The Art Room is a UK charity working with children to increase their self-esteem, self-confidence and independence through art. On Wednesday 24 April it announced that Wester Hailes Education Centre will open an Art Room for Edinburgh in late 2013. The new Art Room will provide therapeutic intervention to children from local schools who will work in small group sessions with Art Room trained Senior Practitioners.
Photo courtesy of The Art Room
The Art Room believes art can help children learn and achieve success. Working with children aged 5 to 16 years old,the Wester Hailes Education Centre Art Room will offer art as therapy for those facing challenges in their lives. There are many reasons why children attend sessions with an Art Room. The aim will be to help those most in need, be it when they are becoming disengaged from mainstream education, are disruptive, withdrawn or have learning difficulties. Once the Art Room has been established at Wester Hailes, it is hoped that children from across the city will also benefit from the support of The Art Room.
Working in collaboration with Maxine Sloss and a group of dedicated Edinburgh based Art Room Angels, Sheila Patron, Principal of Wester Hailes Education Centre, will front the campaign and work with The Art Room’s main office in Oxford to follow their highly successful formula. Local Edinburgh based practitioners will attend Art Room Practitioner training later in the year.
Sheila Paton said at the announcement:
Our School motto is ‘Together we will succeed’ and working with The Art Room encapsulates our vision. We welcome the opportunity that the Art Room will bring us to support young people in our Community. Although in the first instance this will be for young people in the Wester Hailes Community, our vision is that The Art Room will develop as an outreach Centre, where young people across the City who are at risk of disengaging from Education can access nurture and support.
Princess Kate is royal patron of charity The Art Room. Picture: Reuters/Suzanne Plunkett
In 2012, HRH The Duchess of Cambridge became the Royal Patron of The Art Room. Speaking at the Art Room’s celebration at the National Portrait Gallery last month, the Duchess said “I’ve been overwhelmed by the transformational impact The Art Room sessions have. I am a firm believer in the power of art to make a difference.”
The Art Room has helped over 10,000 children since its foundation in 2002. Juli Beattie, Founder Director announced the new collaboration with Wester Hailes Education Centre. She said of the new Art Room in Edinburgh:
We are absolutely delighted to be able to bring our therapeutic intervention practice to Scotland and build a new Art Room. As we continue to grow into a national charity we want to be able to share what we know and provide many more children with invaluable support at a time they most need it. Our work is hugely rewarding and has proven results and we look forward to seeing the positive effects of an Art Room at Wester Hailes.
Maxine Sloss will be working with Wester Hailes Education Centre to raise the necessary funds to build and supply The Art Room. In the next year, it is hoped that £120,000 will be raised to set up the building and provide the materials needed by the children. Individual donations and fundraising initiatives have already started and been met with encouraging support.
Also read this story about the announcement on the Evening News website.
