Creative Sessions for Older Girls in Rowntree Park
This year, Make Space York is excited to be running a series of creative sessions for older girls during the school holidays. This means there isn’t just the two weekends of the festival of events in June, there is more!
The sessions have been made possible thanks to funding from the LNER Customer and Community Investment Fund and form part of the wider Make Space York project, which explores how parks and public spaces can become more welcoming, inclusive and enjoyable for teenage girls.
Across the programme, girls will have opportunities to be creative, spend time outdoors, meet others and explore themes connected to their experiences of parks and public space.
Themes across the sessions include:
- Belonging and identity
- Feeling safe in public space
- Power, voice and expression
- Joy, play and friendship
- Nature and connection
- Future visions and design of parks
The programme brings together local artists, facilitators and creatives, each offering different ways for girls to express themselves, share experiences and help shape conversations about public space.
Sessions
The Room Outside – Creative Writing and Art Workshops
Led by Sarah Williams from York Creatives, these workshops combine creative writing and visual art to explore ideas around place, identity, belonging and parks as social spaces.
15th and 28th May – May Half term (2-4pm)
Felted Spaces – Wool Felting
Another nature-based creative session led by Christine Banham, using wool felting and tactile making to explore feelings of comfort, connection and belonging within outdoor spaces.
Tuesday 21st July 10-12pm
Hope Blooms – Collective Art
Led by artist Poppy Burr, this creative art session blends nature with young people’s hopes for the future. Through collaborative making, girls will explore ideas of growth, belonging and what welcoming public spaces could look and feel like for future generations. The work will form part of a collective art installation to be hosted in Rowntree Park.
Thursday 30th of July- Opt for one of the sessions at 10-11.30am or 12.30-2pm
The Unspoken Rules – mixed media mapping and collage
Led by Daisy Age Art, this workshop uses drawing, collage and mixed media to explore the “unspoken rules” that can exist in public spaces. Girls will reflect on how parks and outdoor environments feel to them, then creatively challenge and express those experiences through collaborative artwork.
Friday 14th August 2-4pm
Making a Mark – Nature Journalling and Natural Printing
Led by Christine Banham, Forest School practitioner at Rowntree Park, these sessions encourage girls to slow down, connect with nature and creatively respond to the outdoor environment through journalling and natural printing techniques.
Friday 28th August July 2-4pm
Collective Art Projects
There will also be two opportunities for girls to contribute towards collective artworks that will be displayed in Rowntree Park.
The Room Outside
Led by Sarah Williams, this collaborative creative project explores the idea of parks as “the room outside” — places to gather, connect, express yourself and simply be. Workshops in May half term (25th & 28th May) and installation later in summer 2026.
Hope Blooms
Led by artist Poppy Burr, this collective artwork blends nature with young people’s hopes for the future. Through collaborative making, girls will explore ideas of growth, belonging and what welcoming public spaces could look and feel like for future generations.
Thursday 30th July. Sessions at 10-11.0am and 12.30-2pm (not open to book yet as finalising details)
Both projects aim to make girls’ voices visible within the park itself, creating lasting creative reflections of the wider Make Space York project.
Previous Creative Projects
Alongside these upcoming sessions, the project has already included:
‘Seen and Heard’ photography project with photographer Bec Hudson Smith
Craft and Connect – engagement and creative session at West Bank Park led by Abigail Gaines and Christine Banham.
Why This Matters
At the heart of Make Space York is a simple idea: teenage girls deserve to feel welcome in parks too. While parks are often described as spaces for “everyone”, research and local engagement continue to show that many girls use parks less as they get older, often because spaces no longer feel designed with them in mind.
These creative sessions provide opportunities for girls to connect, reflect, create and have their voices heard, while helping shape conversations about the future of parks and public spaces in York.
Book your places
As sessions are free, please only book if you know you can attend. Places are limited in each session and we wouldn’t want others to miss out. Also please note the age ranges and don’t book sessions if your child is not in the age range asked for. I really appreciate your support with this.
These sessions have been made possible thanks to funding from the LNER ‘Customer and Community Investment Fund’.
More info or any questions – get in touch with abigail at makespaceyork@gmail.com
