The Craft Council Handbook

The b u l C t f Cra book Hand rg.uk tclub.o f a r c . www

Craft Club Handbook: Table of Contents Project Outline & Aims p.03 The Volunteer Job Description p.04 Using the Website p.06 The 6 Week Craft Club Plan p.08 Extra Project Ideas p.10 Welcome to Your Club p.11 Week 1: Casting On p.14 Week 2: Knit & Purl p.16 Week 3: Combinations of Knit & Purl p.18 Week 4: Increasing & Decreasing p.20 Week 5: Crochet p.22 Week 6: Finishing & Photographing p.24 Examples of Projects p.26 Problem Solving p.27 Diary/Notes Section p.28 Going into Schools p.29 Planning & Evaluating p.30 Equipment & Materials p.31 Craft Club Volunteers: Training Days p.32 How to Hold Your Own Cascade Training Session p.33 Sources for Further Research p.34 FAQs p.36 Forms p.02

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Project Outline & Aims Welcome to Craft Club: the national campaign that enables craft.

The Crafts Council promotes the value of craft to develop future makers and audiences. Craft Club’s Knit1, Pass It On campaign has shown how much children enjoy yarn crafts. Knitting and crochet for example provide not only a sense of achievement but boost co-ordination and improve dexterity, as well as developing core skills such as maths and handwriting.

Craft can help to create links between school, home and work and between generations and communities. Engaging young people in craft is vital to encourage innovative and creative thinking and to open up career progression routes. Working with the hands is a life skill that can be useful in all walks of life, from becoming a designer and maker, to being a surgeon or baker, and even to sewing on your own buttons.

Knit 1, Pass it On was the first project for Craft Club now joined by Hook 1, Pass it On. Clubs offer good value, accessible and creatively limitless craft projects for schools. Members are able to sign up to the website and upload their own patterns, plans and ideas, so with your help we will collate a library of resources.

Vocational and practical learning are too often cited as the poorer relation to academic studies.

Practical hands-on learning is about much more than learning how to make a living and the brightest young people benefit as much as much as their peers. Haptic learning is stimulating to more of the senses and more of the brain, delivers more cognitive development than other types of learning and improves levels of achievement across all subjects. A narrow subject curriculum that limits this kinaesthetic learning is a barrier to achievement for specific groups of pupils, particularly boys.

This Handbook will give the volunteer all the information necessary to set up a Craft Club, what you will need to do and who to contact and a six week plan.

Delivered by the Crafts Council in partnership with the UK Hand Knitting Association (UKHKA) and the National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI), Craft Club helps to give young people access to a full range of fun and rewarding craft projects as part of their cultural learning. We aim to unite skilled and enthusiastic volunteers with schools through after-hours clubs and with young people and their families in museums, libraries and galleries.

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Using This Handbook

This Handbook outlines the practicalities for fulfilling your role as a volunteer. However, please regard it as a guideline, as circumstances will be different for each group, and each set of individuals. It is designed so that pages with how-to information are photocopiable for you to share with the rest of your club, as well as the forms which you will need to copy.

The Volunteer Job Description Volunteers play a key role in the successful implementation of Craft Club in our local schools and venues, and for that we – and the children, young people and families you are supporting – are very grateful! As a Craft Club volunteer, you will already be equipped with craft skills such as knitting or crochet, and you will be passionate about passing on these skills to others.

Volunteers of Craft Club include: parents, carers, siblings, school governors, local craftspeople, community volunteers, WI members, yarn shop owners, knitting group members, teachers, school support staff, student-teachers, teaching assistants, and other people managing clubs in venues such as museums, libraries or galleries.

Volunteers can attend our free training days, and receive information about how Craft Club works and what they need to do set up their own club. We teach trainers about what they can expect when working with young people, bring them up to date on the legalities of safeguarding children, Health & Safety, and provide a place to share creative ideas.

After the training day, our new Craft Club Champions then return to their local areas to “pass it on” to others so that this learning can be spread to as many interested people as possible. This role is invaluable as the more volunteers we have the more people there are to share craft skills with others.

What You Can Expect Volunteers usually give a few hours of their time on a weekly basis to make a club happen. This involves travel time getting to and from the school or venue, as well as time to prepare materials and the activities before each session and the session itself which may be between 1 and 2 hours. The more help you garner from fellow crafters, parents, and teachers at schools, the easier it will be for all involved to make clubs run smoothly.

Of course the young people will love learning from you, but there may also be benefits for the volunteer.

Connecting with your local school opens doors to new social situations and links with your community, giving a sense of purpose with rewarding results.

‘Recycled Rainforest at the NEC’, Adrian Burrows, 2009 ‘Learning to finger knit’, Adrian Burrows, 2009

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Using the Website www.craftclub.org.uk The Craft Club website, is the place for students, volunteers, and teachers to find out more on how to get involved and set up Craft Clubs and access some great resources. Simply sign up.

Using the website

Competition

Anyone can browse the site but to contribute you have to log in. By clicking on the ‘Join Up’ button, you can follow the simple steps to sign up with Craft Club. Read the descriptions to find out what kind of member you are: a volunteer, a teacher or professional educator or a young person.

Once you’ve joined you can access everything that the website has to offer.

Every term a well-known maker or celebrity crafter is invited to select their favourite Craft Club image from the gallery. Each winning snap will feature on our website for the duration of the half-term, next to a Q&A with the maker about their choice, and the winning club will be awarded a great Craft Club goody box as a prize. We will also highlight other national schemes through the website so your club can get involved.

By clicking on the Community tab, you will discover a wealth of resources to tap into! This is your hub for all things craft. Members have free-reign to show off their great projects, ask for advice and support others when they need a helping hand. The site is moderated so that it is a safe place for young people and we ask everyone who signs up to respect other members.

If you’re not joined up yet, then have a browse of the site and simply sign up to join in!

Capture It With mobile phones and media devices making it easy to record video clips, why not record your making process to teach other Craft Clubbers – or simply to show off your work! Upload all of your craft-related videos here – it could even be a video of you and your friends chatting about a project you did recently. Images won’t be uploaded straight away: as a safeguard they need to be moderated by the team before they are posted.

Here is what is available to you:

Gallery This is an ever-expanding online showcase of Craft Club creativity. All Craft Clubbers are invited to log-in and share images of their craft projects, or upload step-by-step pictures of making techniques.

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All images need to have the permission of the people in them in order to be shown. You’ll find a ‘consent form’ at the back of this book which you can fill in and send back. Many schools will have a broad permission policy which most children are already signed up to. If you are in doubt stick to images of the creative work, and people’s hands only.

If you have any questions or need help getting started contact : knit1@craftclub.org.uk

Forum

File Transfer

This is your space to chat and socialize with other crafters. Perhaps someone has knitted a phone cover‌ so how did they do it? What inspired their designs? This is the place to share ideas and ask questions. You can also put out announcements for what you are doing, any events or calls for volunteer help in your local area.

This is the place to find all the forms for downloading as well as guidelines, project plans and ideas. If you are a volunteer that is ready to set up a club, everything you need to start is here! You’ll find knitting patterns, teaching plans and ideas, along with the Craft Club poster to print out and put up in your school/venue.

Upload Area This is the one-stop station for uploading all of your files to share with others. You can share a pattern, picture or film here.

Craft Map Get your Craft Club on the new map. If you are looking for a club or school you can search by postcode for all things crafty: events, schools, clubs, shops, museums, and much more.

www.craftclub.org.uk

www.craftclub.org.uk

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The 6 Week Craft Club Plan It is always a good idea to have a plan in place when you are starting something new. We have outlined some project ideas that will last up to six weeks to complete with your pupils just to get you started. Craft Club welcomes all kinds of craft, but we will use knitting as an example as it is a great yarn craft to begin with as it is so popular and accessible.

