Young artists in Sefton are being given a golden opportunity to be mentored by a group of highly successful and internationally recognised creative professionals, all of whom are still based in Sefton.

The call has gone out to young artists to tell their stories about Sefton by submitting their own piece of creative work – a short film, an original song or piece of music, creative writing, dance, photography, visual or digital art.

A selection of six lucky young people will receive mentoring sessions from Fran Doran and Mike McDermott of the band Red Rum Club, music producer Mike Cave, playwright and screenwriter Chloe Moss, creative consultant Yaw Owusu, actor and filmmaker Nick Moss, and Becky Ayres, Managing Director of Sound City.

If you are aged 12-18 and based in Sefton and you’d like to submit a piece of work to our mentors, click here to enter (you will need a gmail account and parental consent) : https://forms.gle/j1yVfA2szPuyRzgS9

Submissions close at midnight Monday 18 September.

Mike Cave, who has worked with legendary rapper KRS 1, Fatboy Slim and Lewis Capaldi amongst many others, said: “I hope we can make some connections between Sefton’s young artists and the world of creative opportunities out there for them.”

Chloe Moss has seen her plays performed internationally from London to New York and has written for the BBC, Channel 4, ITV and Sky. “Sefton is a borough so rich in creative talent,” she said, “the arts is a route to empowering young people, helping them find their voice and sense of self. I’m really excited to see the creative work produced by young people for this initiative.”

Hailing from Waterloo, Crosby and Thornton, Red Rum Club scored a number 1 on the iTunes Alternative Chart with their debut album ‘Matador’, and are about to conquer America with a US tour including headline shows in New York and LA.

Yaw Owusu has worked with Google, MTV, MOBO, Universal, Levi’s, LFC and many more - in 2022 he was awarded an Honoured Friend of Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts by Sir Paul McCartney.

Nick Moss won a raft of awards including Best UK Short Film at Manchester International Festival for his deeply moving short film ‘Break’ starring John Hurt, which was shot on the Waterloo seafront.

Becky Ayres has made a huge impact in her work for Sound City, the UK lead festival for Keychange, the global movement for gender equality in music. She has just been nominated for a Music Week Women in Music Award.

Cllr Trish Hardy, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing, said: “Sefton is synonymous with culture and creative genius. From art to music and the big screen, we are a borough with culture in our veins. There are famous actors and musicians, inspirational artists and writers, who all started their lives in Sefton.

"We are the definition of culture and we want to build on such a fantastic legacy by doing more for our future generations. In order to help those future stars shine bright, we’re working with this group of incredibly talented professionals to offer six young people the opportunity of a lifetime.”

If you are aged 12-18 and based in Sefton, the council would love to hear about the creative activities you participate in and what inspires your creativity. Please take a few minutes to complete three questions about your creative life in Sefton: https://forms.gle/vFG4rJotjZjNT52R8

There is also a version of this mini survey for Sefton’s primary school children (aged 5-11) https://forms.gle/6khr6uRAAzKXEDS77

Sefton Council, alongside The Atkinson, Green Sefton, Natural England and National Trust are also asking Sefton’s primary school children to submit their creative work, inspired by Sefton’s beautiful natural environment. A selection of this work will be displayed as part of a Made By You online exhibition curated by The Atkinson. Parents and teachers, click here to find out how to enter your child/pupil’s work (you will need a gmail account): https://forms.gle/xRixTfZUvLuUwyzC8