For the last three years, ‘Leading Edge’ – our ambitious volunteering programme – has supported members to take the lead in a variety of settings. Funded by The National Lottery Community Fund (September 2022 to September 2025), it was developed alongside a three-year Gamechangers programme funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. At weekly Gamechangers sessions, […]
Access and inclusion is very important to us. And lots of young audiences that we meet don’t always have access to high-quality creative experiences. So it’s our ambition to understand all the different ways people join in at DIY and make sure nobody is left out. Something we’ve been thinking about lately is: what can we do so children and young people with visual impairments see, enjoy, and engage with our work as fully as possible?
On Thursday 11th December 2025, DIY hosted an exciting event at Salford Museum and Gallery. Following their creative work throughout the autumn, DIY artists presented imaginative responses to the gallery’s ‘Exploring the Collection: Colour’ exhibition. This included artistic pieces from DIY’s Visual Arts Group, theatre by DIY BUDS, and a film documenting the creative process.
During Autumn 2025, DIY’s Core Company has been working on an exciting research and development project funded through Salford CVS’s Health and Wellbeing Fund. The company has been diving into themes of ‘friendship’ and ‘the outsider’ using theatre, music, design, and recorded sound.
“All colours and paintings tell all sorts of different stories. We can ask people: What do the colours say to you? What sort of story do they tell you that an artist is trying to show you?” Becky “How do we see colour? How do we feel colour? We all experience colour in lots of […]
Developing inclusive music at Chatsworth High School. During the Summer term 2025, DIY was delighted to be commissioned by Salford Cultural Education Partnership (CEP) to work alongside learners and staff at Chatsworth High School and Salford’s Music and Performing Arts Service (MAPAS) to explore the ways in which music can support cross-curricular learning. DIY’s […]
Everyone at DIY is looking forward to a new term and lots of exciting new creative opportunities! This term DIY is running four different sessions for adults with learning disabilities who want to get creative – join us this September to learn new skills and meet new people. Thanks to our great funders all our […]
Unbelievably it’s now a year since DIY celebrated our 30th birthday, which we marked with lots of exciting birthday projects and two big birthday events. Now we are 31! so we thought it would be a good idea to take a look back over the 12 months since our Birthday celebrations last June. We’ve been […]
Our partnership with Chatsworth Futures has been growing from strength to strength. Chatsworth Futures is a dynamic Independent specialist college for young people aged between 19-25 with complex needs, including learning disabilities and Autism. “The College provides a small, supportive and challenging environment, which enables learners to develop their functional skills, independence, communication and employability […]
Can you see me? If you don’t see me you won’t know what I can do! Learning Disability Week: Monday 17 June – Sunday 23 June Learning Disability Week is a time to celebrate the talents and achievements of people with learning disabilities, and to challenge the barriers we still face. This year’s theme is […]