Using the 6 Week Plan In each session you should have available some cardboard or plastic rings for making pompoms and a couple of sets of knitting already cast on and started for people to pick up and practice on.

This plan is designed so that each week you teach a new knitting stitch or technique. However everyone in your Craft Club will work at different paces and enjoy different things so you will find that some people want to practice knitting stitches each week whereas others will zoom ahead to moss stitch and cables.

If anyone in Craft Club is having a difficult time perhaps encourage them to take a break from whatever they are doing and have a go at something else. For instance try crochet, making pompoms or finger knitting. Some people like to crochet more than knit and vice versa. It’s really important to present all your materials so that they look really inspiring. If you do this it will make everyone want to knit – they will not be able to resist. Take some time at the beginning of each session to arrange your yarns and needles by size or material.

Whatever you think looks best.

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A well planned session at the Craft Revolution in Brighton Photo: Helen Pillot De Chenecey

Water keeps everyone’s brains sharp and bright and a biscuit or snack will maintain energy levels – as knitting can be quite tiring – so provide refreshments if possible.

Before you begin put up a poster in a prominent place in your school. You can find a downloadable Craft Club poster in the file transfer area of the website.

Craft Club Knitting Basket: What You Will Need • Selection of needles • Crochet hooks • Yarn selection • Needle gauge • Pompom rings • Scissors • Darning needles • Paper and pencils for counting stitches and drawing out ideas • Pins and pin cushion (pins with colourful round heads are good) • Knitting books (see books list) • A good picture book of whatever takes your fancy (nature, circuses, animals, portraits, beautiful knitting examples of Fair Isle is always a favourite) to take inspiration from

There are many choices of yarn available to you – but as Elizabeth Zimmerman says wool is a pretty good choice. “Soft wool from the simple silly sheep can be as fine as a cobweb, tough and strong as string, or light and soft as down. There are scientific reasons why wool is the best material for knitting, and into these I will not go. I only know that it is warm, beautiful and durable. Woollen socks never become cold and clammy, however wet. A woollen sweater is so water-resistant that when dropped overboard it floats long enough to give you ample time to rescue it.”

(E. Zimmerman - Knitting without Tears p.2) What Yarn to Knit With?

You could choose plant fibres like cotton and linen; animal fibres from sheep and silk worms; man-made fibres; acrylics and other synthetic fibres. Check the ball band or ask when you are buying your yarn what kind it is.

To gather materials for your club you can ask if the school has a budget for yarns, but the chances are you will have to improvise. Charity shops and scrap projects are a good source of inexpensive needles and yarns. Old curtains are great for cutting up for large scale projects. There is a lot of scope in asking parents to donate materials from home.

Many of us are guilty of having a huge stash of yarns that could do with a good home.

If you buy brand new wool it will often recommend a size needle to knit with – but you can knit with any size needle as it will just change how loose or tight your knitting is. Play around and see how you would like your knitting to look.

Real wool comes from real sheep Photo: The Campaign for Wool

From left to right, Wills and Kate souvenir gloves, Berry, and Mono Cat

by Donna Wilson Photos: Gareth Hacker

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Extra Project Ideas If your group’s skills have advanced enough, this is a great project to try! If you want your club to make something together – try a knitted web. The idea is to knit together places, people, objects, and link things together to make a knitted installation. You could be really ambitious and try and knit buildings or trees together or it could be as simple as knitting lines to join up windows or even each other.

A Group Project - The Knitted Web! Find a space in the classroom or in the playground that is out of the way where you can establish your web. Start off by making the framework and invite the group to add to it.

It is a very free form project and every club will produce a different web. The beauty of the knitted web is everyone, from complete beginners to the more experienced, can contribute.

Key elements of the web are finger-knitted cords.

Imagine you are a spider spinning your web… these cords form the basis of the web, then you can add in any other bits of knitting you want to make. You can add pompoms, French knitting, test pieces of knitting, a long scarf, pictures, knitted letters or whatever you like – let it all get trapped in the web so that you create a whole environment out of your knitting that links together all the members of your club.

Extra Ideas

Detail of a knitted web garland South Hill Park Photo: Shane Waltener

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Modular projects are great for working on as a whole group. If everyone knits a small square they can be joined together to make a blanket or a tree cosy for the playground, encouraging a little yarnbombing, and making the club visible to the wider school or community in the process.

Finger knitting and pompom making are alternative activities that are especially good for very young children or those who are finding it hard to get to grips with needles. They are also good if you don’t have enough needles to go around.

Detail of a wonder web Photo: Shane Waltener

Creature by Donna Wilson Photo: Gareth Hacker

You should keep the materials out for these activities each session so members can have a go or pick it up when they want a break from knitting. Or you might find that some club members just love making pompoms and finger knitting and they become really good at it and that is what they want to do each week, which would be good because then you would have loads of pompoms to accessorise with. Long bits of yarn are great for making pictures. Having lots of pompoms is great for accessorising simple knits and lengths of finger knitting are good for making pictures or decorating the room.

Finger Knitting This is really quick and easy knitting and highly addictive. Finger knitting makes long chains of knitting that can be great to use in your knitted web or simply to make lovely strands for braiding or using as decoration.

Pom-Poms These are so easy to make with scraps of yarn.

Cut the templates out of stiff card, two per person.

If you make them in the shape of a large C with a gap, rather than a whole circle, it is much easier to wind. Wind the yarn around the 2 halves until it is good and fat. Then cut around the edges and tie the 2 halves together, then you will have your pompom!

Pom Poms Photo: Crafts Council

Recycled Rainforest Project Lindens Primary School Photo: Adrian Burrows

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Welcome to Your Club Welcome to the first week of Craft Club: Knitting • The atmosphere should be fun and friendly.

• If you can provide refreshments great!

• Lay out all your materials (see Craft Club Knitting Basket) so that they look exciting to work with.

• Make members name badges or get them to make their own badges or stickers.

Finger knitting is really quick and easy to pick up. It is probably the easiest type of knitting. You can make chains and scarves with it and it is great for beginners getting started.

Finger Knitting There is a lovely film about finger knitting on the website. (See www.craftclub.org.uk/video) Start them off with chunky yarn and set them on a race to knit the longest length of knitting.

After your make-the-longest-scarf competition, there are plenty of fun things to do with the results: • Use as a super chunky yarn to knit with ‘broomstick’ needles • Weave the strands of knitting together to make a rug for the classroom.

A general recommendation for working with all children is to provide lots of opportunities to change task. Short goals are a good idea – for example to complete 2 knitted rows and then build up to more. A change of scene or task can also help, so have different projects laid out so they can pick and choose. Practice taking breaks and exercising wrists and hands and shoulders and finally having exciting books and resources on hand. Have fun!

Start by finding out who is experienced and who is a beginner. Unless you have a lot of volunteer help see if you can partner up experienced knitters with beginners.

The first week is about beginners getting started and the experienced knitters helping them along.

If everyone is a beginner in the club you will be teaching each other, discovering what is difficult together and problem solving dropped stitches and tight tension.

The aim of the first session is simply to get knitting – not to worry too much about what you are making, though what you begin might become the basis for a scarf or blanket.

Club members should chose yarn and needles to work with or they may have brought their own.

• Make a picture for the school • Wrap a tree or a lamppost in the playground However many volunteers you have you will always need more for beginners. If there are children who are more advanced, they will be good teachers too.

