What Chance Arts offer...

We offer the chance to recover from trauma

In our experience, children and young people don’t always talk about what is troubling them and they may be adult before they realise they need to confront difficult feelings. This is why our interventions are arts based, sometimes in groups and sometimes in individual sessions, to assist with this process.

The school based programmes usually last for a whole term. We also offer individual sessions to families in need. We receive funding from both statutory services and grant making trusts and foundations according to the type of programme. We acknowledge financial assistance from schools in the London Boroughs of Ealing, Hounslow and Hillingdon, and for the continuing support of the Patrick Frost Foundation.

Play, Sing and Move - Programmes for babies and young children

This programme is for babies and young children, with their parents and carers, in early years' settings and children's centres. It is based on attachment and attunement between infants and their mothers and carers. We encourage infant directed musical responses and group participation through sharing and turn taking.

Statutory services, including early years' settings, voluntary organisations and community groups, may apply to us for this programme. We recommend a minimum of five weekly sessions and usually like to complete 10 sessions depending on the setting and the resources available.

"with their (Chance's) advice, support and lovely music workshops, I have watched my boys grow into sociable confident little men" Women's Refuge Parent

Children in Transition - Therapeutic arts groups for children of all ages

Our groups are designed to encourage participation and build confidence through art, story making, poetry and music for those who

• are moving from one stage of education to another 
• are thought to be under achieving
• may be grieving, experiencing loss or isolation
• have come from war zones
• have recently arrived in UK
• have experienced domestic abuse
• need to address issues such as bullying and violence

"Sharing these activities in an environment where no demands are made on them gives them the chance to learn about each other in new ways." Art Therapy with Children: from Infancy to Adolescence Ed Case and Dalley (2008)

Family Support

We are able to offer assistance to parents who feel they need support through a difficult time. This may include help for families who have experienced domestic abuse or where there has been an allegation of a sexual offence having been committed. We can assist adults with telephone support for any issues that might arise in such circumstances.

We are able to offer some individual counselling and therapeutic play sessions for children and young people who are within a reasonable distance of West London. We can help find appropriate help in other parts of England and Wales.

We also offer support to families who are fostering and adopting children and young people, and to the professional people who are involved in their care.

Training and Professional Development

Chance for Children Trust offers several tailor made children's programmes, in order to address the experience of trauma. We use the arts as a therapeutic tool to enable children and young people to deal with complex situations, build confidence and to enable creative forms of expression to develop.

Our experience of working in different settings has enabled us to plan programmes of continuing professional development for both statutory services, including schools and early years' settings, and for voluntary and community groups.

Our programmes are aimed at those that work with different age groups of children. This is essential so that there is a sharing of experience, an understanding of the different age appropriate responses to trauma and the importance of early intervention.

Each programme is adjusted to suit the appropriate Children's Workforce Development Council's skills level, as below:

• Arts with children and young people (Level 3 - 4) early years staff (EYPS) and learning, development and support services (LDSS)
• Arts for growth and change (Level 5 and above) this is a graduate/post graduate programme for early years managers, school counsellors, educational psychologists, and experienced learning mentors.
  
• The programmes cover: human development, including various anthropological and cultural aspects, dysfunction, the effects of trauma, including domestic and child abuse and inter-agency working. We introduce the theoretical background as appropriate to the academic level of the participants and there are practical exercises based on the therapeutic value of the arts.
• On-going supervision is offered for those working in the caring professions
  including volunteers.