Yes! Just visit the www.craftclub.org.uk website for information on how to start a club in your school. We will pass on details on how to organise volunteers to come in and help you get crafting! In the meantime, why not sign in to the Community area and see what others are making, swap patterns and share tips.
Students get hands-on tuition with volunteers and learn useful life-skills. As well as being able to sew on a button, craft teaches patience, perseverance, concentration – good all-round skills. Knitting provides a sense of achievement, boosting self confidence and improving dexterity, maths and handwriting. Intelligent making and craft activity are inclusive and democratic supporting first-hand engagement and haptic knowledge at all levels of ability. It is also an opportunity for some fun and socializing.
The first project we are organising to launch Craft Club is Knit 1 Pass It On. So, you could knit scarves, hats, jewellery, or even a whole rainforest! Yes – one school actually did this! You are not limited to knitting though, you can craft almost anything. We will be launching other projects to give you ideas along the way. Why not share project ideas and download lesson plans in the Community area?
Yes! Your child’s school will probably love for you to help out. You can register as a volunteer through the website. Find out more on the Crafty Volunteers page.
Any civic centre that has the basic facilities can set up a Craft Club. Just register online and we will link you up with your local volunteer group. If you are involved with an arts organisation, local authority services or extended services and would like to make contact with local Craft Clubs please Contact us!
That’s great news. By registering your club at www.craftclub.org.uk you will be eligible to sign up for competitions, download useful patterns and share videos of your club online.
This is dependent on where and how you are running your club. Talk to your venue contact as every venue will have a different policy and it might work differently depending on your target group. For example if you are working in a school it is very likely that the schools will require you to get a CRB, they will guide you through this process. But if you are providing a drop in Craft Club in a Library or Gallery, parents will be required to stay with their children and the activity would take place in a public space therefore you may not need one. The adult who is responsible for the child (parent, carer or teacher) must always be present, Craft Club is not a childminding service.
Yes volunteers are responsible for sourcing materials/equipment for their Clubs but we discourage this being at your own cost. Tips include:
- Ask your venue contact if they have any budget that you might be able to access for Craft club.
- Use recycled materials such as making rags from unused fabrics, plastic bags can make an interesting project (see CC website download area for how to do this) anything can be knitted – be adventurous!
- Have a look on freecycle – this is a website where people give things away for free that they no longer want. You can put in requests for yarns and needles/hooks.
- Make friends with your local yarn shop, tell them about craft Club, they might have some bits they would be willing to pass on to community projects.
- Please upload your pictures onto the Craft Club website. Every term we have a maker choose their favourite photo and that Club wins a prize of yarns, needles, hooks etc.
You can ask for small contributions for your Craft Club to cover costs, we don’t want volunteers to be out of pocket. Craft Club must not be for profit.
You can link up with other volunteers in an endless number of ways but some suggestions are:
- We can link you up with Volunteers – contact knit1@craftclub.org.uk .
- Contact your local WI network.
- Invite friends that might like to pass on their craft skills to join you.
- Advertise in a local newsletter or local online community.
- Post your requirements on the Craft Club website.
- Put a notice up in your local knitting shop.
- You could ask the venue to help you.
- Or chat to people at training events.