
Trying to get by as an artist – and especially a young one - can be difficult, often coloured by precarity, blighted by low or even no pay, with few and competitive opportunities. Barriers are raised even higher when combined with other forms of structural inequality based on race, class, gender, education, disability, etc.
Our work provides purposeful opportunities and constructive support to young artists from the very early stages of their careers, so that they may understand the realities of working the field and build for success.
Community Engagement
Whilst young people are the primary beneficiaries of our work, we also engage regularly with the local communities of Balsall Heath as a whole, the wider city of Birmingham, the West Midlands and beyond.
Partnerships
The GAP is fortunate to work and have worked in quality partnerships with a wide variety of organisations:
Local partners include/have included:
University of Birmingham (Dept. of History); Birmingham City University (Dept. of Applied Theatre); Celebrating Sanctuary Birmingham; Ort Gallery; ASIRT (Asylum Seekers Information and Resource Team); BHCATS (Balsall Heath Children’s Action Team Support); Big Brum Theatre in Education Company; Make It Sustainable; Punch Records; The Red Cross; BIRCH Network; The Grove Centre PRU; The Displaced Collective
National partners include/have included:
The Children’s Society; Craftspace; RSC; University College London; The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
The GAP is happy to be currently working in partnership with:
Percy Shurmer Academy, Balsall Heath
Ark Tindall Primary School, Balsall Heath
Birmingham City University, Applied Theatre
University of Warwick, Applied Theatre
Derry Playhouse, Northern Ireland
Armani Theatre, Nairobi, Kenya
Jospeh Chamberlain College
Sam's Vegan Delights
International partners:
We especially value our longstanding international partnerships in China and Hungary. For over ten years we have enjoyed a range of cultural exchange projects, have trained together, toured our work, hosted conferences and shared our commitment to developing our methodology and practice together, especially in relation to drama, education and youth engagement.
InSite Drama – Budapest, Hungary
Facilitating young people to face the most pressing problems of our times through drama.
Drama Rainbow – Beijing, China
Xian Jue – Beijing, China