Free craft kits are on offer for West Cumbrian youngsters this Easter.
A total of 480 kits are available for eligible children taking part in holiday activity schemes during the holidays in Millom, Maryport, Wigton, Workington, Whitehaven, Cleator Moor, Egremont and Aspatria.
Let’s Craft is an initiative from the Crafts Council and Hobbycraft, in association with Curious Minds in the North West.
The kits will be distributed by a cohort of partners in West Cumbria including FRAME – West Cumbria’s Local Education Partnership, the Holiday Activities initiative from Cumbria County Council and Workington’s Carnegie Theatre and Arts Centre, to make sure those most in need can access the mental health benefits that crafting brings.
A spokesman said: “Many families are unable to afford the most basic of art and craft materials at home and creativity can feel like a low priority during a cost of living crisis, it has been proven to provide children with hours of happiness and escapism.
“Getting creative has been proven to ease stress and help children release the pent-up emotions they might be feeling in their day-to-day life. Activities like drawing
or painting, for example, reduce levels of cortisol in the brain – a hormone typically associated with stress. Because of this, these hobbies can then limit the onset of mental health conditions in later life, like anxiety, insomnia, and depression.”
Karen Thompson, FRAME’s development manager, is co-ordinating the programme in West Cumbria.
She said: “The crafting packs will be distributed to some of our most vulnerable children, who all deserve the opportunity to play imaginatively and creatively. FRAME exists to improve access to arts, crafts and heritage activities to young people here in West Cumbria and we are delighted to be co-ordinating this initiative locally.
“We are hugely grateful to both the HAF team at Cumbria County Council and The Carnegie Theatre in Workington for their assistance with ensuring this opportunity is extended to children across West Cumbrian towns and villages.”
