Criw Celf Case Study 1 - Improving Career Opportunities

Criw Celf Class: (Year 9)
Masterclasses attended: 6 Masterclasses attended (Screenprinting x2, environmental art, sculpture, illustration, textiles)

Criw Celf is a project that not only offers skills and expertise in the arts in the short term, through creative masterclasses and technical skill learning, it also offers the transferable skills needed to help train a young person for later in their professional lives.

This is particularly evident in the outcome for one of Wrexham’s Criw Celf participants this year. Niamh, who is just starting her gsce exams has been a exemplary More Able and talented pupil within the arts, and a long standing member of Criw Celf over the years. This year however, she was able to use Criw Celf as a platform for her academic studies not just in the arts, but towards Welsh Baccalaureate. Niamh was required to do four weekends volunteer work for the Welsh Baccalaureate to build her interpersonal and professional skills. Niamh worked with our Criw Celf Bach class in Wrexham where she provided invaluable assistance to the artist, Mai Thomas. This experience will provide the knowledge Niamh will use within her future career as her mother, Julia, explains:

“For me the experience of the sessions has been invaluable to help support Niamh’s future career choices and development.
She has an interest in art and textile and thought Criw celf has had the opportunity to talk to artists from various backgrounds to find out there career paths into art as a career.
She has developed some lasting friendships from the others who have participated and has the opportunity to produce some beautiful and inspiring pieces of work.
The Criw celf workshops has given Niamh the chance to volunteer and she has enjoyed and benefitted from this experience immensely.” Julia Beech

Niamh hopes to go onto university to study art/pychology so on a professional level, criw celf has been a useful addition to her background skills, on a personal level, it is clear how much Niamh enjoyed Criw Celf over the years from this quote:

“Over the past 3 years, has meant alot to me. I’ve made lots of new friends, learnt many new skills and met a lot of great and talented artists that have done amazing workshops that were easy to follow. Over the project I have achieved a lot through the 3 years and I definitely believe that I will make more skills over the next couple of years and I definitely will join more workshops in the oriel to improve my skills and support the oriel as well. I thought that the whole idea of criw celf was amazing but I also thought the people in the groups were great as well. They really made criw celf feel like a great atmosphere to create in. Because of my many years with criw celf and past workshops, I was given an opportunity to volunteer with the younger group ‘criw celf bach’ with Mai Thomas. The opportunity was amazing and I felt like a could really connect with the children because of my past experiences. This volunteering was a big help with my welsh bacc that I’m currently studying which will be a big help in carrying on my studies in college and university. So as you can see criw celf has had a very big impact on my further studies and life . I have really enjoyed criw celf every year and I now think there will be more fantastic opportunity to take on board because of this amazing group.” Niamh Beech