Margate's Arts Education Exchange Fights to Keep Doors Open
Fundraiser underway to save the service
Arts Education Exchange, a critical service provider for young people with complex support needs, is struggling to secure funding amidst drastic public spending cuts and increased competition for grants.
Over the past year, the organisation says it has been rejected for more than £800,000 worth of funding, putting its vital programmes at risk.
"We've built an essential service for young people in the area, and we are fighting to keep our doors open to those who need us most," said Ollie Briggs, CEO of Arts Education Exchange.
"We provide young people with wrap-around support in a safe, consistent environment where they can develop reliable and trusting relationships."
Their innovative approach combines creative arts education with therapeutic care and advocacy, enabling participants to progress socially, emotionally, and academically.
This relational model has proven effective in catalysing social change and empowering young people to imagine and create the lives they want to live.
However, the current funding landscape threatens the continuity of these vital services. Arts Education Exchange will sadly have to let go of four valued team members, and now faces further downsizing unless additional funding is secured.
"We're committed to our purpose of reconnecting young people with their creative potential, and fighting back against brutal cuts to public services," Ollie Briggs added. "But we need urgent support to continue this critical work."
Arts Education Exchange is appealing to the community, potential donors, and funding bodies to help keep its doors open. The organisation aims to raise £32,000 for rent and utilities for two years, which would allow it to focus on securing funding for staff salaries and programme costs.
FUNDRAISER HERE: https://www.spacehive.com/save-our-creative-space-for-young-people
Arts Education Exchange (AEE), based in Margate, provides creative education, and therapeutic provision for young people, particularly those who are strategically undervalued and excluded from mainstream culture and state funded institutions.
Since 2017, AEE has offered high-quality arts education as an alternative to mainstream education, fostering learning, growth, and joy to help young people heal and envision a more equitable future.
The organisation works with young people aged 11-25 from Thanet facing significant life challenges.
