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Creative Sparks Clubs

Creative Sparks Clubs are weekly after school sessions for children aged 5-11.

The clubs are free and offer a perfect opportunity for children to explore new art forms, learn new skills, boost confidence and make new friends. Our sessions are led by experienced local artists and will explore a whole range of art forms from painting, graffiti and ceramics to DJ, dance and much more.

All of our Creative Sparks Clubs have broken up for the summer, but you can get involved with a whole host of activities across the city in our Summer Sparks workshops

What have our groups been up to?

Creative Sparks Club: Hendon

Delivered in partnership with Back on the Map

Since they started in November 2024, the group have worked with a number of artists, musicians and creative practitioners exploring a range of art forms including pottery, film making, music and visual arts. Most recently, the group have been working with animator Sheryl Jenkins to learn all about stop-motion animation and how to make their own short films.

Two people work with camera equipment in an office room. A person with long brown plaited hair wears a dark blue hoodie and grey trousers, holding a large black camera. Behind them, someone in a grey shirt helps adjust the camera setup. The room has grey carpet, white walls, and a large TV screen on the wall. There are camera tripods, white desks, and storage cupboards around the room. A microphone on a stand sits nearby.
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Children seated at a long table prepare for a clay modelling activity. Each child has a small lump of clay, a rolling pin, and reference images or sketches on the table in front of them. The table is covered with plastic sheeting, and the children wear aprons to protect their clothing.
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Two clay figures sit on a messy art table covered with plastic sheets and white paper. One resembles a penguin wearing a hat and sits on white paper at the back. The other resembles a penguin wearing a cross-body bag and sits on a wooden board at the front next to a flat piece of clay. Clay tools and an orange pencil lie nearby.
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Creative Sparks Club: Washington

Delivered in partnership with Usworth Colliery Primary School

The after-school club at Usworth Colliery Primary School has been super busy since they started. The children have taken part in a whole range of creative activities including graffiti writing, animation, pottery, music and printmaking. During their summer term, they worked with Voices of Darlington to co-create a brand new song – selecting style, genre, beat and writing lyrics.

Find out more

 

Children sit around a table covered with art materials and craft supplies. The table is full of coloured paper, fabric pieces, glue, scissors, and art projects in progress. The children wear dark blue school uniforms and sit on bright yellow chairs. They are working on different creative projects with their hands, cutting and sticking materials together. The table looks busy and messy with lots of different colours and textures spread across it.
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A clay monster head sits on a white cloth-covered table. The grey clay creature has a wide open mouth full of pointed white teeth, bulging eyes, and spiky bits sticking out from its head and sides. Lines and marks are scratched into the clay surface. The monster looks scary but also funny, like something from a cartoon. The table is covered with art supplies and clay pieces scattered around.
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A young child in a yellow school uniform uses a tablet mounted on a flexible stand to take a photo or video of a colorful drawing on a sheet of paper. The tablet screen shows the child’s hand adjusting the artwork, which includes a decorated rocket and space-themed stickers. The activity takes place at a wooden classroom table with yellow chairs and small baskets containing stationery.
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A close-up view of a tablet resting on a wooden table. The tablet's screen displays a stop-motion animation setup, showing a colorful handmade paper rocket with planets and stars. A person's hands are visible holding the rocket in front of the camera. Surrounding the tablet, various art supplies and paper cutouts, including a white wolf and a blue star, are scattered across the table. The scene suggests an art or animation project in progress.
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A group of children and an adult stand or kneel in a school hall, facing away from the camera with their arms raised. They wear handmade, colorful dragon wings attached to their backs, featuring different patterns and drawings. The children wear navy and yellow uniforms, while the adult wears a mustard-yellow top and jeans. The hall has a wooden floor, blue chairs stacked against the wall, and motivational words displayed on the walls.
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Creative Sparks Club: Downhill

Delivered in partnership with Community Opportunities

The children at the club in Downhill Centre Community Hub are big fans of creating their own art works and have excelled in arts and crafts. The children have worked with Creative Co-ordinator Paige to try tie-dye and collage, as well as using shaving foam to weird and whacky artwork. The group also have also enjoyed working with jewellery-maker Kate Hunter and ceramicist Lindsey Grieves.

A child's hand holds a paintbrush over a silver foil tray filled with swirled red, blue and white paint. The paint colours mix together in wavy patterns across the tray. The table is covered with clear plastic sheets and has coloured paper scattered around. There are art prints with pink and blue paint marks nearby. The child is doing a paint marbling activity where colours float on top of each other.
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A child's hand holds a paintbrush over a silver foil tray filled with swirled red, blue and white paint. The paint colours mix together in wavy patterns across the tray. The table is covered with clear plastic sheets and has coloured paper scattered around. There are art prints with pink and blue paint marks nearby. The child is doing a paint marbling activity where colours float on top of each other.
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A group of children stand together showing off small cardboard puppets they have made. The look like various animals cut from cardboard and decorated with colour pens. The children hold the creatures on sticks. They wear school uniforms and stand on a grey carpet floor. You can see their hands and feet as they display their craft projects.
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Creative Sparks Club: Pennywell

Delivered in partnership with Hope4All

The group have met every Thursday evening during term-time since November 2024. The children have tried a range of art forms and worked with over 15 artists, musicians and creative practitioners. The children were involved in co-creating a large-scale mural for a wall in the centre. Working with artist Sally Anderson the children designed the ‘Hope’ artwork that also references the bee hives that are in place in the community garden at Hope4All and St Thomas’ Church.

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