As we can’t meet in person right now, we’re giving families The Gift, creative activity packs to fire up your imagination.

Artists Sarah-Jane Mason and Lizzie Hobbs drew on the rich history, stories and character of Batley, Dewsbury, Heckmondwike, Cleckheaton and Mirfield – and all the streets, suburbs and snickets in-between, to create the Gift.

The packs contain creative materials so you can learn about the local area’s rich history of protest and activism and create badges and banners, write magical tales with the help of a story dice, and create a shadow theatre to perform them in.

The Gift activity packs will be distributed safely, to families and older people, working with our partner organisations who serve families, older and isolated people: Royal Voluntary Service, Kumon Y’All, Ravensthorpe Community Centre, More in Common, Pakistan Kashmiri Welfare Association and Yorkshire Children’s Centre.

At the end of the summer, we will curate an exhibition (this might be online or in real life) of the brilliant creations that people make from the activity packs. The Gift will be given back to the whole community, showcasing the talents and imaginations, special places and people of the area.

You can join in too!

If you didn’t receive The Gift, you can download your packs here:

• Creating by Experimenting;
• Creating for Activism;
• Creating with Machines;
• Creating with Light;
• Creating With Maps;
• Creating with Textiles;
• Creating with Words;
• Creativity in Recycling.