Be part of The Ark Children's Council 2021/22

Are you a creative young person who loves drama, music, dance or art? If you are going into 4th or 5th Class in September then this could be right up your street!

The Ark Children’s Council is a dynamic and enriching year long experience exploring active citizenship through engagement with the arts as well as amplifying the voice of the child within The Ark, making sure that your voices are included in our decision making.

The Children’s Council is FREE but spaces are limited and it does require commitment and consistent attendance to the program. You can find out more information about The Ark Children's Council here.

Applications are now open for children who would like to join The Children's Council 2021/2022. This Council term will run from October 2021 until June 2022 with at least one key event per month where attendance will be required. Sessions will commence remotely via Zoom in October with in-person sessions at The Ark in Temple Bar from November 2022 onwards, subject to government guidelines.

Please note that The Ark Children's Council is strictly for children who will be going into 4th or 5th class in September 2021.

Pictured: The Ark Children's Council 2019/20 with the cast of The Haircut! by Wayne Jordan & Tom Lane.

How to apply:
An application form should be filled out for each child applying. This should be completed by the child and their parent/guardian together. Applications should be submitted by 5pm on Friday 6 August 2021.

How are participants selected?

It is important that the children applying to join the council have a clear sense of what our council sessions are like. As part of the application process, we will run a number of online recruitment workshops. These are not auditions, but a chance for us to see the children working together and find out more about them. Workshops are on Friday 13 August @ 10.30am & 2pm & & Saturday 14 August @ 10.30am & 3.30pm.

If there is anything that could make participating in an online workshop difficult for your child (for example: access to a device, broadband connection, etc.) please let us know and we will do our best to make other arrangements for your child.

During each online workshop, members of The Ark staff will give children a virtual introduction to The Ark and to the Children’s Council. Children will be invited to ask questions to find out if the Children’s Council is something they would be interested in. There will also be an opportunity for parents to find out more about what is involved and the level of commitment needed.

After children participate in the workshop, we will be in contact with you to confirm whether the child still wishes to be considered for a place on the Council for 2021/2022. If they do, we will then include them on our shortlist, from which we will put together a group that matches the needs of the project best.

Please note: The Ark expects to receive more applications than places available, which is why we are running the recruitment sessions. The project aims to represent a mix of children that reflects the diversity of young people in Ireland today.

In line with The Ark’s Diversity and Inclusion Policy, we actively seek to ensure equality in terms of access and engagement across gender, ethnicity, age, orientation, membership of the Traveller Community, socio-economic status, family or civil status, disability, or religion.

If you have any questions about The Ark Children's Council or the recruitment process, please get in touch - you can email engagement@ark.ie or call 01 670 7788.

Learn more about The Ark Children's Council