The Arty Place projects take place both on the site of The Brentwood Road Gallery and in other locations from The Romford Shopping Hall, neighbouring schools and other community group venues. It is a youth and community led art project and forms a key part of the schools community programme. It offers people a place where they can participate in a positive, proactive community through various art based and socially engaged projects. The Arty Place offers a planned programme of art education and community led projects designed for the purpose of aiding and enhancing the personal and social development by following the key principles of participation, connection and empowerment.

The Arty Place Programme includes youth consultation, skills workshops (experimental drawing, design, small scale 3d), Devising and implementing sustained projects including The camera Obsecura where we turned the whole space into a camera obsecura and used it as a drawing tool and The arty greenhouse- where young people took ownership of a growing project where we addressed concepts of community and collaboration as well as drawing and simple animation.

The Arty Place has a track record of working with cutting edge artists on experiential exhibitions and learning opportunities including Rosalie Schweiker and The Salford Zine Library. The space is also used as a studio and exhibition space for young people and members of the community. It offers the opportunity to be involved in all aspects of “creating the exhibition” from making, commissioning, advertising and evaluating. And planning again for next time!

Your Café at The Arty Place is a partnership between The Arty Place and Riverside Housing Association. Initially started on one day a week and run by local volunteers, staff and service users of the Riverside supported housing project “The Boundaries” it offers a community café open to the public. Alongside your tea or coffee visitors to the café can participate in informal art projects currently including collecting and illustrating our best recipes and working with the artist in residence. We are offering support to newly graduated artists who wish to gain experience of working with groups and running workshops to try out their ideas, and with the support of the visitors to the space, figure how best to approach their projects. These sessions are all offered free of charge and are open to all members of the community.

Since opening in March 2013 Your Café at The Arty Place has had visits from Havering MIND, Family Mosaic and the borough's NHS art therapist, all who bring individuals and groups to the project. For the 2013-2014 programme the group will take over the workshop space at The Brentwood Road Gallery and run an all day “pay what you can” café and art club which is free and open to all individuals and groups from the borough.

During the art group takes place we look at and explore specific projects in response to either the current exhibition at The Brentwood Road Gallery or specific themes of techniques that the group want to develop.

The aim is to offer a diverse, experimental and sustained programme lead by the users of the space. This means that what the Arty Place “is” and what the Arty Place “does” is in a constant state of flux!

In 2012 The Arty Place was subject to an Ofsted visit and has subsequently been used as evidence of good practice, and made available on their website as a resource for other schools.