News – Southampton Cultural Education Partnership

Apply for Expo 2026: Showcase Your Creative Offer to Teachers & Schools

Opportunity for SCEP Members (Arts & Culture Orgs & Freelancers)

The Southampton Cultural Education Partnership (SCEP) and the Southampton Education Forum (SEF) are delighted to present our 2026 Expo:

Culture Connects: Inspiring Belonging, Creativity & Attendance Harnessing the power of arts and partnerships to keep every child engaged in learning

TWILIGHT SESSION
Thursday 23 April 2026, 4.00–6.00 pm
Hosted by Redbridge Community School, Cuckmere Lane, Southampton SO16 9RJ

This event will combine short CPD sessions with a marketplace of arts and cultural providers, helping teachers connect with partners who can offer support.

Sign-up for a Stall at the Expo

BOOKING FORM – SIGN-UP HERE Deadline Friday 27 March 2026

The Expo explores how arts and culture inspire belonging, creativity and attendance, supporting every child to stay engaged in learning.

Your stand should highlight opportunities you can offeer that enhance pupil engagement in learning—such as banners, displays, resource samples, interactive activities, or creative giveaways.

We will produce an exhibitor listing that includes your contact details and a concise 50‑word elevator pitch explaining how your offer supports student engagement through belonging, creativity and attendance.**

BOOKING FORM – SIGN-UP HERE Deadline Friday 27 March 2026

**Elevator Pitch Prompt (50 words):** Describe clearly and concisely how your organisation inspires belonging, creativity, and attendance in schools. Focus on the specific ways your arts or cultural offer supports pupil engagement and enhances learning. What makes your offer impactful, accessible, and valuable for teachers?

If you have any questions please email scep@soton.ac.uk

Our Response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review

Following the recent Curriculum and Assessment review, the SCEP Chair, Kath Page, has shared her thoughts on the proposed changes.

“The recent Curriculum and Assessment Review marks a significant shift for arts education in England. By outlining the intention to remove barriers such as the EBacc, introducing a national entitlement to cultural experiences, and renewing curriculum content to be inclusive and future-focused, the review places creativity at the heart of learning. It promises equal status for arts subjects, investment in teacher development, and accountability measures that value a broad and balanced curriculum. These changes affirm the vital role of the arts in fostering confidence, creativity, and cultural understanding, creating new opportunities for partnerships to ensure every child benefits from high-quality arts education. The arts are not optional extras—they are essential for fostering imagination, confidence, and cultural understanding. Now is the time for schools, communities, and cultural partners to seize this opportunity and ensure every child experiences the transformative power of the arts.”

Kath Page, SCEP Chair

Invitation to Tender: Southampton Cultural Education Partnership Seeks New Lead

Sam Cairns giving a speech at the SCEP Expo 2024. Photo credit: Nosa Malcolm.

TIMESCALE: May 2025 to July 2026
BUDGET: Up to £6,000.00 inclusive of VAT
TENDER DEADLINE: Friday 21 March 2025
INTERVIEWS: In-person interviews on Tuesday 1 April or Friday 4 April 2025, 10.30 – 1pm at a central Southampton venue.

Southampton Cultural Education Partnership is seeking an education consultant for a fourteen month minimum period to run the SCEP and work with its Steering Group and members to support the development of partnership working across the cultural and education sectors and child-focused services in Southampton.

This contract is offered on a flexible basis, however some evening and weekend work and the ability to work in-person in Southampton will be required, as well as work during school holidays.

Banister Primary School’s Journey with Dance

Pupils at Banister Primary School have been using movement and dance to look at geography and science from a new perspective.

Natalie Watson and Year 4 students at Banister Primary School exploring geography and science using dance and movement.
SCEP *Cultural Curriculum*, part *of Better Lives Through Culture*. Photographs: Nosa Malcolm

Movement and dance specialist Natalie Watson has been working with the school to devise new ways of teaching geography and science as part of the Southampton Cultural Education Partnership (SCEP) Cultural Curriculum project.

After a term working with the Year 4 classes (together with teachers Miss Golden and Mr Darling) to devise a new scheme of work for geography, the project has been rolled out across different key stages and Natalie has now worked with the Early Years Foundation Stage, Year 2 and Year 5 on their science curriculum.

During an inset day in April, Natalie also ran whole school CPD workshop with the full teaching staff to discover ways to bring dance and movement into their daily lesson planning.

The Cultural Curriculum project is taking place in four different school settings across Southampton with Arts2Educate, SoCo Music Project, ArtfulScribe, as well as dance practitioner Natalie.

Are you a school setting looking to develop Cultural Capital and creative learning in the classroom? Get in touch with scep@soton.ac.uk to explore how we can support your ambitions.

SCEP supported by

Better Lives Through Culture, in partnership with Artswork

Watching the magic happen

Creative Mentor Amy Spencer describes exploring creative ideas in the ‘safe place’ of the art department with her mentee.

Amy Spencer, visual artist, SCEP Creative Mentor

Hello, my name is Amy and I am a visual artist and mentor for SCEP. Since starting my training for the Creative Mentoring Programme back in November last year, I have been trying to imagine how it might play out in real life.