Students from Inspire College and the latest cohort of volunteering programme, Takeover, will be bringing the beach to Mansfield this June at the programme’s next public pop-up at MyPlace.

The free fete – on 11th June – is the second pop-up event Takeover has run alongside its young volunteers, who get to take the reins and coordinate their own creative public event for the day.

The Summer Takeover, themed as a beach bonanza, will start at 11am, inviting families to enjoy a
delightful day at the beach experience at Myplace at Westfield Folkhouse
Young People’s Centre until 3pm.

Takeover is a programme powered by the government’s Volunteering Futures Fund, aimed at fostering the creative talents of young people in Mansfield and Ashfield.

Inspire: Culture, Learning & Libraries and Captivate, Ashfield & Mansfield’s Local Cultural Education Partnership received £262,000 from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sports, delivered by Arts Council England, to develop volunteering opportunities. The grant has been used to deliver ‘Takeover’, a two-year programme that launched in June 2022  to provide young people aged 14-24, and those with disabilities, the opportunity to volunteer and develop their creativity, talent, leadership, and employability skills in the creative art industries.

Following the tremendous success of Takeover’s last pop up event in February this year, where students from The Brunts Academy, Mansfield, raised more than £200 for Cancer Research UK at the Four Seasons Shopping Centre, the Summer Takeover promises a day of family fun, entertainment, and array of creative business stalls.

Visitors can expect games, small crafts, food vendors, a bouncy castle, petting zoo, silent disco, as well as
performances with live bands from Inspire Youth Arts (IYA) throughout the day.

Companies and organisations supporting the event include Silent Disco 4 U and IYA, an award-winning, specialist creative team dedicated to producing innovative arts projects with young people across Nottinghamshire.

The group of 12 young people from Inspire College have helped to develop and deliver this day-long extravaganza, having been mentored by Captivate coordinator Emily Thurston and Captivate and Takeover partnership manager Vanessa Oxspring over the last 12 weeks.

This is the second cohort of students from Inspire College to join and complete the Takeover programme.

In recent months, Takeover has recruited more student volunteers from Portland College and The Brunts Academy, with six additional cohorts set to start in the new academic year from September onwards.

Applications to join Takeover are still open and accepting students based in the Mansfield and Ashfield area.

Vanessa said: “We’re looking forward to another great pop up which we’re confident will be a hit
with families in Mansfield. This has been a dynamic and creative group to work with, we’re thrilled that the programme has brought about so many cultural leadership opportunities in a short space of time. Huge thanks to our delivery partners, Inspire College and IYA for their invaluable support in bringing Takeover’s second event to
life.”