Unleash their creative potential

Nurturing creativity in children is an essential part of being a teacher. As you know, it's infinitely easier to encourage an imaginative young mind when you're not restricted by a lack of resources for the necessary art and craft materials. Have you had first-hand experience of how art and craft be a lesser priority in the allocation of school funding? According to the Artworks Survey in July 2001 , some schools spend as little as 60p a year per child on art materials, with infant schools spending on average £1.18 a year per child and junior schools spending only 11p more.

Which is why we've launched the 'Get creative' programme - to help you establish an even better environment for learning by providing pupils with the means to actively use their imagination and explore their creativity.

Get creative with Persil

'Get creative' aims to supplement schools' existing resources by making at least £7m worth of free art and craft materials available to pre-schools and primary schools.

Developed with feedback from teachers, the scheme is as easy, quick, and relevant for schools as can be. There's over forty different classroom kits available at a variety of collection targets. These range from basics such as paint, brushes, pen and paper kits, to higher value items such as face painting kits, screen-painting tools, Fimo, glitter and sequin packs, even easels and drying racks.

So, whether you're a large school or a remote village playgroup, everyone can benefit from the scheme. Just keep collecting until you reach the number of Persil Stars you need for your chosen items!

To view the online version of the 'Get creative' catalogue, please click here.

Leading art education experts such as Dr John Steers, General Secretary of the National Society for Education in Art and Design (NSEAD), have also been consulted.
He comments: "The importance of literacy and numeracy is well-accepted, but in order for a child to develop a broad, balanced and relevant set of 'life skills', it's important not to underestimate the value of nurturing creativity too, particularly in early years teaching. Unfortunately, low art and craft resource levels can sometimes be an issue for teachers, but 'Get creative' aims to change all that, by providing children with the means to explore their creativity and the world of their imagination."