This week on the blog Abigail Hutchison, Tutor/Mentor and Arts Award adviser at YMCA Manchester shares some top tips for encouraging young people to remain engaged in your Arts Award programme. These tips focus on making the framework accessible, meaningful and achievable - no matter how irregular young people’s attendance may be!
YMCA Manchester is built on the belief that young people flourish when creativity, culture and opportunity are central to their development. Working with an array of young people, we believe that the arts play a vital role in fostering confidence, self-expression and personal growth.
Delivering Arts Award within Alternative Provision (AP) settings can be incredibly rewarding but rarely predictable. Young people’s attendance can be inconsistent, timelines often shift and traditional methods for recording portfolio evidence do not always appeal to them.
1. Focus on consistency, not attendance
Attendance may be sporadic, but your offer should be consistent.
Keeping a consistent Arts Award structure for each session is key, especially when attendance varies. A familiar format helps young people quickly re-engage, understand expectations and pick up where they left off without feeling lost or disconnected from their progress.
One effective approach is the use of personal checklists. By giving each learner their own checklist, they gain a sense of ownership over their journey. It allows them to track what they have completed, find next steps and independently manage their progress. This not only supports continuity between sessions but also builds confidence, autonomy and a clearer sense of achievement as they move through Arts Award.
2. Be flexible with your Arts Award schedule
A unit that might typically take one week could take five and that is okay!
Avoid rigid deadlines. Instead, allow young people to revisit and build on their work over time. Progress should be measured by engagement and completion, not speed.
3. Keep it young person-centred
Arts Award thrives when young people have ownership.
Encouraging young people to take ownership of their Arts Award journey is essential. Giving them the freedom to choose their art forms, themes and how they present their work - whether through music, drawing, photography or performance - helps to build motivation and a genuine sense of pride in what they create. When learners feel that their interests and voices are valued, their engagement becomes much more meaningful.
A key part of supporting this process is showing a range of portfolio examples from the outset. Providing both a scrapbook-style example and an editable digital template helps young people visualise their options and decide what will work best for them. It also ensures that, regardless of their chosen format, they have a clear structure to follow, making the process feel accessible while still allowing for creativity and personal expression.
4. Break down the portfolio into sections
Completing an Arts Award portfolio can feel overwhelming if presented as one task.
Use a simple tick-sheet or checklist at the front of each part of the award to break it into manageable steps. This helps learners clearly see what they have achieved and what comes next. It also allows you to be flexible with what section to deliver next.
5. Use creative evidence methods
Written work is not the only way to evidence learning in Arts Award.
Offer alternatives such as:
- Short videos explaining their work
- Photos of their art with captions
- Voice recordings
- Scribed notes (you write what they say, word for word – see this blog post for more information)
- Witness statements from staff (see this blog post for more detail on the Arts Award witness statements policy)
This removes barriers and allows all learners to succeed.
6. Try ‘pop-up’ or photo-reel portfolios
An engaging approach is to create portfolios that feel like a visual journey.
Presenting evidence so it ‘pops up’ or folds out, or a photo-reel style format helps learners see their progress and creates a sense of storytelling within their portfolio they can identify with.
7. Make it interactive and playful
Engagement increases when learning feels hands-on.
Encourage creative techniques when building portfolios like:
These small touches make the process more enjoyable and personal.
8. Celebrate small wins
In AP settings, progress can be slow—but every step counts.
Completing a single section, contributing an idea or attending a session are all achievements worth recognising. Celebrating these moments builds confidence and keeps learners motivated.
9. Be prepared to adapt on the spot
No two sessions will look the same.
Be ready to change your plan depending on who attends, how they are feeling and what they are ready to engage with. Having flexible, stand-alone activities linked to the Arts Award criteria can help you respond in the moment.
10. It is not always about the finished product
Make the most of the flexibility of Arts Award.
It is important to emphasise that Arts Award is not about the finished product, but about the journey each learner goes on. Focusing on the creative process - experimenting, reflecting, developing ideas, and even making mistakes, helps learners build confidence and resilience.
This approach encourages deeper engagement and ensures that their portfolio reflects not just what they created, but what they learned, discovered and achieved throughout their Arts Award experience.
Closing reflections
Try introducing a scrapbook-style portfolio or a simple tick-sheet checklist in your next session. Slight changes like these can have a significant impact on engagement and help your learners take real ownership of their Arts Award journey.
Photo by YMCA Manchester
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