Halley House shows how craft education begins long before GCSEs
In Dalston, Halley House School has spent nearly a decade proving that creativity is not a luxury but a necessity. With limited resources, children learned to work with clay, lino, cardboard and photography, guided by artist and educator Kate Hodgson, who sees these practical skills as passports to wider industries, including jewellery. In 2024, their persistence was recognised when Halley House became the first primary school to receive support from the Goldsmiths’ Centre’s Crafting Our Future Together programme. A £10,000 grant created a fully equipped studio, transforming a long-improvised space into an environment that celebrates making and signals to every child that creativity has value, both in education and in life.
Art educator Kate Hodgson says, “all of these skills of visual communication through the use of materials, experience and accurate use of handwork and tools are transferable skills, enabling marginalised groups and individuals to gain access to a wider collection of possible industries, including jewellery.” The Children’s Art Studio now has modular flip tables, stackable stools, specialist storage units, as well as materials and accessories.
“This investment addresses at an early stage the 42% decline in Art & Design GCSE’s and A Levels, reported by the Cultural Learning Alliance. If young people have the opportunity to learn in an environment where creativity is valued, and the experiences are many and mixed, then we can lay the foundation for this statistic to change.”
The Art Studio at Halley House School forms part of a portfolio of programmes supported by the Goldsmiths' Centre that increase access to making, creativity and the industry. Each programme is approached collaboratively, where the funding unlocks a wider partnership.
In this case, Year 5 students from Halley House School visited the Goldsmiths’ Centre, and undertook two sessions – a session where students designed objects from rings through to football trophies, and a hands-on session in the Silversmithing Workshop. The whole school then had a visit from the Professional Training team, who were invited to take part in a school assembly to talk about the jewellery industry. The Centre’s Community Advisory Group member, Dr Kelly Meng, has also supported the school to apply for their Arts Mark award.
These links will continue beyond the funded year, shared across the wider Bellevue Place Education Trust. The Children’s Art Studio at Halley House now stands not just as a classroom, but as a signal of what is possible when creativity is given space: a place where young people learn that making matters, and where the foundation for future opportunities, in jewellery and beyond, can take root.
