Clwyd Theatr Cymru Education/TYP Department aims to offer young people structured educational events in both English and Welsh with a view to extending the activities of the theatre and employing all aspects of the theatre arts to encourage the long-term development of the individual. Our intention is to encourage young people to employ the arts as a means of exploration and creativity, and to be enthusiastic supporters of arts activity, both as participants and as future audience members.

We support the following statement of education:

Education develops intelligence and ability, creative thought and action, educates feelings and sensibility, explores values, develops physical and perceptual skills and helps the individual move towards an understanding of cultural differences and changes
(Gulbenkian Foundation: Arts in Schools, 1989)

Education/TYP activities are designed to complement and enhance the theatre programme and are a key element in programme planning. Activities should recognise the needs of both the individual and the collective (age-range) and where appropriate also recognise the needs of the Curriculum, in order to encourage teachers to make full use of resources and be ambassadors for arts activities for young people. Educational/TYP activities should always have clear aims and objectives, be properly structured and be subject to continual evaluation and appraisal.

We aim to inspire in young people, through Clwyd Theatr Cymru, a hunger for the arts and arts activities, and aim to practically achieve this on several levels: through encouraging young people to participate in the theatre programme, by working directly with young people, by working with teachers, and by involving educational advisers so that we can fully integrate the theatre educational/TYP activities into the available educational resources of the area. We aim to develop a staffing structure with senior management responsibility within the theatre, an appropriate policy forum, key administrative staff, assistant administrator/secretarial support, technical resources where appropriate, and young people’s liaison resources.

Tim Baker