8:58am Tuesday 20th May 2008
By Jeremy Grimaldi
YOUNG musicians from Swindon are hoping their efforts will drum up more than £2m to develop the arts in Swindon.
Artsmad, an organisation which brings the arts to schoolchildren, is waiting to see if it has won a £2.5m Government grant to ensure Swindon youngsters receive five hours of culture a week.
The group currently runs Flux, a pilot scheme based at North Swindon, and is already providing 12-hours of culture to Isambard students each week.
And although the programme, which aims to discourage disaffection and anti-social behaviour, concludes next year, Artsmad thinks it should be extended right across Swindon.
Organisations from all over the country are trying to secure the money, making competition fierce.
But Artsmad is confident it has a great chance' of becoming one of the 10 winning funding bids.
Kirsty Carter director of Artsmad, said: "We have all learned a great deal about offering high quality cultural experiences through the Flux Programme.
"We have the infrastructure and contacts in place to take the cultural offer to Swindon's children and young people, and we're hoping the Government thinks so too."
During the current programme, Isambard Community School has been offering a number of arts-related activities for students.
And so far there has been a rock school, a cartoon club, a film-making class, dance workshops and youth theatre.
Rachael Mattey, headteacher of Isambard, said the arts pilot project was having a positive effect on her schoolchildren.
She added: "We are preparing these young people for a world where they need to work as part of a team, be flexible, creative and this will help them get there.
"It gives our pupils a range of opportunities to work creatively, with professional artists, in an inspiring way.
"Our students are able to immerse themselves in individual art forms for at least one day at a time - giving them the opportunity to live the true creative experience."
The school says that since September, 140 students have registered for the arts awards, 31 students have achieved bronze awards and all staff have trained as award advisors.
Artsmad has been told a government spokesman will tell them about if they have been successful by the end of May.
For more about Flux visit www.fluxswindon.org.uk or www.swindon.gov.uk/artsandculture/artsmad.
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