The experienced knitter should demonstrate casting on for instance, then let the beginner have a go. Talk them through it. If they find it difficult demonstrate again slowly. The person learning should sit next to their instructor and watch their hands from the same angle that they will be casting on from. If one of you is left-handed you can sit opposite each other.

Bamford Primary children displaying their finger knitting Photo: Claire Hoey

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Week 1: Casting On Making a Slipknot The slipknot is the first stitch of your knitting.

1.

Make a loop by passing the right side of the yarn over the left.

2.

Take the tail end and make a second loop through the centre of the first loop.

3.

Pull the tail end to secure the slipknot.

Now put your left needle (or right if you are left handed) through the slipknot and pull it tight, but not too tight! Now you are ready to cast on.

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Week 1: Casting on With Two Needles 1.

Put the right needle into the loop so that it passes under the left hand needle. You are forming a cross with your needles, and the right hand needle is at the back.

3.

Put this new stitch on the left needle, next to the previous stitch.

2.

Wrap the yarn around the back needle coming between the needles. Take the yarn through the first loop with the back needle. This is your new stitch.

4.

Now you have two stitches. Repeat by putting the right hand needle into the last stitch on the left hand needle, and keep making stitches until you have enough.

Knit – in knitting patterns this is abbreviated to k (we will use this abbreviation from now on.)

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Week 1: Knit Stitch Cast on the right amount of stitches for your project.

1.

Insert the point of the right needle, from front to back, through the first loop on the left needle.

You are forming a cross with your needles.

3.

You have now made a new stitch, which is on the right hand needle, and you need to drop the old one down to the row below. Keeping the tension with your finger, slip the old stitch off the left needle.

2.

Draw the new loop through to the front of the work.

Do this by pulling the left needle under the right one, pulling the new loop with it.

4.

With your new stitch on the right hand needle, repeat this whole process again until the end of the row.

Turn your needles around so all the stitches are held in your left hand again. The right needle is empty and ready to take on a whole new row.

Tip: With knitting the yarn is always held at the back and your right hand needle goes through the loop to the back. Have a go at knitting several rows of knit.

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Week 2: Knit & Purl Welcome to Week 2!

Stocking stitch

Set up and lay out equipment and materials, name badges and any refreshments. Welcome the group.

This week your club members should be thinking about their project.

Ask your club members whether they want to knit a scarf or blanket. The scarf is recommended for the complete beginner and the blanket for a knitter with experience. But both projects can be made simple or complicated depending on the knitter, so if a complete beginner wants to try a blanket that is ok!

Garter stitch

To achieve stocking stitch knit one row and then purl the next row. It produces a flatter effect than garter stitch (though the edges curl a little bit).

This is the easiest, just knit row after row.

It produces a ridged effect and is really stretchy.

This is what the reverse of stocking stitch looks like.

You can see that this side is slightly bumpier than the smooth front side.

Experienced knitters can continue to support beginners and at the same time begin their own project. They may also need a refresher in garter and stocking stitch and incorporate it into their project!

NOTE: at any point any club members can do finger knitting or pompom making or French knitting if they are not working on a project!

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Week 2: Purl stitch Purl is done on the wrong side of the work when you are doing stocking stitch (it is the right side of the work if you are doing reverse stocking stitch, of course!)

1.

Bring your yarn to the front of your work.

Insert the point of the right needle from back to front, through the first loop on the left needle.

3.

Draw the loop through to the back of the work.

2.

Pass the yarn, which is held at the front of your work, between the two points of the needles.

4.

Slip the old stitch off the left hand needle and repeat to the end of the row. Have a go at knitting several rows of purl.

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Week 3: Combinations of Knit & Purl Set up as normal at this stage in the club – you may find your materials need a bit of a tidy up. Re-wind yarn to make it look smarter; pair up all your needles and organise your scissors.

Get a club member to lend a hand if you need it to make all the materials look neat and ready to use.

You will be learning ribbing this week.

Some club members may want to have a go at this but not immediately onto their project. A good idea is to have some already cast on pieces of work so that members can practice on these.

Ribbing Ribbing is the elastic stitch you find on the cuff or collar of a sweater. It is made by combining knit and purl on the same row to make vertical lines.

Knit one, purl one, is the most elastic of stitches, where as knit four purl one will be flatter and not so stretchy. Move your yarn from front to back, between the needles when changing stitch. On the next row, knit a knit stitch on top of a knit and a purl stitch on top of a purl. If you get this the wrong way round, you will end up with another lovely stitch called Moss stitch!

Simple 2 x 2 rib (multiples of 2 stitches)

If you knit all the time you get garter stitch, but if you knit and purl alternate rows, you have stockinette (stocking) stitch. All the basic patterns and textures are based on this principle of mixing knit and purl stitches – the rough and the smooth.

R1: k2, p2 R2: p2 , k2

Tip: Watch out – make sure you always have a k on top of a p stitch otherwise you will get a moss stitch effect instead of a rib.

Ribbing Photo: Crafts Council

Bamford Primary Craft Club knitting alfresco Photo: Claire Hoey

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Week 3: Moss, or Seed Stitch This is knitted like ribbing, but you place a knit stitch on top of a purl stitch and vice versa. It is not elastic like ribbing, but comes out strong, flat, wider than stocking stitch and the same on both sides.

Simple moss stitch (multiples of 2 stitches) R1: k1, p1 R2: k1, p1

Moss or Seed stitch

Tip: Pompoms can be slow to make.

If you need to make a lot in a hurry try this quick method: turn a chair upside down on a table so the legs are in the air. Wrap yarn around all four legs to make a square and keep wrapping until your core is a few cm thick. Tie this core firmly at intervals all the way around.

Now you can snip carefully in between the ties, leaving one or two strands to hold your garland together. Hey, presto!

Celia Pym, Crochet Bag Photo: Crafts Council

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Week 4: Increasing & Decreasing Set up yarns, needles, scissors, refreshments – hopefully by now you will also have the beginnings of club members’ work and projects on display too. Lay out everyone’s projects, this will look great and inspiring.

The aim of week 3 is to continue to work on individual projects and to learn how to increase and decrease knitting so that knitters can shape their knitting – making it wider and narrower.

Having mastered increasing and decreasing a knitter can make any shape they want.

Increasing This method creates an extra stitch by knitting the same stitch twice. Every time you do this your work will be wider by one stitch.

1.

Some club members at this stage may have a vision for their scarf or blanket and will happily get along achieving their goals.

On a knit row, knit the first two stitches.

2.

Then knit the third stitch, but instead of dropping this stitch off the left needle, place the point of the right needle into the back of the stitch, knit this loop too, then drop it off.

Creature by Donna Wilson Photo: Gareth Hacker

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Week 4: Decreasing Decreasing is easier than increasing. All you need to do is have fewer stitches and you can do this by knitting two of them together at the same time.

This is sometimes called Knit 2 Together or K2 tog.

Tip: Project bags are a great way for clubbers to keep their work together. They can make their own or you could provide some for them to decorate.

1.

Simply knit, or purl 2 stitches together into 1 stitch.

You can do this anywhere in a row, but if you do it at the end of the row it may look a little uneven. This may not matter if the edges aren’t going to show in your finished piece.

2.

A Project bag Photo: Crafts Council

To make a smooth edge, try decreasing 2 stitches away from the edge. If you are on a knit row, knit 2, then k2 to g. Have a look at any knitted clothes that you have, and sometimes you can see the neat pattern made where the decreases have been taken.

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Week 5: Crochet Set up as you would normally – making a beautiful display of materials and laying on refreshments. By now many members of your club should be getting on with their personal projects and you will be seeing many exciting scarves and blankets emerging.

Here’s a Basic How-To For Crochet 1.

