The Arts Yard C.I.C | Cockney Green

Creativity should be accessible to everyone!

The Arts Yard C.I.C is a London based community Arts organisation creating free and affordable opportunities for children, young people, families and adults to access art, creativity and culture.

Born from the community and built around a simple belief:

Creative Health • Youth • Community • Inclusion

Our Story

Work With Us

The Arts Yard C.I.C. is a registered Community Interest Company.
Company Registration No. 17201885

At The Arts Yard, we believe in The Power of Paint — that creativity can change how we feel,

how we connect and how we see ourselves.

Our mission is simple: to make art and creativity accessible to everyone.

Children, young people, adults and families. Different ages, different backgrounds, different needs and different abilities — brought together through creativity.

We create welcoming, inclusive spaces where there is no right or wrong way to make art. Somewhere people can switch off, express themselves, build confidence, learn new skills, make connections and simply enjoy creating.

We are especially passionate about reaching people who can face barriers to traditional arts and cultural spaces, including neurodiverse and SEND communities, home-educated young people and people experiencing isolation, anxiety or low confidence.

For us, art isn't just about what you make.

It's about how creating makes you feel!

Our Mission

Create - Connect - Belong

How It Started!

The Arts Yard grew naturally from the work we were already doing in our community through Cockney Green.

Over the years, we saw first-hand how powerful creativity could be — particularly for people who didn’t always feel comfortable in traditional spaces. Art gave people something to focus on, a way to express themselves and, most importantly, somewhere they could just be themselves.

In October 2025, we started a free Youth Street Art Club on the Old Kent Road. What began as a small idea quickly grew. Young people kept coming back, families got involved, friendships formed and confidence grew.

We realised there was a much bigger need for accessible, inclusive creative spaces for people of all ages.

So in May 2026, The Arts Yard C.I.C was born — allowing us to grow beyond Cockney Green and build something with a bigger purpose: bringing art, community and creative health together.

Graffiti recycled can art, workshop, wellbeing, therapy_edited.jpg

cockney green graffiti street art experience, london

our impact on the community. Cockney Green. The Arts Yard C.I.C

WHAT WE’VE BEEN CREATING

MORE THAN JUST A STREET ART CLUB

Every other Wednesday - For dates, times and location please

whatsapp 07427 792208

STREET ART IS THE GATEWAY…

We believe in The Power of Paint — but creativity goes far beyond the spray can.

Over the past 10 months, our free Street Art Club has brought together young people of different ages, abilities, cultures and backgrounds, including neurodiverse and SEND young people. Some arrive bursting with ideas, some have incredible natural talent, while others arrive saying “I can't draw” or are nervous to even have a go. Everyone starts somewhere.

Street art is our gateway into a much bigger creative world. Along the way we've explored painting, drawing, printing, textiles, sculpture, stencilling, fashion and customisation, art history and street-art culture, as well as meeting and learning from professional artists.

And we've watched so much change. Young people who were quiet and unsure now walk in ready to get started. We've seen confidence grow, friendships form, skills develop and individual styles begin to emerge. We've watched them help and encourage each other, take creative risks and feel genuinely proud of what they've made.

For us, that's what The Power of Paint is really about. It's not just the finished artwork — it's what happens along the way.

Here’s just a snippet of what we’ve been creating together over the past 10 months…

DOODLE YOUR DENIM

Who said old denim has to be boring? We got creative with spray paint, stencils and plenty of colour, giving old jeans, jackets and shorts a completely new look. Everyone came up with their own ideas and created something totally individual — old clothes, new life and wearable art made by them.

PAINT YOUR OWN TRAINERS

Plain trainers were never going to stay plain for long! Everyone planned their own design first, then got stuck in with spray paint, Posca pens, colour and hand-drawn details. No two pairs were the same — designed by them, created by them and proudly worn home.

BEN EINE — MAKE A TOTE BAG FOR MUM

A very special Mother’s Day session with street artist Ben Eine. Our young artists learnt about his iconic lettering and stencil work, before getting hands-on and learning how to stencil and spray their own designs onto tote bags.
New skills, a chance to create alongside a professional artist, and a one-of-a-kind piece of wearable art made especially for Mum.

Sponsored By Skatehut - Paint your own skateboard

Thanks to SkateHut, our young artists got to turn a blank skateboard deck into their own piece of art. They planned their ideas, experimented with spray paint, stencils and Posca pens, then brought their designs to life — each one completely different and completely their own.
A skateboard, a blank canvas and no rules on creativity.

You Can DO Anything!

Over two creative days, we welcomed 140 children from local primary schools, including SEND groups, for four hands-on sessions built around one simple message — you can do anything!
The children explored street art, got creative with paint and tried something different in a space where every ability, every idea and every way of creating was celebrated.
140 young artists. Four sessions. Two days. One big message — believe in yourself and have a go.

You CAN do ANYTHING!

IT STARTED WITH AN ART CLUB...
THE VISION WAS ALWAYS MUCH

BIGGER!

The Arts Yard started with a simple idea — create a space where young people could come together, make art and be themselves. But that was only the beginning.

Our vision is to create a permanent Creative Health and Community Arts Hub in Southwark — an accessible, welcoming home for children, young people, adults, families and artists, with neurodiversity and SEND at the heart of what we do.

A place where street art is the gateway into a much bigger creative world — painting, printmaking, textiles, sculpture, digital art, public art, exhibitions and opportunities to learn alongside working artists.

We want to bring creativity, education, community and wellbeing under one roof, working alongside schools, artists, businesses, community organisations, health services and social-prescribing networks to reach people who may not always find their way into traditional arts spaces.

We are already exploring opportunities for a future home with dedicated indoor and outdoor creative spaces, where we can grow our free and affordable programmes, support emerging talent, deliver creative-health activities, host exhibitions and events, and create opportunities for people of all generations to come together through art.

This isn't just about finding a building. It's about creating something that belongs to the community and can continue to grow for generations to come.

THE POWER OF PAINT IS WHERE IT STARTS.

THE LEGACY IS WHAT WE LEAVE BEHIND.

Support

Join Cockney Green's Journey

Aylesbury Estate community mural by Cockey Green

WORKSHOPS
Local children, families and residents shared their ideas, drawings, photographs and stories through creative workshops.

COMMUNITY IDEAS
Their artwork, prints, photographs and experiences became the inspiration behind our designs.

DESIGN
We developed their ideas into the final artwork, using digital and VR technology to help scale the designs ready for painting.

PUBLIC ART
The designs were then hand painted at large scale onto the Aylesbury Estate hoardings — turning community ideas into public art for everyone to enjoy.