Throughout the month of April, especially during World Creativity and Innovation Week, we’re reminded of how many creatives there truly are in the world. Just think of how many we haven’t met yet! Unfortunately, the opportunity to showcase our innovation isn’t always offered to us. Whether that‘s due to financial struggles or physical restrictions. Small charities strive to ensure we avoid those situations as much as possible, believing that creativity and innovation shouldn’t be limited.
Lights, Camera, Action!
The one thing every creative needs to improve and showcase their passion is the opportunity to do so. Whether it be WOW Youth Musical Theatre’s production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, or growing a community garden with the OLLIE Foundation, the chance to show off your skills is something everyone deserves. Other future examples of small charity groups offering these chances are, once again, WOW Youth Musical Theatre’s future depiction of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Showings began on 7th April 2025 and were, unsurprisingly, a huge hit!
Another event intended to feed creative minds is the OLLIE Foundation’s ‘Peachy and Me: A Delightful School Experience’ adventure! With a focus on connection, friendship and self-esteem, OLLIE crafted this three-day workshop for children of five to eleven years old. One workshop event was held during the Easter holidays and there’s another upcoming workshop booked for the summer, so Peachy and Me are actively educating! These events are just two of so many that inspire young people every day, but creation isn’t just for children.
Start From Scratch
We should allow creativity to flourish beyond building a career. We all have a life outside of work that begs us to take up a hobby! Whether it be knitting, art, gaming or reading, hobbies are important to our mental health. So it’s no surprise that small charities would do their utmost to encourage learning those abilities from scratch. Providing any essential equipment, training, and facilities to do so. There are even skills people use in their daily lives, such as IT proficiency, that many are unable to learn due to financial constraints. So, it shouldn’t be surprising that the Hopscotch Women’s Centre offers free employment services that include IT skills classes. Supporting more people with their journey through technology allows passions to bloom and innovative minds to think.
Creative Futures Built and Backed
Even with the experience on your resume, it can be difficult to build a career within a creative industry. So, another way small charities encourage creativity is through career advice. By giving people access to equipment and facilities they may not have had access to before, charities are actively building careers in several creative fields. Non-profits are determined to watch creatives add colour to the world.
Experience is not only a brilliant motivator to seek out support, but is also a highly-looked for skill on resumes. Charities offering the opportunity to gain hands-on experience with certain aspects of a creative job is another way to impress employers, so those who could otherwise be overlooked will stand out!
It Takes a Village (and Small Charities)
Building up a community for creatives not only allows for networking opportunities, but the chance to meet other creatives, some in their own field and others not. Community support is a powerful source of inspiration, whether the result is a community of two or one hundred and small charities tend to be the unsung heroes of community. Sharing your passions gives creators the chance to discuss them with like-minded people. Small charities also create safe spaces for different creators of all backgrounds, allowing people to mix and learn and gain inspiration from those with different lived experiences to themselves.
Remember this week what creativity does for us in our daily lives. We listen to music, binge our favourite television shows, read stories of adventure and love. Without these things, we would have nothing to break up the work we do, nothing to escape to when the days get too long and difficult to take in. Small charities and non-profits actively create more of what we care about. So if you have a creative mission you’d like to support, sign up to Givey today and begin spreading awareness by:
- Planning a fundraiser and creating a fundraising page.
- Donating to a creative cause close to you.
- Sharing information about your charity on social media.
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