Let your club members know that you will be demonstrating crochet in this week’s club.

Crochet can be really nice for making whole projects or simply used to add edging to the scarf and blankets that are already started.

As with learning to knit – try and pair up beginners with more experienced crocheters. Bear in mind some club members might be quite happy getting on with their projects.

First of all, make a slipknot.

The main difference between crochet and knitting is that crochet uses only one hook and you can add crochet stitches anywhere into your work so crochet can be a bit more free form than knitting. Choosing hooks and yarn for crochet is exactly the same as choosing needles and yarn for knitting (see Yarn and Needles section.)

2.

Make a loop in the yarn. With your crochet hook catch the ball end of the yarn and draw through loop. Pull firmly on yarn and hook to tighten knot and create first loop.

‘We were over the moon with the launch of Hook 1 Pass it on just when we were starting crochet anyway. The children are loving crochet and some are finding it easier than knitting’.

Photo: Claire Hoey

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Week 5: Making a Chain 1.

To make a chain, hold the tail end of yarn with the left hand and bring the yarn over hook (yoh) by passing hook in front of the yarn, under and around it.

3.

2.

Keeping the tension in yarn taut, draw the hook aand yarn through the loop.

Tip: A lovely way to spruce up any uneven edges or just to make your scarf or blanket extra special is a crocheted edge. Practice crocheting chains first then have a go at hooking through the edge of your knitting.

Pull the yarn and hook through the hole and begin again, ensuring that the stitches are fairly loose.

Repeat to make the number of chain required.

As the chain lengthens keep hold of the bottom edge to maintain the tension.

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Week 6: Finishing & Photographing This is the last week of your club.

Set up as normal – refreshments, name badges, yarn, needles, but before everyone gets knitting or crocheting, take some time to look at all the work you have made.

Take photographs of club members with their scarves and blankets, pompoms and finger knitting or whatever has been made.

Your photo shoot could involve club members wearing their scarves, 2 scarf wearers together, or they could be action shots of members mid-knit.

Make a really inspiring display of all the work.

Have a conversation about the work you have made and achievements in Craft Club.

Finally they will need to cast off their project.

This is where the knitting is taken off the needles securely so that it doesn’t unravel.

Recyled Rainforest project at Lindens Primary School, Sutton Coldfield Photo: Adrian Burrows

Bamford Primary Craft Club Photos: Claire Hoey

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Casting Off Casting off is a method to finish your knitting.

If you don’t finish it off properly it will all unravel, and you don’t want that to happen!

Always cast off in the appropriate way for your work, meaning knitted on a knit row, or purl on a purl row.

If you are casting off in rib, follow the same pattern.

1.

When you are ready to cast off, knit the first two stitches of the row. With the left needle, lift the first stitch over the top of the second stitch and let it go.

2.

You now are down to one stitch on your right needle.

Knit one more stitch and repeat step When the last stitch remains, cut the yarn and pass the tail through the last stitch.

Tip: Tip: If your work is not finished you can still show your ‘work in progress’. Replace the needle with a stitch holder, or tie a large elastic band over the ends of the needle to stop the stitches falling off, and hang it on the wall.

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Examples of Projects Ideas Over 6 Classes These are a few ideas to use over the 6 week classes. They are sample ideas that can be as sophisticated as you make them.

Space-dyed yarn makes this scarf look more complicated than it is. Find the pattern on the Craft Club website Photo: Crafts Council

My First Scarf A scarf is simple but challenging too! Every knitter makes their first scarf – this is a very important piece of work, as you will only get to make it once. Your scarf can be for yourself, for someone you love or a miniature scarf for a pet or soft toy.

You can change colour at any point by simply coming to the end of a row and cutting your yarn so it leaves a little tail and tie that tail tie to the next yarn you want to use. This will create a stripy effect, which can look really good.

You will need to choose some wool you like – you might like it because of the way it feels or because of its colour. Make sure you like your wool otherwise you will be very unhappy knitting with something you think isn’t that great.

Over the course of the 6 weeks of your knit club you will be introduced to different stitches, increasing and decreasing and knitting with 2 colours at the same time. You can incorporate any of the things you learn along the way into your scarf!

Or you can simply knit the scarf that you want – a simple garter stitch in one colour can look great.

Chunky weight yarn can also be fun to start with and knits fast so you see what you are making more quickly but the larger needles can sometimes feel awkward for beginners… beware. Don’t get hung up on having the ‘correct’ size needles for the yarn – just experiment!

To begin cast on between 15-25 stitches – depending on the weight of your wool this will make a skinny or chunky scarf.

Try and keep your knitting loose. Try not to grip the needles too tightly. If you feel your stitches are getting tight – try shaking out your hands from time to time to encourage a loose feeling. If you are knitting on 2 needles, you will be going back and forth, knitting one row to the end and then changing the hands with the needles and beginning again.

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If you are a more advanced knitter you can still make a scarf but use it as a teaching tool – so as you knit you can demonstrate on it techniques and stitches for beginners in your club.

Tip: If you like to accessorise you can always add pompoms to your scarf. See how to make a pom pom under extra project ideas.

Project 2: A blanket – for the back of your sofa, to wrap around your shoulders, to rest on someone’s knees, for a small person, for a pet, to soften the seats on a car, to sleep under or sit on and have a picnic.

A Blanket A blanket is a wonderful project to embark on. Whether large or small a blanket will keep you warm and snug and often becomes a very loved and treasured item. A blanket is just basically a bigger scarf, so beginners could have a go too.

Depending on your experience you can incorporate pictures or patterns into your knitting – use stripes or keep it simple and knit your blanket in one colour.

Crochet an edge to make it even lovelier. As well as being beautiful a crocheted edge is also helpful to hide any uneven stitches at the ends of rows.

Tip: The same recommendations given for making

a scarf apply to the making of a blanket too. Try and keep your knitting loose. If you feel you are gripping too tightly remember to shake out your fingers and wrists.

You will need to cast on anywhere between 50-200 stitches depending on how big you want your blanket to be. To figure this out, cast on 10 stitches and knit a small square out of the yarn you want to use. Knit approximately 10-15 rows and measure how wide the knitting is. From this measurement you can calculate how many stitches you will need to cast on for your blanket.

An Example of the Sum: Make a note of the type of yarn and the size of needles you are using.

This sample uses double knitting (DK) and size 4mm needles. Knit a small square and then measure 10 cm and count how many stitches are within that area, then you are ready to make your calculations.

Say you have 20 stitches to your 10 cm?

10 cm = 20 sts Now you can scale this up: If you want to knit a width of 1m or 100cm you will need to cast on 200 sts.

100 cm = 200 sts If you want a blanket that is 2m or 200cm wide, you’ll need to cast on 400 sts

Knit a small square then count how many stitches are in 10cm Photo: Crafts Council

200 cm = 400 sts

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Problem Solving Common difficulties for beginners are dropped stitches, very tight knitting, unintentionally increasing your stitches and general tangles.

Dropped Stitches

Joining a New Ball of Yarn

To begin with don’t worry too much about dropped stitches. They happen! You can use a crochet hook to pick them up and hook through the missing rows but it is quite fiddly work. For an easier solution tie in a little piece of extra yarn through the dropped stitch so it does not unravel further.

If your yarn runs out or you wish to change colour, you just need to tie a knot. Do this at the beginning of a row. Leave 15cm on the end of your original yarn.

Tight Knitting Tight knitting becomes less tight the more you do it.

Tie a knot with the new yarn, again leaving about 15cm. Make sure the knot is neatly pushed right up to the next stitch. When you have finished your knitting you can untie this knot and sew in the ends.

