Blue Elephant Theatre, Camberwell

Our Co-Artistic and Participation Director Jo Sadler-Lovett, leads an engaging workshop online where we create a monologue to look back on in the future and remember how we are feeling now - as well as some drama games to play at home to get imaginations firing!

We also took the opportunity to celebrate and shout about the work we do in schools. We are incredibly proud of the community programmes we run which form a large proportion of the work that we do and has involved working with and in schools.

It is innovative, creative and accessible and has had an incredible, positive impact on our community and on the lives of many people.

Creative Minds is our primary school programme.

We deliver weekly bespoke drama workshops in local Southwark schools each term, generally reaching 800 - 1000 young people a year.

The workshops can cover any topic the school requests and they are often delivered to targeted groups of children.

Teachers say:

“Creative Minds provides a really useful outlet for us to refer underprivileged children who need additional support of experts.’

“Our children…need the opportunity to feel proud of themselves, to shine, to listen to applause, to see their parents, teachers and peers admiring their work. Creative Minds has given this opportunity.”

Our Speak Out programme works with schools to address issues around mental health and well-being, training young facilitators in the process.

“It’s amazing what Blue Elephant do for disadvantaged communities. I could have got caught up in the wrong activity with the wrong crowd if it wasn't for my experience working with you.” (Actor in training)

Speak Out has taken on fifteen trainee actor-facilitators since 2015, the majority of whom who were not in education, employment or training, had mental health problems or were at risk of developing them. The achievements of the trainees since beginning with us have been outstanding, with many progressing to further training and paid work very quickly afterwards.

Students in the schools Speak Out has visited have developed their self-confidence and self-belief, their awareness of mental health issues and explored ways to manage their well- being.

One teacher said she “could not believe the impact the programme has had. I was moved to tears”