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A children's arts organisation and publishing house.
At Kids’ Own, research is an important part of how we understand and share the impact of our work with children, artists, and communities. This page brings together research and evaluation reports from selected projects, offering insights into children’s creative processes, collaborative methodologies, and the value of arts-based practice in education and community settings. Our aim is to make these findings accessible to academics, educators, and partners who share our interest in deepening understanding of children’s participation in the arts.
A Way to Thrive. We invite you to explore this special single-edition publication, compiled by Jo Holmwood, which captures the creative journeys of seven class groups and seven teacher–artist pairs who took part in the Teacher Artist Partnership (TAP) programme in 2020–21. Commissioned as part of a Kids’ Own initiative, the publication highlights how mentoring, documentation, and reflection can deepen creative collaboration between teachers and artists. Through these insights, readers can gain a richer understanding of how the TAP programme supports meaningful arts experiences in schools.
Something Happened was developed as part of a special initiative commissioned by the Teacher Artist Partnership (TAP) Programme in 2020. Delivered by Kids’ Own, the project supported teacher–artist pairs to document their work and engage in masterclasses and mentoring aimed at deepening their creative processes. Led by five artists with extensive experience in collaborative practice, the initiative explored both the philosophy and practical techniques of documentation. This publication captures their insights and offers practical guidance for embedding documentation meaningfully in creative work – a valuable resource for anyone engaged in arts and education practice.
Our Lives, Our Voices, by Dr Susan McConnel and Dr Tamsin Cavaliero, presents evaluation findings from a 12-week participatory arts and publishing project in Cork city (2021–22). The project included two series of workshops with Roma and Traveller children and young people, culminating in the creation of two books showcasing their stories and artwork. The report offers insights into the creative processes, experiences, and perspectives of participants, providing valuable learning for educators, researchers, and anyone interested in participatory arts practice with children and young people.
Here’s the Tribe, by Bryonie Reid, presents research on the Young Writers’ Group, a project that has run for nearly three years and continues to thrive despite the challenges of the global pandemic. Through conversations with participants and facilitators, as well as observation of live and recorded sessions, the report captures rich and nuanced stories about how the group operates, what works well, and what it means to those involved. Findings are presented thematically, with reflections on the group’s strengths, offering insights for anyone interested in supporting sustained creative engagement with young writers.