Warning! Don’t find yourself knitting with the loose ends by mistake – that can just be plain annoying.

Simple.

A good idea is to try to you remind yourself not to grip the needles too tight or wrap the yarn around too tight.

Tip: If a beginner is finding they are knitting very tightly sometimes it is helpful if a more experienced knitter knits a few rows for them – this will loosen up their knitting.

Tip: If you find you accidentally increase the number of stitches you are knitting – simply decrease (see week 4 decreasing) back to your original number of stitches. Though maybe you will like a widening scarf with a shapely edge?

Tangles just require patience and good light to untangle them. Or you can cut out the tangled yarn and start fresh with some new yarn and deal with the tangle later on when you are ready.

A selection of wool Photo: Crafts Council

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Diary/Notes Section

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Going Into Schools The first step in setting up a Craft Club is forming a relationship with a school or other venue (such as a library or gallery). The Crafts Council Administrator will have identified the schools and other venues wishing to establish a Craft Club and will marry up WI members and other volunteers with their nearest participating school, based on the addresses provided in your correspondence with us.

You can do this yourself by looking on the Craft Club map or approaching your local venue directly.

Alternatively, you may already have a school in mind, for example you may be a parent wishing to start a Craft Club at the school your child attends.

If you have any established links with a school, do let us know by emailing knit1@craftclub.org.uk

Before You Start Your Craft Club Initiate contact with your school, on behalf of your Craft Club volunteer team.

Initially, you should approach the school Headteacher formally, using the Template Letter (Form C) provided.

Knitting in St. Paul’s Primary School Playground Photo: Crafts Council

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With the Headteacher on board, you will be off to a flying start and may gain access to additional resources to make your club a success.

They will ensure the club is widely promoted both in school and in the community, bringing extra status to clubs (and your role).

It may be enough to organise a phone call to the member(s) of staff coordinating the club in school, or a visit may be preferable. This is entirely up to you and the school.

Negotiate how often and at what time your Craft Club will be run. This will differ depending on the individual schools and volunteers involved, and needs to be an agreed, ‘best fit’ arrangement.

Planning & Evaluating Your Projects Planning This Handbook includes project ideas for the first 6 weeks of your club. By thinking through each step of your activity in advance and adding as much detail as possible to your session plans, you will feel confident and prepared. Discuss ideas with your team of volunteers and school staff, it’s good to share the responsibility!

Evaluating At the end of the six weeks, it is a good idea to evaluate your club making your own notes on how the session went. For example, what was good about that session? Did everybody learn the skill you wanted them to do, or do you need to reinforce it next week?

To ensure Craft Club is enjoyable, well attended and effective in promoting craft skills to all types of learners, we have developed some ongoing evaluation strategies for use at all levels of its delivery.

The nature of your role, and that of your team of volunteers, will mean that you have direct access to pupil experiences, likes and dislikes.

We are keen to improve the volunteers’ experience, so that Craft Clubs endure, and provide a long-term solution to the current shortage of craft learning in schools. By feeding this information back to the Craft Club Team, you can help us to improve Craft Club for everybody involved.

We would be grateful if you could send the Craft Club Team your completed evaluations at the end of each project or half-term (see our address below).

Half term and project finish dates will vary across regions and according to individual clubs, so please ask your school contact or the Craft Club Team if you’re not sure when to complete yours.

We will also send reminders by email.

Feedback from all the evaluations we receive will help us improve the Craft Club experience for all involved. We will communicate strengths and issues noted by Clubs and offer development ideas and support through occasional e-bulletins on this topic.

To send feedback to the Craft Club Team Email us at : knit1@craftclub.org.uk Post your evaluation forms to: The Crafts Council 44a Pentonville Road London, N1 9BY

Supporting Evaluation

Craft Club at Bamford Primary Photos: Claire Hoey

Installation by Francoise Dupre using French knitting Photo: Crafts Council

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Equipment & Materials

Equipment and Materials

CRB-Checking

Discuss with your school what materials are essential for your project. Many schools* will have access to a small budget for after-school clubs. You can also think creatively about recycled materials that are available (see www.craftclub.org.uk for ideas).

CRB checks will be needed in most, but not necessarily in all, cases. This decision is the discretion of your venue, who will advise you on their particular requirement/processes for CRB checking.

Discuss how and where Craft Club resources will be stored. Will you have direct access to them to set up the club each session, or will they be locked away (who has a spare key, in the case of staff absence)?

It should be understood that these resources are only for Craft Club activity, so that you don’t turn up to find your project materials have run out when you most need them!

Tip: Have a computer readily accessible Win Craft Resources To get a bundle of free resources for your club, keep posting your Craft Club pictures in the gallery. Each half-term a professional maker will pick the prize winner, so make sure your images are eye-catching and fun.

If it is determined that CRB checks are needed, then you will not be able to launch your club until a valid CRB Disclosure certificate has been awarded.

This process can take around 4-6 weeks on average, once you have submitted your details and identification to the school.

Behaviour Club Rules should be compiled by the children attending the club in the first session, and reinforced regularly. It’s often beneficial to have a few simple rules displayed on a poster, or with visual cues and body language. Naturally, it’s vital that all adults comply with the Club rules, too. It is likely that most of the young people coming to Craft Club will have opted to attend, and will therefore behave responsibly to create a fun atmosphere for everyone involved. However, if an individual’s or group’s behaviour does become challenging, school staff or parents ( not volunteers ) must be readily on hand to manage it and apply standard disciplinary procedures.

If working in a school we do reccommend you discuss their system for rewarding and disciplining pupils, so that you can work in conjunction with such procedures and provide general reinforcement of the school staff.

* We mention schools but you be any learning venue such as a museum, library, gallery or community centre.

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Craft Club Volunteers: Training Days Training Days: Knitters and craftspeople who wish to help others set up clubs attend our free training days, which we hold in various locations across the country.

Be Inspired!

Get Up-to-Date!

You will have the opportunity to knit whilst hearing about some exciting, innovative projects and seeing case studies from the Craft Club pilot and more.

Our intention is for you to start having more ideas on how to do something even more exciting in your own Craft Club!

You will learn about the current legalities of Child Protection and Health & Safety, and the regulations Clubs are required to follow, in line with our Working with Children and Young People Policy (WCYP) – included on page 37 of your Handbook.

Gain Insight!

It’s important to have a good understanding of what is involved in working with the younger generation.

The training day will equip you with knowledge and the competencies required to work with young people in schools and other contexts. You can do this while networking with other like-minded crafters in your region. These days are also an opportunity for volunteers to share their experiences and ideas with each other.

Pass It On! Having completed your training you are all set to champion crafts in schools and other educational venues, and act as an advocate for the enjoyment of these skills by young people. The first step in doing this is holding your own cascade training session, to share with others what you have learned.

For more on how to do this, go to page 32.

For dates of training days, keep an eye on the Craft Club website for announcements, or contact the Craft Club Team at knit1@craftclub.org.uk

Creature by Donna Wilson Photo: Gareth Hacker Drawing with yarn at the Café Gallery Project, Dilston Grove, Southwark Photo: Bridget Virden CGP

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How to Hold Your Own Cascade Training Session You’ve arrived at the most important point of being a Craft Club trainer! By gathering a group together to pass on the knowledge you gained at the training day, you can create some great opportunities for linking like-minded crafters and share ideas with others on how to pioneer crafts by passing on your skills.

Here’s How To Do It

Step 3: Approx 10 mins

Firstly, you’ll need to gather a group together for about 1 hour. This group could be your friends with crafts skills, it could be a local volunteer group, or it could be other creative people in your personal and professional networks. If you are a WI member, you could ‘pass it on’ at your next meeting.

