From mental health and climate change, to comedy, industrial heritage and babies – A look back at 2021

As 2021 is drawing to a close, we’re reflecting on our company wide achievements, and getting ramped up for a new year of possibilities. 2021 has seen IVE transform its strategy with a new vision and purpose, and start to carve out a new business plan that will take us through to 2025. It’s been an eventful year, in more ways than one, and in addition to our successes across the Bridge programme, IVE have seen a number of wider achievements.

In a snap shot, here are some of the great things IVE have been up to throughout this past year:

Applied Creativity Labs

IVE’s Applied Creativity Labs (ACLs) aim to give children and young people the creative behaviours and thinking skills they need to develop innovative solutions to real world challenges. Some of the highlights this year include:

• Funding secured from Youth Endowment Foundation to reach over 70 young people with ACLs to find new ways to improve mental health – all via Zoom!
• BBC Look North air time for Born in Bradford (BiB) ACL – 45 children presented to leader of the council, BiB and Leeds University to support pilot of a combination of the winning ideas around reducing air pollution
• Inspire North sponsored an ACL programme looking at how to find ways of leaving the care system affordably, with participants invited by North Yorkshire Council to present their ideas to the wider Council

Bespoke Creativity Programmes

IVE also develop bespoke creativity and training programmes for a range of non-profit and commercial organisations. Some of the exciting opportunities we have or are working on at the moment cover:

• 2 new stand-up comedy courses and a Get Into Marketing programme with the Princes Trust
• New partnership programmes with West Yorkshire Combined Authority, in particular the Raising Aspirations Project and Effective Transitions Project which sees IVE moving into STEM education
• Delivering Diversity and Inclusion Labs and Teaching for Creativity, to over 30 teachers
• Running new Diversity and Inclusion Labs for the Screen Industries Growth Network

Ignite

Ignite Yorkshire is a partnership project that works with 14-25 year olds with a mission to ignite a revolution in how Yorkshire’s industrial heritage is viewed, understood, enjoyed and looked after by young people. The programme has delivered a number of exciting projects, with a couple of it’s significant successes being:

• Represent project shortlisted for Association of Heritage Interpreters (AHI) Engaging People award under ‘Untold Stories’ category and one of the Represent participants winning ‘Young interpreter of the year’
• By August, IGNITE had engaged with more than 2,600 young people

Bridge

As the Arts Council Bridge Organisation for Yorkshire and Humber we work with education, arts, cultural and youth sectors to make sure all children and young people have access to great arts and cultural opportunities. Some highlights include:

• Our team have supported 243 schools and 311 arts and culture organisations through professional development, partnerships, micro-commissions and 1-2-1 support
• We’ve welcomed new staff and associates to our Bridge team, helping us reach more networks across the region

Read more about our Bridge accomplishments here.

IVE have also had the opportunity to present at the Business of Science Conference in Birmingham and attend the COP26.

And on top of all that we have found time to have 6 new IVE babies!