Littlehampton station hosts powerful art exhibition created by children not in mainstream education

​The exhibition consists of a series of bold posters which will be displayed on the platforms, and a vibrant new mural outside of the station. The artworks have been designed with young people at the West Sussex Alternative Provision College in Littlehampton as part of youth arts charity Artswork’s Young Cultural Changemakers programme and in partnership with Southeast Community Rail Partnership, Littlehampton train station and National Rail.

During this project, the young people worked with different artists over a five-month period to develop their skills and to explore their feelings about their town, themselves, and issues and experiences of youth violence.

HAVE YOU READ? Famous Sussex airfield to be transformed with plans for new primary school alongside houses and 60-bed care home

‘Now You See Me’ brings all of this together into a series of thought-provoking posters, alongside the mural which has been designed to brighten perceptions of the town.

Artists involved in the project have included Priority-154 (graphic art, spray painting) Audioactive (song-writing, rap), Exploring Senses (digital art and 3D printing) and Lindsey Smith (photography).

Alongside developing creative work, the young people have received training in transferable skills such as communication, and achieved Arts Awards. The Young Cultural Changemakers programme, which runs across five areas in the South East (Dover, the Isle of Wight, the New Forest and Slough, alongside Arun), aims to empower young people through training and creative opportunities to make projects happen that they feel will positively impact their communities.

The project has also been supported by the Safer Arun Partnership which brings together a number of agencies to jointly work to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour across the District.

Beccy East, placemaking creative producer for Arun, said: “The work these young people have produced is powerful and makes a fierce commentary on their feelings about the world they are growing up in. We are extremely grateful for the partnerships that have supported us to platform these often unheard perspectives in our town.”

YOU MIGHT LIKE: Worthing, Shoreham, Littlehampton and Lancing schools celebrate World Book Day 2024 – in pictures

Clinton Groves, head of school at the APC, said: “Artswork’s project has been really well received by a large number of our students. They have thoroughly enjoyed working alongside a range of artists and have produced some truly thought-provoking work that communicates their feelings about their local community and their place within it.”

The exhibition will run over several months at the station and it is hoped that the mural will make a meaningful long-term addition to the town.