The Children’s Council
The Ark Children’s Council is a unique opportunity for a group of children of 4th and 5th class age to gain special access to events at The Ark for a full year.
The Council are mentored and guided by Ark Artist in Residence Shaun Dunne, a playwright and expert drama artist facilitator. They work together collaboratively over the course of the year, engaging with and responding to The Ark’s busy program.
The council members have at least one key event each month with our Artist in Residence, attendance on these days is required. As well as these bespoke drama workshops, the council have exciting opportunities to look behind the scenes, work with The Ark staff, see and respond to work in development and meet and work with visiting Artists. During their year they can also avail of their ‘Access All Ark’ pass which means they can attend any program or event at The Ark for free.
The Ark Children’s council is a dynamic and enriching year long experience. The Children’s Council explore active citizenship through engagement with the arts while amplifying the voice of the child within our organisation making sure their voices are included in decision making at The Ark.
The Children’s Council is free but it does require commitment and consistent attendance to the program. Spaces are limited and a new council will be formed every 12 months.
In 2019 we commissioned researchers at University College Cork to evaluate the impact and methodology of the Children's Council. You can read a summary of that research here: Executive Summary An Evaluation Of The Operation Impact Of The Ark Children's Council
We also created a short documentary giving an insight into the operation and impact of The Ark Children's Council in the three years since it was created. This film was premiered alongside the UCC report at a special symposium presented by The Ark on 12 March 2019 to share our Children's Council as a model of participative practice and child consultation.