Care experienced young people from Worcestershire showcase powerful artwork at Worcester Cathedral

Worcestershire County Council has supported a group of care experienced young people to produce artwork as part of Severn Arts’ annual ‘Young Voices New Visions’ exhibition. This year’s theme, Courage, is powerfully explored through portrait photography, text, and poetry.

‘Young Voices New Visions’ brings together visual artworks by children and young people aged 5–18 from across Worcestershire’s schools and community groups. The exhibition offers a platform for young creatives to share their thoughts, ideas, and personal experiences with a wider audience.

In this year’s contribution, officers from the County Council worked alongside practicing artist, Steph Green, who is the founder of Worcester Art Collective, a Community Interest Company committed to promoting visual arts and creativity across the community. The young people developed work that was not only high in quality but rich in meaning and personal expression.

The artwork features photos of young people, overlapped with wording including: “It takes courage to make new friends” and “it takes courage to perform in public”.

Councillor Justin Bowen, Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Children and Families said: “It is imperative that we have ambition for our care experienced young people. We must advocate for them to have the same opportunities as others and expose them to the feeling of achievement and personal success at every opportunity.

The creative arts are a crucial way to provide a platform for their stories and voices. There is always an element of vulnerability in sharing like this in the public domain and they should be really proud of what they have achieved.”

Worcester Cathedral hosted a view of the artwork for the young people who created it, alongside senior officers from the County Council, Worcester Cathedral, Severn Arts and Steph Green from Worcester Arts Collective. The Mayor of Worcester, Councillor Dr Matthew Lamb, and the Mayor’s Consort, Councillor Pat Agar, also attended and welcomed the group back to The Guildhall for refreshments.

The exhibition is open to the public from Sunday 8 June to Monday 30 June, during Worcester Cathedral’s regular opening hours: 10am–5pm Monday to Saturday, and 12:30pm–3pm on Sundays.

Visitors are warmly encouraged to attend and experience this inspiring celebration of creativity, resilience, and youth voice.