Learners showcase creative talent at Craft Festival Wales

In a powerful collaboration aimed at transforming lives through creativity, the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust (QEST) worked collaboratively with Novus Gower, Novus Cambria, and Craft Festival Wales to champion craft as a meaningful pathway into employment for prison learners.

Over the summer, learners at HMP Berwyn and HMP Parc took part in a unique arts project that connected them with QEST Scholars and challenged them to respond to a live creative brief. Drawing on the rich cultural heritage of Wales, the learners created original artworks and writings inspired by Welsh folklore, fairy tales, and traditional storytelling.

Exploring identity through art and storytelling

The multidisciplinary project, which spanned both Art and English classes, encouraged participants to explore themes of myth, history, landscape, and identity. Heavily influenced by the narrative style of celebrated Welsh illustrator Clive Hicks-Jenkins, the initiative offered learners a chance to express their own stories while engaging deeply with the traditions of their homeland.

The resulting handmade artefacts and written pieces will be exhibited at Cardigan Castle as part of Craft Festival Wales from 5–7th September 2025 and will remain on display until 21st September. This public showcase offers a rare and powerful platform for prison learners to share their creativity, voice, and vision with a wider audience.

This collaboration reflects the very heart of Craft Festival Wales’ ethos: celebrating the joy of making, encouraging community participation, and highlighting the transformative power of creativity. Through partnerships like this, craft becomes more than an art form it becomes a bridge to confidence, connection, and new beginnings.

To find out more about our ongoing partnership with QEST and how we engage learners in education through creative enrichment projects, take a look at our news section.