Plan Ahead: Have a look at Form D and attempt a rough project plan together, inspired by what you discussed.

Also take a few moments to think of evaluating the progress of your club. Discuss as a group or in pairs the possible barriers or difficulties to introducing yarn crafts in schools, and think about some ideas to overcome these challenges.

Step 1: Approx 15 mins.

Introduce Craft Club: Your volunteer group will want to know a bit about Craft Club and how it all works. A good place to start is to find out what they already know, and then fill them in! This is great chance to share with your group about the Craft Club website where they can find a lot resources for their clubs, such as knitting patterns, lesson plans, and project ideas.

Step 2: Approx 10 mins.

Learn from the ‘tried and true’: You will have learned a lot from the case studies of the Craft Club pilot project at Lindens Primary School as well as other case studies; spend a few minutes summarising these for your group. Ask your group why they think these clubs were successful.

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Step 4: Approx 20-25 mins An Important Step: The WCYP Agreement (Working with Children and Young People): Make sure that you read through the WCYP policy together in detail, ensuring that all volunteers understand the regulations and the reasons they are in place. This is key to ensuring that we all enjoy safe Craft Clubs!

Once you’ve read it together, please obtain each volunteer’s signed agreement (Form B) and return these to the Craft Club Team. This is for legal and insurance purposes, outlined in the guidelines. This form should be completed by all volunteers entering a school for Craft Club.

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Craft Club Team on 0207 608 7568 or email knit1@craftclub.org.uk If you are a WI member please contact Lesley Quirk the Craft Club co-ordinator at Denman College on 01865 391788 or email l.quirk@nfwi-unit.org.uk

Sources for Further Research There are lots of good books that have been published about knitting and yarn crafts. Have a good look on the bookshelves at school, or visit your local library and see what you find! The internet is a great resource too. Below you’ll find some sources of information to start you off.

Knitting Websites

Books

www.prickyourfinger.com/blog www.freddierobbins.com www.sabrinag.com www.annemor.com www.donnawilson.com www.lisaaneauerbach.com www.taitandstyle.co.uk www.unionpurl.blogspot.com www.deirdre-nelson.com www.karisteihaug.no www.davecoledavecole.com

Knitting Without Tears by Elizabeth Zimmerman Knitting Around by Elizabeth Zimmerman Knitorama by Rachael Matthews Hookorama by Rachael Matthews KnitKnit by Sabrina Gschwandtner Invisible Threads in Knitting by Annemor Sundbo Everyday Knitting by Annemor Sundbo Needlepoint, for Men by Rosey Grier Radical Lace & Subversive Knitting by David Revere A History of Hand Knitting by Richard Rutt Kaffe Fassett’s Pattern Library

Jemma Sykes, knitting with zips Photo: Crafts Council

Janet Morton, Domestic Interior 2000 Photo: Crafts Council

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FAQs What training do I need?

“Help! I couldn’t sign up!”

Once you have downloaded your resources, and you’re ready to pass on your skills to another person, you are ready to get started. Make sure you have read the policy for working with children and young people, and have signed your volunteer’s agreement.

If you’re having problems signing up, there are a few things that you might want to check first.

Firstly, make sure that you have not misspelled your email address! If you did, then you would not have received your confirmation email.

The steps you need to sign up are as follows:

This is an important step.

Come along to a Craft Club Training Day, where you will learn more on how to contribute in this role.

Contact the Craft Club Team for more information on knit1@craftclub.org.uk .

Are CRB checks necessary?

Some schools require that volunteers have CRB checks, and other schools do not. It is worth remembering that a member of school staff should always be present during your Craft Club sessions.

Ask your school contact if a CRB check is necessary for you to have, as applying for a disclosure can take some time.

Where do I find resources that are good for beginners, such as patterns, or even needles?

It is easy to become very involved in what is happening in your club’s sessions, but don’t forget that resources that can help you are just a click away. If you log on to the Craft Club website and visit the Community section, click on ‘file transfer’ to access what you need. If you need equipment try your local Freecycle website as they maybe able to help. You may also find treasures in charity shops, though needles tend not to be on display so you have to ask.

Knitting Piece #9, Shane Waltener Photo: Crafts Council

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• • • • • •

Go to www.craftclub.org.uk/register Click the type of member you want to be Click Submit Enter all required information (those with an *) Click the privacy policy box Click Submit

If you’re still not successful, then do contact the Craft Club Team at knit1@craftclub.org.uk and we will assist you.

Do I have to be part of an organisation to be a volunteer?

Although many of our volunteers are part of a wider network, it is not essential for you to be involved with a volunteer group in order to be involved. Craft Club is open to all people who have craft skills and would like to pass those skills on. If you are a part of an organisation, don’t forget to pass on your knowledge of Craft Club to this network, as this is a great way to get more clubs up and running for children to enjoy and learn.

“I am not a teacher, I’m not a student, and I don’t consider myself a volunteer. What should I sign up as?”

If you don’t teach in a school, and you’re not a young person under the age of 16, then you are likely to be considered what we call a volunteer.

All persons signed up with Craft Club receive our Craft Club News, and from time to time we will send you updates about opportunities in various schools and craft events that you can get involved in. As Craft Club operates on a voluntary basis, you are not under any obligation, except to observe safe practices.

When will we be taught how to teach children?

How do I find an interested school?

As Craft Club operates on a voluntary basis, our volunteers are passionate about sharing the great skills that they have, and do not receive payment for doing so.

A great place to start is to check the Craft Map on the Craft Club website to search for schools that may have added themselves to the map.

You can search the map by postcode and get some accurate results. Once you have found a school, then you can approach them with the letter to Headteachers that can be downloaded from the file transfer area of the website. If you don’t find a school near to you on the map, then contact the Craft Club Team at knit1@craftclub.org.uk, and a member of the Craft Club Team will help to find a school near you to form a relationship with.

How do I sign up for Arts Award through Craft Club?

How do I find other volunteers to help me?

Arts Award is a qualification that students can use as an extra to their GCSEs or instead of. Arts Award has also recently been made UCAS compliant, meaning that you can add it to your application when you apply for university.

You can post any requests on the Craft Club forum.

Your Craft Club training day will outline some things to remember when working with children and young people.

Can I earn money through Craft Club?

There are 3 levels of Art Award outlined on the Craft Club website: www.craftclub.org.uk/crafty_teachers, aimed at secondary level students (11-25 years).

This can be from just taking part to running their own club or related event.

Contact the Craft Club Team by emailing knit1@craftclub.org.uk and let them know that you need volunteer help. The Craft Club Administrator will put you in touch with any volunteers that may be in your area, based on the address you give in your correspondence with us.

Craft Club is ‘Arts Award Welcome’ we accommodate anyone from an Arts Award Centre to use Craft Club as a scheme. Centres, usually schools, have a trained person who can mentor a young person through the scheme.

Visit the arts award website at www.artsaward.org.uk/ for more information.

To register pupils, the arts award website has this link: www.artsaward.org.uk/site/?id=2008

Kelly Jenkins, Knitted steel. from the exhibition Knit 2 Together at the Crafts Council, 2005 Photo: Crafts Council

Ruth Lee knitted wire Kelly Jenkins, Knitted steel. from the exhibition Knit 2 Together at the Crafts Council, 2005 Photo: Crafts Council

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CRAFT CLUB FORMS Here you will find useful forms that you can photocopy for use.

Firstly, thank you for taking on the position of volunteer or representative/ trainer for your group or federation. You will be playing a key role in the successful implementation of Craft Clubs in your local schools, and for that we (and the teachers, young people and families you are supporting) are very grateful!

