Friends Of Anstee Bridge

At Anstee Bridge we support young people in the Royal Borough of Kingston and London Borough of Richmond who are facing emotional challenges. As a result this causes them to struggle with and disengage from education. Achieving for Children (AfC) is an innovative, not-for-profit Community Interest Company providing social care, preventative and education services on behalf of Kingston, Richmond and Windsor and Maidenhead Councils. Anstee Bridge is one of AfC's most successful preventative programmes, it has three main aims:

1. Improving participants mental well-being focusing on self-esteem, self-efficacy and resilience. Over the past 10 years Anstee has developed a unique ‘Confidence Through Creativity’ approach. Young people design and engage in a range of creative projects designed to boost their confidence, to develop new skills and to increase their employability.

2. Young people are engaged through alternative non-traditional teaching methods to bring excitement and joy back into their learning process, and encouraging improved day-to-day engagement at school.

3. Providing a post-16 destination for all participants. Young people often enter the programme with no or little ambition for after college. Anstee Bridge empowers the young people to create their own pathway and supports their development into successful independent young adults. An average week at Anstee Bridge is extremely varied with a diverse programme co-developed with local artists and community organisations. The core of the programme is creative, arts based activities. They have been fortunate to work with a range of inspiring partners in recent years. Past projects have included a 'fashion through the ages' exhibition at the Saatchi gallery, a play exploring cyberbullying in collaboration with Bounce Theatre and an installation exploring the evolution of transport in London in partnership with Transport for London. We continue to explore a variety of creative projects with the aim of improving participants mental well-being, focusing on self-esteem, self-efficacy and resilience.