How does mentoring work?
You will be matched with a trained mentor who works in the creative or cultural industries and shares your interests. All Arts Emergency mentors give up their time voluntarily to support a young person.
You will be matched with your mentor for 12 months. In that time, you will arrange monthly meetings with your mentor to take place in a public space or online. You, your mentor and the Arts Emergency team can decide the safest option for you, a place where you feel most comfortable.
Together you will focus on your goals and what you want to achieve during your mentoring year and beyond.
Your mentor will help by offering information, advice and guidance on education and careers as well as helping you to build your confidence and connections.
Who can apply?
If you are aged between 16 and 18 and live in Greater Manchester, London or Merseyside you can apply!
We try to work with young people who most need the support of an Arts Emergency mentor the most, and therefore mentees should meet at least one of the criteria below:
- Your parents or carers didn’t attend university in the UK or abroad
- The main household earner when you were 14 had a ‘working class’ occupation (i.e. a technical or craft occupation; a routine, manual, or service occupation; or was long-term unemployed)
- You have been eligible for free school meals
- You are receiving the government's 16-19 bursary
- You consider yourself as being from an ethnic minority background
- You consider yourself to be disabled*
- You consider yourself to have a learning disability or special education need*
*Under the Equality Act 2010, you are 'disabled' or 'learning disabled' if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.
If you are not sure about your eligibility for the mentoring programme and would like to talk to a member of the team please contact us by emailing mentoring@arts-emergency.org
How do I apply?
Visit our Get a Mentor page and fill out the application form at the bottom of the page.
If you find it difficult to communicate through writing, for example if you have dyslexia, you can also complete your application over the phone. Email mentoring@arts-emergency.org to schedule this.
Who are the Arts Emergency mentors?
Arts Emergency mentors are a team of volunteers from a variety of professional backgrounds across the creative and cultural industries.
They've all signed up because they are connected, kind and want to help you get ahead! They are trained in goal-setting, working with young people and understanding safety procedures.
Our mentors come from a range of established organisations including the V&A, Netflix, New York Times, Manchester International Festival, BBC, Tate Liverpool, Universal Records, FACT, Royal Exchange Theatre, HOME, Contact Theatre, National Museums Liverpool, Craft Council and more!
What areas do Arts Emergency mentors specialise in?
Art & Design
- Architecture & Interior Design
- Crafts
- Fashion Design
- Graphic Design
- Industrial Design
- Photography
- Visual Arts
Performance
- Comedy
- Dance
- Film & TV (on-screen)
- Music
- Theatre (on-stage)
Media & Screen
- Animation
- Broadcast Journalism
- Film & TV (off-screen)
- Gaming
- Radio & Podcasting
- Theatre (off-stage)
Writing & the Humanities
- Academia & Research
- Creative Writing
- Politics & Activism
- Print Journalism
Creative Roles & the Cultural Sector
- Advertising & Marketing
- Arts Administration
- Cultural Education & Engagement
- Galleries
- Heritage
- Libraries & Archives
- Publishing
… and more!
If you are unsure whether your interest falls under the creative and cultural industries, you can always email us at mentoring@arts-emergency.org
What support do you provide?
Arts Emergency has a team of dedicated mentoring officers in each of our regions; Greater Manchester, London and Merseyside.
Mentoring officers are there to support you, and your mentor, throughout your mentoring year. If you ever need support, want to chat about your mentoring experience, or have any questions or queries, all you have to do is drop us an email.
You can see our smiling faces here.
How do you keep young people safe?
Keeping young people safe is our number one priority. We do this in a number of different ways:
- Mentors are trained by our team to work with young people and keep them safe
- Every mentor is required to sign our code of conduct and complete an enhanced DBS (criminal record) check
- Every mentor is interviewed before meeting their mentee
- Arts Emergency will conduct reference checks for all mentors.
- The Arts Emergency team checks in regularly with young people and volunteers.
- Mentors must send in reports after every session.
You can read our Safeguarding Policy here: arts-emergency.org/safe
What happens after mentoring?
After your year of mentoring, young people remain part of our young community where they can continue to access support and opportunities like networking events and development opportunities until their 26th birthday.
You can read about how this has helped people like Louis in the 'Our Stories' section of our website.
Our Stories
"I was already confident in my drawing abilities but I lacked knowledge about the animation industry and the realities of getting a job in it."
We caught up with mentee Steph and their mentor Claire, both based in Merseyside, about the mentoring journey so far, what they’re getting from the experience and how the programme is helping plan for the future.
Our Stories
"I’d thought about studying architecture at university but I had no idea about the route to get there."
Louis, 22, from Manchester, first joined Arts Emergency as a mentee in 2020. Four years later, he's now a member of the Youth Collective and is well on his way to becoming an architect.
Our Stories
"our mentoring sessions were always productive and encouraging"
Ruben, aged 18, is an aspiring filmmaker based in Merseyside. He was looking for a mentor who could help him understand routes into the film industry and expand his professional network.