This essential Handbook is intended to outline the practicalities for fulfilling your role. However, please do regard it as a guideline, as circumstances will be different for each different group, and each set of individuals.

FORM A: Working With Children and Young People Guidelines (WCYP) FORM B: Volunteers Agreement FORM C: Template Letter to Headteacher FORM D: Project Plan FORM E: Volunteer Questionnaire FORM F: Pupil Questionnaire FORM G: Parental Consent

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Stick the Snail

by Donna Wilson Photo: Gareth Hacker

CRAFT CLUB 2010-2011 FORM A – WORKING WITH CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE (WCYP) GUIDELINES FOR VOLUNTEERS Working Safely and Legally at Craft Club While much of the information in this document may appear “common sense” it is essential that you have read it thoroughly and are familiar with the restrictions put in place to protect children and vulnerable adults. This will ensure both you and the young people you work with at Craft Club have an enjoyable and uncomplicated experience!

The Crafts Council and the NFWI will liaise with the schools and venues with which work to set minimum standards for supervision, to ensure that: All volunteers receive the level of supervision appropriate to their needs and experience the circumstances of the area or activity with which they are working. Decisions made during supervision are recorded appropriately; Whenever practicable the persons who are normally responsible for the children (teachers, parents, guardians, etc) are present during activities or that there is always more than one adult present; and risk assessments are in place for your venue and activities.

As a volunteer, when you are present at a Craft Club event or venue you must ensure that you: Remain within sight and earshot of your supervisor when working with children; Cooperate fully with your supervisor over all matters of Health and Safety; Avoid being alone with a child or vulnerable person (if this should happen momentarily call your supervisor or another colleague over to join you.

Also, be aware that any physical contact with a child may be misinterpreted and so must be avoided whenever possible; Treat all children with respect and understand the difference between friendliness and familiarity; Act as a role model of good and appropriate behaviour (this includes challenging unacceptable behaviour that you witness and reporting it if it continues); Remember that someone else might misinterpret your actions, no matter how well intentioned; Immediately report any incidents to your supervisor in the case of perceived risk to a child or person whom you consider to be in a vulnerable or dangerous situation.

First Aid Strictly speaking, you must pass on First Aid issues to your supervisor or a trained First-Aider as quickly as possible. However, it is still vital you read through these tips in case the situation needs your input, or is an emergency: Unless there is good reason,

First Aid should not be administered without the permission of the child’s parent, teacher or accompanying adult. A child cannot give consent. If parents will not be on site, do your best to ensure in advance of the Club meeting that theirs phone number are accessible. However, if a child is alone and, say, unconscious, the situation should be dealt with. If at all possible, treatment should only be given by a trained First Aider. Provided this does not, in itself, put the child at risk, always try to administer First Aid within sight and sound of other adults. Always tell the child exactly what you are doing and why. Always ask the child if they use medication (e.g. for asthma, diabetes, and epilepsy) or have any allergies, some children have allergic reactions to stings. For minor injuries, it is all right to use a non-fluffy cloth, but you may not offer any medication, including antiseptics or pills of any kind.

If you have any doubts about helping someone to use their own medication, phone : National Health Service Direct on 0845 4647 or the emergency services. Any treatment should be as little as necessary without threatening the child’s well-being.

Legal Background: who governs the safeguarding framework for working with children and young people?

The Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) work in collaboration with the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB). They work to prevent unsuitable people from working or volunteering with children, young people or vulnerable adults.

Do I need to be CRB-checked?

As a Craft Club volunteer you will have regular contact with children through your role.

Therefore, many schools require you to obtain a CRB check for them (it may be possible to have one that is valid for the whole borough). This decision ultimately lies with the schools with which you will be working. Volunteer Disclosures are processed by the CRB for free. (normally £44 for ‘enhanced’) Any administration should be covered by your school.

Thanks for reading! Please return a signed copy of the WCYP Agreement (Form B) to confirm you have understood these guidelines.

This is for Craft Club’s Public Liability Insurance only.

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CRAFT CLUB FORM B – VOLUNTEERS AGREEMENT We thank you in advance for taking the time to fill out this form, which is necessary to ensure your safety and for our legal records. This form should be sent in when you have become actively involved with a Craft Club.

Volunteers Agreement:

This form is for Craft Club’s Public Liability Insurance. Your details will not be handed over to any third parties without your knowledge or permission.

[Please print details clearly] Date:

Volunteer group:

Address: Postcode

Contact number:

Email: By signing this form I confirm that I: • Have read and understood the guidelines for volunteers contained in the Working with Children and Young People guidelines.

•

Understand my responsibility to immediately report to my school contact any concerns I may have about the well-being of children or young people, including any allegations or suspicions of abuse.

Signature:

Please kindly return your signed form, to: “CRAFT CLUB”, Crafts Council, 44a Pentonville Road, London, N1 9BY

Many thanks!

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•

Understand that the school with which I am volunteering may require a disclosure from the Criminal Records Bureau and I am willing to obtain one if necessary.

Please note: a blank copy of this letter (Form C) can be downloaded from the website: www.craftclub.org.uk/file_transfer

Local Craft Club Contact Details Address Phone Email

Invitation to host a ‘Craft Club’ as part of the Crafts Council’s new national initiative, with the UK Handknitting Association (UKHKA) and Women’s Institute (NFWI)

Dear Headteacher’s name, The Crafts Council and the UK Hand Knitting Association have joined forces with the National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI) to support schools in delivering craft activities both in and outside the core curriculum.

Craft Club, www.craftclub.org.uk, is a new national campaign for craft in schools that will provide children and young people with the opportunity to learn craft skills from members of their community via free after-school clubs.

As such, it needs the support of schools and individual teachers in coordinating and hosting clubs, but relies on the enthusiasm and skills of the broader community in order to teach craft skills and techniques to its participants, or ‘Craft Clubbers’.

What’s on Offer to Schools?

Our skilled volunteers from the NFWI and community knitting clubs receive specialist training at workshops across the country and will then become involved in their local Craft Club. We hope one of these will be at your school. Each Craft Club can be run in its own way – either combining efforts to achieve a shared goal or working individually in the company of friends on solo projects.

Craft Club is a timely scheme in relation to the new Extended Services programme offering built-in community cohesion, intergenerational working the chance to be part of a local and national scheme.

The advantage is clear: an accessible, rewarding cultural experience of minimal cost to school.

The First Scheme: ‘Knit 1 Pass It On’ Knitting provides not only a sense of achievement but boosts co-ordination and improves dexterity, maths and handwriting. Knit 1 Pass it On will teach Craft Clubbers how to knit and then ask them to teach someone else – young or old, male or female.

Why join Craft Club?

Getting involved in this project will help you meet the following statutory criteria from the new inspection framework from Ofsted: • Community Cohesion (on a Local and National level) Well-being

•

Early Craft Clubs, such as the flagship project at Lindens Primary School in Sutton Coldfield, ‘Recycled Rainforest’, have proved already to be of immense value to schools. Lindens’ Headteacher, Simon Griffiths, recently announced news of the school’s Outstanding Ofsted results, citing participation in Craft Club as a key driver of their success.

Craft Club and Arts Award Craft Club is free. The only potential costs to schools are any required CRB checks, and any brand new yarns etc bought for activities. However, our website has plenty of ideas for recycling materials to knit with, resulting in deeper learning for pupils who can source and prepare their own yarns, sometimes in unexpected materials.

We are Arts Award compliant, meaning pupils over 11 years old can gain points towards a Bronze, Silver and Gold level Arts Award. Run by Arts Council England, the award builds confidence, helps young people to enjoy cultural activities, and prepares them for further education or employment.

