Welcome to ChalleNGe Nottingham
ChalleNGe is a city-wide partnership of arts organisations, schools and young people. We collaborate to engage more children and young people in shaping arts, cultural and creative opportunities in schools and communities.
Join us in championing creativity for all children and young people in Nottingham.
Families - creative activities
Families - creative activities
Families - creative activities
Discover organisations and groups that offer creative activities for children and young people in the city. Why not try something new? There are arts groups, dance classes, youth theatre and music opportunities all year around - to name but a few!
Read the February Half-Term Parents and Carers Newsletter to see a host of creative activities for children, young people and families!
Teachers - connect with us
Families - creative activities
Families - creative activities
Interested in bringing more creativity to your classroom, or wanting to develop new opportunities for your pupils? From teacher events and CPD to long-term partnerships, ChalleNGe brings you regular updates and boosts your creative connections. 2024/25 Wallplanner
Round-up of arts opportunities & network events: March 2025 Primary teachers newsletter and Secondary teachers newsletter.
Latest News & Opportunities
Connecting Notts: Connected!
Writing for Life, Wollaton Hall
Writing for Life, Wollaton Hall
Creative Networking Event: Report back...
(Sat 8 March, Lakeside Arts)
Connecting Notts, ChalleNGe’s Youth Cultural Partnership planned and led a successful creative networking event recently. Over 30 young creatives attended an informative Q&A session with Sophie Jane Corner (Choreographer, poet, film maker), Jake Orr (Theatre Producer/freelancer), Nikki Charlesworth (Puppet-maker & theatre designer) and Jourdan Blair, Jah Digga, (Musician rapper, producer).
As well as hearing from established creatives, attendees had chance to connect over food. They left inspired and encouraged to continue their own development, with ideas about taking care of themselves and making the most of opportunities.
Connecting Notts will take the feedback about future events into their planning when they next meet, Mon 31 March 5-7pm, online.
Sign up to Connecting Notts if you would like to know more.
Writing for Life, Wollaton Hall
Writing for Life, Wollaton Hall
Writing for Life, Wollaton Hall
Creative Careers Event: Wed 19 March 4-7pm 14-25 year olds (KS3+) Free (Parking charges apply)
This twilight event for pupils and young people will bring together a range of inspiring professionals from diverse backgrounds, including Jared Wilson and Sophie Gargett (Left Lion) author, Emily Brand and Poet, Georgina Wilding to share their experience of using written and spoken language creatively in their jobs and careers.
A series of talks, practical tasks and a market-place will give young people a chance for hands-on experience of using creative writing in different ways. A fantastic overview of the importance and place of writing in creative careers and chance to connect with inspiring people and organisations.
Find out more about Writing for Life
Book Writing for Life.
Films for Teachers, Broadway
Writing for Life, Wollaton Hall
BBC Concert Orchestra needs your views
Free film showing for Secondary Staff (Sat 29 March, 2025 10-1pm.) The Teacher's Lounge;
Come and join John Marks and Rhiannnon Harries from University of Nottingham and watch a German film called The Teachers’ Lounge .
It focuses on the experiences of an idealistic young secondary teacher in a contemporary school. There’ll be an informal discussion about the depiction of teachers in film. This opportunity creates space for teachers to reflect on the challenges of their work and how these appear in film and other media.
Refreshments, a free cinema ticket and a contribution to travel are also available. Contact Rhiannon.harries@nottingham.ac.uk to join.
BBC Concert Orchestra needs your views
Work Experience, Nottingham Contemporary & partners
BBC Concert Orchestra needs your views
Can you help shape a unique concert for Nottingham? (Deadline Tues 1 April, 1pm)
The BBC Concert Orchestra are performing in Nottingham on 10 November 2025. They want young people from the Nottingham area to influence this special concert showcasing Nottingham, suitable for a family audience.
What pieces that are important to young people? (you can add YouTube or Spotify links to suggested pieces) Do you know local musicians/soloists who might be suitable to perform with the orchestra? How can we celebrate and showcase the Nottingham region?
The concert will be broadcast on national radio. Once all the ideas are in, a group of young people will meet with the BBC to decide which are the best ideas to take forward.
Add your views: BBC Concert Orchestra Ideas
Or go to slido.com and enter code BBCCO25
Refugee Week 2025
Work Experience, Nottingham Contemporary & partners
Work Experience, Nottingham Contemporary & partners
Refugee Week 16-22 June 2025 (Register for A Day of Welcome from 20 March 2025)
A Day of Welcome is an annual day of solidarity and learning in schools that aims to build a culture of welcome and understanding for people seeking sanctuary.
It will kickstart Refugee Week by providing FREE live events, sharing books, art and stories as well as resources and activities for pupils of all ages.
Register for A Day of Welcome from 20 March 2025 to receive a Teacher’s Guide, learning and resources including lesson plans KS1-KS4, free live events, and refugee education supporting schools to work effectively with families who have experienced forced displacement.
