Ever since its beginning in 1872, the RSN has striven to keep the art of hand embroidery alive by passing on its skills and traditions to people from all walks of life. In our modern, fast-paced world of technology, some may argue that traditional skills such as hand embroidery have no relevance. However, the RSN is seeing an increased demand for its teaching through its new Schools and Community Outreach Programme.

The RSN has previously delivered some workshops to schools and families but has never had a dedicated team. Earlier this year, Tutor Programme Manager Joanna Hart also took on the role of Schools Manager. With a former career in schools, Joanna is perfectly placed to lead this new programme, and some exciting workshops have already taken place.

June saw the first workshop at National Trust property Polesden Lacey. With the RSN having previously taught both adult and children’s classes at this venue, the RSN was delighted to be invited back and keen to build on the existing relationship. Approximately thirty children attended this drop-in-style workshop throughout the day, with many parents commenting on how calm and focused they were while trying hand embroidery.

Moving into July, a connection was made with Remark!, a community deaf charity. A number of pilot workshops were trialed, including an over-55s lunch club in Camden, a mixed-age workshop at a deaf hub in Marble Arch and a summer activity club for teenagers in Islington. Every workshop included a British Sign Language interpreter, and we quickly adapted our teaching delivery to meet the needs of the groups. All the workshops have been well received, and the charity has indicated that they would like us to do more with them going forward. The work with this charity has been a new challenge for the RSN and has been incredibly rewarding.

The RSN is also delighted to be working with the British Museum for the Bayeux Tapestry Exhibition and will be delivering drop-in-style hand embroidery workshops for children and their parents/guardians during the October and February half-terms, as well as the Easter holiday.

To find out more about the RSN Schools and Community Outreach Programme, click here.