About

Eastside is working towards a future in which all young people’s creativity is valued, nurtured and celebrated

Founded in 1994, Eastside empowers thousands of young people each year through the arts. We do this by running participatory workshops and programmes for young people both in and outside of school settings.

Eastside’s mission is to inspire young people through participation in arts programmes that develop their skills and creative thinking. In 2024-2025, Eastside delivered 2,114 workshops reaching 56,275 young people across the country.

Our Impact

56,275

2,114

100%

700

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Every donation we receive, large or small, helps to fund the important work we do, and allows us to expand our reach and help even more young people.

Read Eastside’s 2025 Annual Report

What our community has to say

“The overall feeling in school is the joy of feeling like the students were seen, were included and had a magical experience. They were excited to have a visiting workshop who ‘got it’ at all levels. I have already been asked to make sure you will come back!”

“The workshops gave students the confidence to explore their own voice and background in a supportive and encouraging environment.”

“The children had a fantastic time and became really enthusiastic about the topic. They loved the facilitator and his passion and enthusiasm. The children engaged well with the topic and will continue to learn related things!”

“It really has been a joy to see our pupils create in this way, all staff involved in the workshops always come and find me and say how much fun they had and we need to do more things like this!”

“The festival was fun and engaging. Children read with confidence and expression, and our artist guided them wonderfully. The next day, they proudly performed again in front of other year groups, showing how much they enjoyed it.”

“You and the team have taught them that what they have to say matters, and that they are heard. They’ll forget long division, but they won’t forget that lesson.”

“This was an absolutely fantastic opportunity and our students were still buzzing the day after! I felt like a proud parent listening to their poems and seeing them perform.”

“We have students who are super nervous about performance, and who are reluctant readers due to their EAL status, but these students have gained confidence to no end this week - some of them even throwing their hat in the ring to read aloud first.”

“I felt like it gave me a reason to write, I don't always have that.”

“From this project I am gaining the confidence and the ability to say 'No' to how I've previously taught things or how people may be doing things across the school and to say 'yes' to changing the dynamics of how I've previously taught.”

“I think if I took my students to the library, they might pick up a poem now. Most teachers are shy of poetry units, because we don’t actually know what they meant, we hide away from it and dread it. But actually, more familiarity with poems, maybe we won’t dread that third section of SATs so much. More exposure and familiarity is good.”

‘’I just wanted to say thank you for Wednesday's session. It was one of the best CPD's I've ever been to and I've already been putting things into practice in my classroom.’’

“I feel this course has been a real launchpad for me to find a footing in a dream career, and has given me the confidence, self-belief and the practical skills to continue making more films.”

‘’The drama project was so good for her; she felt seen and heard and found ways to express herself; she is a child who normally runs out of the room, so she really surprised the staff.’’