The consultation and marketing for this project served as a valuable marketing exercise for Exmoor in its own right.
Nature of courses, style of teaching Courses were chosen in response to consultation conducted by Imayla with a cross-section of organisations that we felt would benefit from participating in a residential programme in the Park. Previous experience too had taught us that courses in multi-media, participatory arts and survival/environmental skills are popular with young people in the 14-19 age group that we were targeting, particularly those who do not respond well to traditional subjects and styles of teaching in school. Funding was available to support the rural residential programme from organisations who support young people’s engagement in the arts (Arts Council; Youth Music Action Zone) We knew that an isolated rural setting would not only complement the work in that it is a place of inspiration but that a week-long structured programme in this kind of setting would allow the young people to really concentrate and develop their skills both individually and together in a way that they could not back home we wanted to evidence the power of the countryside to inspire creative industry Previous experience has shown that Survival/bushcraft courses are the best way to inspire teenagers to learn about the countryside and the environment The media and arts courses were designed to take place from 9.30 – 12.30 and from 8-9.30 in the evenings. They had a clear structure with clear targets but young people were encouraged to work at their own pace in their own style. Teachers/workshop leaders were chosen who had experience in working with young people from the inner city. The style of teaching was informal and participants were encouraged to express their own creativity in their own way. They were enabled to continue with their project into their free time in the evenings. They had a goal to achieve by the end of the week and could work towards it in their own way with one-one support when they needed it. They had a break between morning and evening course programmes to go out of the Centre for outdoor activities including water sports on Wimbleball Lake, beach and sea sports, horse riding, mountain biking, quad biking, falconry and visiting protected Exmoor ponies, They were aiming to go away having completed a survival course, made a short film, performed a dance piece, or recorded a music track.
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