What next?

If you would like to host a Craft Club in your school please get in touch as soon as possible. There are newly-trained volunteers in your area who are eager to get craft into schools – don’t miss out on this opportunity! When contacting us to make arrangements for a club, it would be useful to have an idea of the number of children wishing to participate so that we can round up a team for you. Please nominate a school contact (the teacher or teaching assistant who will supervise the club) for us to liaise with over times, dates and project planning.

For more information about the project, please see our new, interactive website which offers excellent learning opportunities in ICT for pupils: www.craftclub.org.uk We hope you will decide to host a Craft Club in your school, and are sure you will see the benefits for your school community and that of the local area. Of course, please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any further questions.

Yours sincerely,

Craft Club Volunteer On behalf of Craft Club

Craft Club is administered by the Crafts Council, 44a Pentonville Road, London N1 9BY Registered Charity number 280956

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CRAFT CLUB FORM D – PROJECT PLAN Project Title: (6 sessions - please add more if needed) Craft Club organiser:

Project start date:

Day/ Time:

School: Project end date:

Theme of session

Activity Outline (equipment/ method)

Other Notes/ Reminders

No. of Children

No. of Staff/ Volunteers/

Evaluation Notes

Welcome to

Ice-breakers & welcomes! Children given a variety of knitted objects to handle. Discuss knitting’s importance in everyday lives.

Everyone tries some finger-knitting.

Use projector to give website ‘tour’.

Book ICT Suite!

Brief the Teaching Assisant in advance Talk slowly.

6 boys 7 girls (1 SEN /deaf)

4volunteers 1 teacher 1 assistant (for SEN)

ICT suite was double-booked, so we just had fun continuing our finger-knitting.

Pupils wanted to start the practical earlier…

NEXT TIME: do discussion at the end?

Craft Club

1

2

3

4

5

6

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CRAFT CLUB FORM E – VOLUNTEER QUESTIONNAIRE Name (optional)

Organisation/ group name

Date of first Craft Club attendance? School Do you: …use the Craft Club website? Y / N ..use the Forum? Y/ N ...Upload/ Download things? Y/ N 1. Why did you want to join Craft Club?

2. What do you think are the benefits of Craft Club for the pupils? (please tick one for each row) Strongly agree

Agree

Neutral

Disagree

Strongly disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree

Pupils are enabled to try something different Pupils go mainly to have fun It helps pupils to relax and unwind Pupils go to make new friends Pupils feel more confident, their self-esteem improves Pupils learn new skills Pupils are encouraged to see how people can earn a living from craft Pupils interact positively with different types of people from the local community

3. Were there any other benefits not listed? (please give details)

4. Please indicate how Craft Club is going for you…(please tick one for each row) Strongly agree

Agree

Neutral

My training prepared me for volunteering in a school I have had adequate support from the Craft Club Team I have had adequate support from the school I enjoy working with my volunteer team I enjoy working with young people Craft Club is a positive use of my time and energy I feel proud that I am making a difference to young people

5. Any other comments?

6. What would make Craft Club better?

7. What other crafts would you like to see on offer in Craft Club in the future?

Thank you for your time - your views and comments will help us keep improving Craft Club for you.

CRAFT CLUB TEAM! www.craftclub.org.uk

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CRAFT CLUB FORM F – PUPIL QUESTIONNAIRE Name (optional) School Are you Male or Female? (Please circle) M / F

Age

Year Group/ class

How long have you been attending Craft Club?

Do you: …use the Craft Club website? Y / N …use the Forum? Y/ N …Upload/ Download things? Y/ N To protect your privacy, you do not have to give your name. By completing this questionnaire you will help us to assess how successful this activity has been in your school.

1. Why do you come to this activity / club?

2. What did the activities do for you? (please tick one ) Strongly agree

Agree

Neutral

Disagree

Strongly disagree

It gave me a chance to try something different It was fun It helped me relax and unwind I made new friends It helped me learn new skills It helped me understand how people can earn a living from craft I met different types of people from my local area

3a. Has this activity improved your work? (please circle)

Yes / No

3b. If yes, how? (please give details) 4. How does attending Craft Club make you feel? (please circle all that apply) Calm and relaxed Upset Proud Sociable/ friendly Bored Creative Energetic and lively

Happy

Successful

Lonely

Excited

5. What have you enjoyed most about this club?

6. What would make this club better?

7a. What other crafts would you like to see on offer in Craft Club in the future?

Thank you for your time - your views and comments will help us keep improving Craft Club for you.

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CRAFT CLUB TEAM! www.craftclub.org.uk

Motivated

CRAFT CLUB FORM G – PARENTAL CONSENT FORM Childs Name: Date of Birth: Address: Contact mobile number: Parents/Guardian Name: Telephone no: Relationship to child:

CONSENT (please read carefully) 1. Video

2. Photography

I understand that Craft Club or its volunteers will be filming the activity involving my child on

The Craft Club team may from time to time wish to document club activities through photography.

The purpose of taking photos is twofold: to develop a Craft Club archive of activities for our internal use and on the Craft Club website, and for celebrating and promoting Craft Club via newsletters and occasional press releases.

Date: Venue: and can accept no responsibility for loss of property, damage or injury to the young person caused by or during attendance at any of the club’s organised activities.

If you are comfortable with this please state so: YES / NO

Please be assured that we will never make use of Craft Club photos for any other purposes.

If you are comfortable with this please state so: YES / NO The Craft Club website is moderated as part of our Safeguarding Policy. Please ask if you wish to view the policy.

Signature: (Parent/ Guardian) Date:

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ABOUT OUR CRAFT CLUB PARTNERS • The UK Hand Knitting Association (UKHKA) is dedicated to raising the profile of yarn crafts through a variety of campaigns and initiatives including Knit 1, Pass It On to encourage all knitters to pass on their skills to other people.

For more information on all aspects of knitting and yarn crafts, including latest What’s On news, knitting clubs across the UK, Knitted Textile graduate showcase and awards, knitting artists and celebrities, knitted projects for all to join in, fascinating facts and statistics and links to numerous knitting related organisations and individuals visit the UKHKA site www.ukhandknitting.com • The National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI) is the largest voluntary women’s organisation in the UK with more than 205,000 members in 6,500 WIs. It plays a unique role in enabling women to develop new skills, giving them opportunities to campaign on issues that matter to them and their communities, and provides wide-ranging activities for members to get involved in. For further information please visit www.theWI.org.uk •

The Crafts Council’s goal is to make the UK the best place to make, see, collect and learn about contemporary craft.

We believe that craft plays a dynamic and vigorous role in the UK’s social, economic and cultural life. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to make, see, collect and learn about craft. We believe that the strength of craft lies in its use of traditional and contemporary techniques, ideas and materials to make extraordinary new work.

We believe that the future of craft lies in nurturing talent; children and young people must be able to learn about craft at school and have access to excellent teaching throughout their education.

For further information about the Crafts Council visit www.craftscouncil.org.uk. For contact with other maker-educators join the Craft Action Network (CAN) www.craft-action.org.uk

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• The Crafts Council is supported by Arts Council England. Arts Council England works to get great art to everyone by championing, developing and investing in artistic experiences that enrich people’s lives. As the national development agency for the arts, it supports “a range of artistic activities from theatre to music, literature to dance, photography to digital art, and carnival to crafts. Between 2008 and 2011, Arts Council England will invest £1.3 billion of public money from government and a further £0.3 billion from the National Lottery to create these experiences for as many people as possible across the country. www.artscouncil.org.uk

Crafts Council is a registered charity no. 280956