New ‘Creative Connections’

7th May 2025

Last week, Mags took part in a Professional Learning Event with the Creative Connections programme which will be delivered in schools in the 2025-26 academic year.  Creative Connections gives children and young people the unique opportunity to work with professional artists, bringing creativity and the arts directly into their learning. Schools from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland have been selected for the programme and will work in clusters of four, with two schools from each jurisdiction, collaborating on bespoke creative learning projects across borders.

The Creative Connections programme builds on the success of the Creative Schools Partnership Programme in Northern Ireland and the Irish government’s BLAST (Bringing Live Arts to Students and Teachers) and Creative Clusters initiatives. This programme gives children and young people the unique opportunity to work with professional artists, bringing creativity and the arts directly into their learning.

Each school will work with a professional artist and will lead to some in-school residencies. First off Mags was thrilled to be paired with St Joseph’s Primary School, Crumlin.  From September she will work with St Mary’s Boys School in Monaghan.  It is exciting to be part of this evolving creative journey where young voices will lead the way!

The programme funders are: