Truck Festival awards funding for our Connect and Create sessions
We are delighted to have been awarded funding from the Truck Trust for our Connect and Create sessions.
Our Connect and Create sessions started in January this year and provide a time and space for our community at Style Acre to go on a creative journey together with old and new friends, exploring what creativity means and discovering the benefits of creativity for mental wellbeing, self-identity and expression. Sessions are constantly evolving as we learn what works best, and we now have a theme each week that ties in with our broader Ways to Wellness programme and are building a collective of creative colleagues to help run sessions.
The funding from the Truck Trust will help us to purchase new arts and crafts equipment and allow us to fund singing and drumming sessions throughout the year. we are also working with a local organisation to create Didcot’s first ever pride event and we would use our connect and create sessions to help plan and deliver Style Acre led activities at this event.
Style Acre exists to help people with learning disabilities and autism live happy, safe and fulfilled lives, a big part of that is helping people to improve their overall wellbeing. Our connect and create sessions bring adults with learning disabilities and autism and their support teams together. The sessions allow people to explore what creativity is, what it means to everyone we support and employ and collectively design what our creative journey should look like and importantly gives people time to connect and talk with others about their passions.
Connect & Create is about:
- fun, discovery, learning and doing
- self-expression
- creative collaboration
- connecting with like-minded people and making friends
- becoming a voice and ambassador for Style Acre about all things creative
Creativity – and self-discovery – is for EVERYONE, without exception, and the links between creativity and mental wellbeing are clear and well evidenced.
These sessions are great for individuals mental health and wellbeing, they allow people to get involved in the local community, connecting with others, working as a team, learning new things and having fun.