Newsletter Autumn 2026

Young people aged 11-16 came together for three inspiring days at our Performing Arts Summer School. They explored drama, movement and music through our theme of “The Future” – building confidence, unleashing their creativity, making new friends and most importantly, having lots of fun along the way.

As part of the experience, young people were also introduced to university life, encouraging them to think about their futures and the exciting opportunities and possibilities that lie ahead.

100% of parents surveyed rated the summer school as Excellent. One parent said:

I can’t believe how much they achieved in three days! Seeing how performing arts has recently been improving my child’s mental health and sense of purpose, I was so pleased this summer school was available. Watching her confidence grow on stage, there are so many positives about this type of focused community get together, along with using the opportunity for the next generation to be aware of rising issues with the subject matter they covered. I thought this was fantastic!

A huge thank you to Higher Horizons for supporting this project!

This summer, more than 1500 Year 6 and 7 pupils from schools in Birmingham, Cheshire, Croydon and Derby have taken part in our Moving Up session.

“Moving Up” is designed to help young people feel more prepared, supported and confident about the move to secondary school.

Through our interactive theatre performance and guided discussions, pupils explore common worries about starting secondary school, from making new friends to adapting to a new environment, while learning positive ways to manage change and build confidence.

The sessions gave pupils a safe and engaging space to share their thoughts, ask questions and recognise that feeling nervous about such a big transition is completely normal.

By the end of the session, pupils had developed a more positive understanding of secondary school and felt better equipped to take their next big step with confidence!

Pupil feedback:

“I feel ready to go to my new secondary school now and am much less worried about moving up.” 
 
“Attending the production made me feel much more confident about joining secondary school, and now I have a plan so I do not get lost in the big building!” 
 
“It explained really well what life is going to be like in secondary school and how to get help if we need it.” 
 
“They showed us situations from the real life that could happen in secondary school and taught us ways to solve problems and make good choices.” 

We partnered with the Aspire2Uni team to deliver a public speaking and communication skills workshop for care-experienced young people.

Aspire2Uni (A2U) is a University of Wolverhampton programme. It supports care-experienced young people from Year 7 onwards by raising aspirations, removing barriers to learning, and helping them understand and pursue opportunities in higher education.

Through our hands-on, interactive activities, young people developed their ability to structure ideas, present clearly and speak with confidence in front of an audience!

By the end of the day, every student delivered a two minute presentation to their peers on a topic of their choice – a fantastic achievement that showcased real confidence and growth.

Read more about our partnership with Aspire2Uni in our Case Study.

We kicked off the new academic year with a group icebreaker session at the University of Salford to launch this year’s “Plug Into Salford”programme.

“Plug Into Salford” is all about supporting young people who are the first in their family to attend university, helping them to transition into student life with confidence.

It was fantastic to see students getting involved in our activities, meeting new people and having open conversations about their hopes, challenges and fears as they begin this exciting new chapter.

Learn more about our Teambuilding and Icebreaker Workshops here.