find out about our impact and outreach work

Over the last 17 years Making Space has delivered hundreds of valuable outreach projects within the local area and across the south coast. Read about some of the amazing work we have done and the partnerships we have fostered. 

feeling inspired?

If you are interested in commissioning Making Space to design a bespoke project for your group / organisation please get in touch. We have 17 years' worth of experience in creative bespoke projects for groups and we love the opportunity to work together. Please click on the button below to get in touch. We look forward to hearing how we can create something special just for you!

making a start

 Making Space has recently launched a brand-new project aiming to help 16 – 25 year olds who have an interest in a creative career and launching a small creative business. The project will take place online and in-house providing sessions for up to 25 young people living in Hampshire who wish to develop their skills in order to make a living by launching a craft business. 

creative futures

Funded by The Ragdoll Foundation Creative Futures offered those involved a creative experience where they could learn new skills and build an inspirational portfolio to aid them in their creative future plans. The project was designed for young women aged 14-17 and over the course of a year participants got to take part in four mini creative projects : Fashion Design and Pattern Cutting, Jewellery Design and Silversmithing, Millinery Design and Construction and Textile Design. We also helped support the group in gaining a Bronze Art Award, careers guidance and an exhibition as part of Hampshire Open Studios.

asylum seekers summer programme

For the last four years Making Space has worked with Portsmouth City Council, providing high quality creative workshops with groups of young asylum seekers. From learning how to guild a frame, to making ceramic sculptures, these sessions provide those most vulnerable with a creative opportunity to express themselves, learn new skills and have fun.

reach
​out

Reach Out is an ongoing project supported by Short Breaks. We programme in workshops specifically for children and young people with additional needs. These high-quality sessions include lots of additional support and resources so that participants can have the best possible experience. The relaxed and friendly workshops are designed to give the parents or carers a short break.

craft in our
​community

In 2024 Making Space ran a volunteer training project in Winchester Funded by Winchester City Council. Working with volunteers from across the city we delivered a series of workshops that taught valuable creative skills that those attending could take back to their own organisations, ensure those that most in need, benefit from the positive outcomes of creativity.  

upstitch

Funded by The Waste Prevention Fund at Hampshire County Council. Upstitch consisted of four mini projects that all focused on a different activity that reduced household waste, but also created items that were then donated to those that need them most through the Warm Hubs in Havant. The Upstitch sessions were led by the wonderful Wood & Daughters and projects included transfroming coats, making hand warmers, winter accessories and hot water bottle bags.

paper bird project

In the autumn of 2023 Making Space collaborated with artist Tracey Bush and Hampshire Libraries to deliver creative workshops and craft kits to 40 Hampshire Libraries. The project responded to the themes of sanctuary and arriving here from another country, through global migration, and the comforting image of a flock. The project involved papercraft, collage & illustration. 

little lives

In the summer of 2022 23 ran an inclusive family project called Little Lives | Making Together where we bought families together to get creative funded by Little Lives.
A series of free facilitated crafty workshops for children and their caregivers. Participants got the opportunity to try air-dry clay, weaving, beading / macrame, painting, oil pastels and fabric painting. The workshops were created to inspire, challenge and increase participants confidence, learning new skills and sharing new experiences with their caregivers. The whole programme was completely free to access for Leigh Park families.

make new & mend

Funded by Hampshire County Council’s Waste Prevention Fund, this project prevented household waste through a series of ‘make new and mend’ inspired workshops. 
The sessions taught participants inventive and clever ways to repurpose, upcycle and mend household items to prevent them from going to waste. Those attending learnt new creative skills and gained knowledge and confidence. Rather than a ‘repair cafe’ format, we taught the techniques so participants could do it themselves and pass those skills on.

ehcp provision

An Education, Health and Care plan (EHCP) is a legal document that outlines the educational, health, and social care needs of a child or young person with special educational needs or disabilities. Making Space has on various occasions created a bespoke offer to be part of a EHCP Plan for a young person who is unable to attend mainstream education for various reasons.

craft in our community

Making Space launched an inspiring Volunteer Training Project; Craft in our Community. We worked with professional makers and trained volunteers in creative activities which they could then take back to share within their own organisation or companies. Sessions included Paper Craft, Felt Work, Clay, Printmaking, Macrame & No Sew Applique.

craft 
​kits

Like so many other organisations, Making Space adapted to delivering online services during lockdown.  We got onboard with the Art Council’s Let’s Create campaign and created Craft Kits for our local community.
We spent summer 2020 assembling special Craft Kits for families using the local food bank. We wanted to help Leigh Park families get creative and have fun at home. 
The Craft Kits are part of the #LetsCreate campaign and were supported by Arts Council England via Artswork the South East Bridge. Making Space also received funding from the Tesco Bags of Help COVID-19 Communities Fund. Investment from both of these funders have contributed towards our time, the materials and resources included. We expanded the project even further and delivered several hundred more craft kits to homeless charities, hospices, care homes, rape crisis centres and more.

on the street where we live

In 2011, the Heritage Lottery Fund awarded Making Space a grant of £50,000 for On the Street Where We Live, a project that celebrated life in Leigh Park, from its early development as a housing estate in the 1940s, right up to the present day. Launched by the Mayor of Havant, Councillor Ken Smith, the project included a programme of events and creative workshops for the local community. Personal stories and experiences that brought the history of the area to life were uncovered, shared and celebrated. Residents of all ages shared memories and photographs, researching the history of their local area and nominating ‘local heroes’. The series of free events gave participants the chance to enjoy working with craft artists, filmmakers and historians to create interactive memory boxes, a film and a new map of Leigh Park as a legacy for the future. We worked with two fantastic artists; Jon Lockhart led the work on the four memory boxes and Rachel Reynolds took the lead on the production of the Community Map.
If you are interested in commissioning Making Space to design a bespoke project for your group / organisation please get in touch. We have 17 years' worth of experience in creative bespoke projects for groups and we look forward to hearing how we can create something special just for you!

making space for crafts ltd

Making Space is a company limited by guarantee no 04482576 and a registered charity no 1108387
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