Online resources available from 24 April 2025
Work Experience, Nottingham Contemporary & partners
Work Experience, Nottingham Contemporary & partners
Work Experience, Nottingham Contemporary & partners
Mon 30 Jun to Fri 4 Jul 2025 (deadline for applications Fri 14 March)
There are 20 places for pupils Y10-12 are available from Nottingham city schools and beyond. Priority will be given to pupils in Nottingham City schools. Applications are very welcome from pupils in SEN/D and specialist settings.
The week includes meeting and experiences with artists, programmers, curators and technicians to gain an insight into the variety of careers within the arts. Pupils on placement will visit different venues and teams whilst having practical opportunities to develop skills.
Applications are a short email statement, just 2 or 3 sentences. How to apply for work experience at Nottm Contemporary
Contact Nottingham Contemporary for more information: learn@nottinghamcontemporary.org
For Teachers:
Culturemeets online
A-Z Directory for schools
A-Z Directory for schools
We bring teachers and arts professionals together for a termly online network called CultureMeets. We begin with 5min presentations from arts organisations about their upcoming exhibitions, workshops and resources before a themed discussion. See all past Culturemeets here.
Watch the January culturemeets
and book to join us for the next ones!
Primary Thurs 24 April, 4-5pm
Secondary Tues 24 June, 4-5pm
A-Z Directory for schools
A-Z Directory for schools
A-Z Directory for schools
Nottingham's Cultural Rucksack encourages the development of high quality partnerships between arts, cultural and heritage providers and schools - embedding a range of rich and diverse experiences to bring your curriculum to life.
Nottingham's schools are signing up to become 'Cultural Rucksack schools' - supporting their pupils to feel connected and valued by their city. Find out more about becoming a CR school here.
Creativity Collaboratives
A-Z Directory for schools
Creativity Collaboratives
Nottingham's Creativity Collaboratives programme has involved 12 schools exploring and embedding approaches around 'Teaching for Creativity' over the last 3 years. Watch our Yr 3 FILM
Find out more about the Creative Practitioners and read our latest case studies.
See the Creativity Exchange website and Leading for Creative Thinking website for inspiration, links and resources.
City-wide collaborative projects
Art of Belonging
Child Friendly Nottingham
Celebrating Languages
Art of Belonging is a city-wide programme that seeks to welcome refugees and asylum seekers in Nottingham. The Art of Belonging Pledge has now been signed by 14 arts organisations and we have a growing network of creative practitioners who are being supported to facilitate sessions with new arrivals. From partnership projects with NEST (the Nottingham Education Sanctuary team) and arts venues, to the Refugee Roots regular creative programme and collaborations with Nottingham Playhouse, NAE and more - there are many ways you can support this work and get involved.
Celebrating Languages
Child Friendly Nottingham
Celebrating Languages
We're delighted to be working in partnership with schools, communities, arts partners and our two Universities to celebrate our diverse languages and dialects in Nottingham.
Thanks to funding from NTU, 8 partnership projects have been supported to explore new partnerships between arts organisations, schools and community groups to highlight and celebrate Languages within their work.
We are also excited to be the Community partner for a Co(l)laboratory and welcome Jack Benjamin as our PhD researcher.
Child Friendly Nottingham
Child Friendly Nottingham
Child Friendly Nottingham
Child Friendly Nottingham is a city-wide partnership programme to put children's rights into practice. Lots of organisations are supporting children and young people to have a meaningful say in local decisions, services and spaces. Training and resources from UNICEF are available for teams and organisations to get involved.
Over 9000 children and young people collaborated to choose 3 'badges' (areas to focus on) which are: Safe and Secure; Education & Learning and Healthy. 'Equal and included is the golden thread, linking all our work together.
RSE Day
Child Friendly Nottingham
Every year, we work in partnership with Catherine Kirk from Nottingham City Council on developing a collaborative schools project and resources for RSE day - a national celebration of RSE (Relationships and Sex Education). This year, the theme was 'Embracing Change' and we commissioned illustrator Hannah Sawtell to run schools workshops and design 6 postcards that were distributed to every school in the city. Check out the new website the Achieve Well Team, led by Catherine Kirk.
Connecting Notts, Youth Voices
Connecting Notts is a Young Creatives Network - that brings together 16-15 year olds from ChalleNGe arts and community Partners to regularly meet, influence and plan events for young people.
Facilitated by ChalleNGe and Upstart Projects (who also run Voice Mag) members of Connecting Notts meet monthly (usually Mondays from 5-7pm) and plan 4 events a year for young people across the city, to better connect, network and shape arts opportunities for young people.
Bulwell Arts Festival
We believe that art opportunities should be on every child's doorstep, in neighbourhoods, schools and parks - as well as within the fabulous arts venues of our city. So we have been delighted to work in close partnership with Bulwell Arts Festival (hosted by One Vision Partnership) and Bilborough Arts Festival over the years - supporting local creative activities in community centres, schools and libraries in the run up to their annual Art festivals. Huge congratulations to Nicola Curzon and the OVP team on a fabulous Bulwell Arts Festival 2024. We love working with you!
