A multi-faceted scheme using the arts to improve the literacy and numeracy attainment of young people at risk of offending or re-offending is bringing remarkable results. Lynne Tabone explains.
An audit of young people serving Detention and Training Orders conducted in 2001(1) found that over 50% of young people have literacy and numeracy levels below those of the average 11-year old; some 19% were functioning at or below the level of the average seven-year-old in literacy and 31% in numeracy; and 80% of young people receiving custodial sentences had no qualifications. In an attempt to address these disturbing statistics, Arts Council England is working in partnership with the Youth Justice Board and the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) to develop and implement The PLUS Strategy, a multi-faceted scheme which aims to improve the literacy and numeracy attainment of young people at risk of (re-)offending.
Five-point strategy
Five key elements are at the heart of the PLUS Strategy. High quality teaching and learning resources, including a range of "arts enrichment programmes", have been designed and tailored to the needs of these young people. Continuing Professional Development opportunities support staff in the implementation of the strategy, and there is information and advice available to help managers plan and review the effectiveness of their implementation of the arts programmes within secure and community settings. A comprehensive programme of research and evaluation is developing an evidence base about the effectiveness of the PLUS activities in preventing (re-)offending; and this is feeding a programme of advocacy to promote a clearer understanding of issues relating to basic skills and (re-)offending.
Implementation
The PLUS arts enrichment programmes themselves have been designed and peer reviewed in conjunction with practising artists working in the field of youth justice, for use in custody and community contexts. These provide opportunities for young people to engage in a range of creative activities while also developing their basic skills. The range of arts enrichment programmes available is now extensive:
- Digital Music, developed in partnership with Raw Material
- Sounds Good, developed with Writers in Prisons Network
- Visual Arts, developed with Graham Elstone of Low Brow Trash and Engage
- Drama, developed in partnership with TiPP (Theatre in Prisons and Probation Centres)
- Looking Good/Feeling Good: Designing Our World, developed with the University of Hertfordshire Faculty of Cultural and Creative Industries
- Poetry, developed in partnership with poet Helen Clare
- Storytelling, to which numerous storytellers and arts practitioners contributed
- Viewpoint: Digital Photography, which is currently being developed with contributions from Tim Brown, photographer and arts practitioner from Raw Material
- Circus Skills, currently being developed with circus practitioners.
These programmes are proving popular both with learners and practitioners, and are being used in a range of settings including preventative programmes, intensive supervision and surveillance programmes, schools, pupil referral units, FE colleges, training providers and custodial settings. They are designed to appeal to young people at risk and re-engage them in learning, whilst also providing them with a creative experience which can lead to the development of new skills and interests. The resources are colourful and well-designed, and provide guidance and materials for facilitators as well as activities for learners. Every programme encourages learners to build up a portfolio of work.
Opportunities for arts practitioners
The implementation of the PLUS Strategy has highlighted the need for capacity building within the arts sector so that an increasing number of arts practitioners develop context-specific skills based upon the evidence of what works with young people at risk of (re-)offending. The Youth Justice Board's National Qualifications Framework (NQF) offers arts practitioners the chance to develop the necessary knowledge and understanding to build evidence-based practice in working with young people at risk of (re-)offending aged up to 18 years, and partnership working with Arts Council England will enable up to 150 arts practitioners to access the NQF in the 2005/06 financial year.
For further information on any aspect of the PLUS strategy, t: 020 7304 7072; e: plusinformation@ecotec.co.uk.
(1) Source: Audit and Review of Education in the Youth Justice System, Youth Justice Board, 2001 
Rob, aged 14, took a great interest in the Digital Music lessons and learning materials. His father is a DJ and as such is already interested in this subject area. His English teacher revealed that, while he would read and write in his music lessons, it was hard to get him to do his work in his English lessons, where he tended to feel defeated by even simple literacy tasks. This was also true for his maths lessons. Rob had little problem calculating speed and sound levels while sampling music, but the same principles did not interest him in a regular maths lesson. Rob said, "The Digital Music lessons are really interesting. I hate maths lessons but this is so much fun. It can get complicated at times but you learn about computers and music and I get less distracted." Rob's teachers agreed that the literacy and numeracy elements were disguised by the focus on music within the enrichment sessions: "The reading and maths is well hidden. Most of our students have low self esteem but this helps them realise they are doing not only music, but maths and writing as well. You can't get them to sit down in a maths lesson, but do the same thing in a music lesson and they are all so eager."