What’s it really like being a participant on the Upgrade Yourself: Kickstart programme? Here, one of our participants joins us for a Q&A to unpack their experience.
Somerset House is home to one of the UK’s largest creative communities, as well as being one of London’s best loved public spaces. On our Upgrade Yourself: Kickstart programme we paired emerging creatives and professionals with our network of resident organisations based in the building.
A wakeup call. I wasn’t motivated to do much and had quite low productivity levels before I got into the programme. Being in a place like Somerset House helped transform that. It’s a great environment to be involved in, you have an endless amount of support available throughout the week. We’ve had mentors, speakers and residents from Somerset House come in and provide their insights.
In all honesty, your experience will depend on the organisation you work for. You MUST make sure that the company you want to work for is a company where you’ll learn, develop, and eventually excel from. It’s the deciding factor in whether you’ll enjoy your time with an organisation based in the building. Somerset House will always be there for support and can provide you with anything you need but it would be pointless if you’re at an organisation where the work doesn’t correlate with what you want to achieve in the 6-month period. Fortunately, I gathered all the experience I needed to help succeed in my endeavours.
Within Somerset House it’s impossible to go a day without encountering someone who is an expert on a different discipline. The eco-system at Somerset House is quite complex but extremely friendly, with office teams and individuals all feeling part of the same family.
I met several wonderful minds during my time on the programme, who I was fortunate to learn and receive guidance from at every turn. Upgrade Yourself: Kickstart included close collaboration in a way that supported meaningful progression, as opposed to collaborations of convenience. This isn’t always easy with so many organisations working within such proximity.
"Within Somerset House it’s impossible to go a day without encountering someone who is an expert of a different discipline. The eco-system at Somerset House is quite complex but extremely friendly, with office teams and individuals all feeling part of the same family."
Somerset House’s creative community gave us access to people and businesses that no other organisation could. The endless number of resources and ideas that sit under one roof makes Somerset House a space to flourish, where young people can explore without boundaries.
Most importantly, you can be yourself. The community doesn’t want you to shy away from anything or make you feel like you’re not part of a family.
Without the next generation, there is no future. Innovation of creative work never stops and there's a need for the next generation of young minds to further explore the creative work and further the industry.
However, this would be pointless if there is no motivating factor encouraging the next gen to work towards the greater change. The change will include individuals that feel worthy of their creative work and won’t feel dependent on others to recognise their talent. With the creative industry being quite hidden and shadowed in the current world – it’s significant we inspire those who want to make a difference.
Upgrade Yourself: Kickstart is in partnership with Westminster City Council, the UK Government's Kickstart Scheme and all participating placement organisations.
With thanks to our supporters John Lyon's Charity, Blavatnik Family Foundation, Freelands Foundation and Young Talent Fund.
