Shaping the makers of tomorrow – Heatherwick studio launches major new creative education programme for young people
Heatherwick studio has launched a three-year creative education programme that will work with 600 young people aged 10-14. Named In The Making, the initiative will be one of the biggest programmes run by any design studio in Britain. It aims to inspire young people to see themselves as creative and support all 6,000 architecture practices across the UK to engage with schools.
In The Making launches as the Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, kicks off a hugely significant Curriculum and Assessment review. This looks set to change school accountability measures, including Progress 8, and give more weight to creative education in the way that schools are assessed.
In support of these efforts, Heatherwick studio has developed a unique programme of light touch, high volume creative learning for 10–14-year-olds. This has been co-designed with young people and then tested through a year-long pilot involving 230 teenagers, 21 architects and designers, and 14 workshops with two pioneering youth organisations, Global Generation and IntoUniversity.
“This is a pivotal moment for arts education and Britain’s creative industries,” said Thomas Heatherwick, founder and design director at Heatherwick studio. “Everyone working in design is passionate about supporting young people. But most programmes offered by the sector are too rare, too small, and too late. We need to intervene earlier, before students choose their GCSEs, and help young people see themselves as creative.”
• Programme run at the studio’s home in Kings Cross will be one of the largest in the country
• Hundreds of 10-14 years olds will take part in hands-on workshops inspiring young people to see themselves as creative
• Free resources offered to 6,000 architecture practices to help the whole sector get involved in creative education
• Launch coincides with the government’s new Curriculum and Assessment review and commitment to tackle the crisis in arts education
Arts education today is deep in crisis. Despite a growing body of evidence which shows that creative education positively impacts on young people’s attendance, performance and mental health, delivery in schools has collapsed on the back of government funding cuts and introduction of the EBacc which deprioritised creative subjects.
The number of hours spent teaching creative subjects in English state-funded secondary schools fell by 23% from 2011-2024 and the number of teachers teaching those subjects by 27%. Unsurprisingly, this has led to a 37% decline in GCSE entries for these subjects.
In 2022, The Guardian reported that on average specific government funding for music, arts and cultural programmes equated to just £9.40 per pupil this year.
To help turn the tide, Heatherwick studio is publishing three open-source assets, freely available to any architecture practice. These are:
The template for a 2-hour workshop that can be adapted and used in any setting to run a creative education session with young people.
An accompanying Practice Guide with tips and ideas for designers who haven’t previously worked with schools and young people.
A short Evidence Review summarising all the available research on the current state of creative education and its potential impact on young people.
“The great thing about architecture in the UK is that it has much greater geographic reach than most other creative professions”, said Matt Bell, Heatherwick’s Strategic Communications Director. “The Government rightly wants to expand the choices available to every child wherever they live and whatever their background. Architects are brilliantly placed to support this. If every architecture practice in this country ran one workshop each term with a class from their local school, that would reach 180,000 young people.”
Programme endorsements
“Heatherwick studio’s ‘In the Making’ is a fantastic example of how the profession can contribute to and encourage the creativity of future generations. No young person should miss out on a creative education. The Government must work together with the creative industries to ensure that access is universal.”
Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) President Muyiwa Oki
“Young people were involved from the very beginning to co-create the content of the workshops, to name the programme and train Heatherwick’s designers how to work with young people. There is so much potential for this programme to develop if more architect practices and design studios reach out to local schools."
Nicole Van den Eijnde, Joint Director, Global Generation
“Creativity and the arts are a vital part of what brings meaning to our students' lives. Arts education develops a lifelong curiosity, it gives them the chance to look at the world from different perspectives, and through craft develops a sense of quality. These qualities are all vital to a thriving society.”
Tom Aldridge, Head of Art, Maria Fidelis Secondary School, London
"Working directly with people who have made successful careers in design and architecture is a really powerful tool for inspiring the next generation to unlock their own creative potential. So far, 128 young people from IntoUniversity centres have already benefited from this unique programme.”
Michael Spierin, Head of Operations (Strategy & Impact) at IntoUniversity.
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About Heatherwick studio
Heatherwick studio is a design team of over 250 problem solvers dedicated to making the physical world around us better for everyone. Their recent work includes two new campuses for Google in Bay View California, Little Island in New York, Coal Drops Yard in Kings