Find out more about Escape2Make: Who we are, what we do, and why we do it!
E2M is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (Registered Charity Number 1183572) that aims to help 11-18s, from all walks of life in the Lancaster & Morecambe area to escape from boredom, social media, loneliness and any pressure at school or home by providing free creative activities. E2M create safe, kind, welcoming spaces through its creative clubs and 5-week programs that result in community events (such as festivals, cabarets, fairs and markets) that are hosted by local artists and local businesses. All the activities are inclusive and free and designed to help young people make things, make friends and make a difference in the community.
Empowered, thriving 11-18s leading the way to build kind, sustainable, creative, connected communities.
Kind, welcoming and safe spaces offering inclusive workshops that allow 11-18s to escape and make things, make friends and make a difference.
A world of fun, A space for self-expression, A home for kindness:
Creative, kindness and safety at the heart of everything we do.
Curiosity flourishes, self-expression is encouraged, young people make a tangible difference in creating a brighter future.
E2M is nothing like school. You will never be marked, judged, tested, failed or even expected to do ‘well’. All we ask is that you show up.
ALL 11–18-year-olds in the Lancaster & Morecambe Area are welcome to come to the E2M workshops, courses and events.
No one is excluded from being involved.
Absolute beginners are definitely welcome.
All the workshops are 100% FREE. All we ask is that if you book a workshop or course you turn up and if you need to cancel that you let us know with lots of notice. This is because some of the activities are really expensive for us to run and we might be able to offer your place to someone else.
We would like E2M workshops and courses to always be free because we want to give everyone equal opportunities. However, we need to raise a lot of funding to do that. If you want to donate money or raise some funding somehow for us it would be a huge help. Watch the Get Involved page for details coming soon of how you can raise funds for E2M and how you can donate to help us help as many people as possible.
We have fortnightly FREE workshops in the form of our ongoing clubs!
Twice a year we also have Projects, where dozens of workshops happen over a short-term period. Previous projects have been our Green Festival, Cabaret and Heritage Market Festival!
These Projects regularly take the form of 5-week creative programs that result in a celebratory event.
You can find out dates and times on our Get Involved page!
E2M will be opening its first site in Lancaster City Centre in 2024. For now, the workshops take place around Lancaster District.
Our survey of 200 11-18’s told us that 79% of young people feel there’s nowhere safe to go to hang out after school in the area.
E2M have a dream to build a building in Lancaster with spaces for young people to go when they’re not at school. Somewhere to chill, socialise and make stuff.
35+ young people have got together with various architects and innovators to work with to design a truly amazing space.
We only have one rule at our workshops and courses – be kind to yourself and be kind to others. That’s it.
It’s all covered in a ‘Kindness Contract’ that young people have to agree to when they sign up to E2M. This contract was written by young people on the E2M Youth Board.
Loads of lovely people who really care about the wellbeing and upskilling of 11-18s:-
• A core team of 4 people who are on the ground, making things happen every day
• A youth board of 12 young people aged 11-19 who decide on what we do and how we do it
• A board of 10 trustees and a patron
• Lots of advisors
• 6 design consultants who are designing the E2M test site, interim site, and long term ‘dream’ vision for the building.
Find out more about the People involved in E2M!
We have also received the support of lots of generous, big-hearted organisations, individuals and companies who have either helped us with funding, donations or given their time, services or equipment for free.
See more about our Partners.
The story so far… have a look at our timeline of events here if you’re interested in how E2M came about.
A lot of young people might feel anxious before they come along which is really normal – but E2M creates really safe, kind, welcoming spaces so it doesn’t take long for young people to relax and very quickly feel like they fit in. In one survey we asked how people felt after taking part in E2M activities and they said:-
“Happy. Absorbed. Calm. Satisfied. Free. Content. Excited. Relaxed. Peaceful. Great…like I lose the sense of time. Positive. Like I’m in a dream.”
Feedback from 98 Post Project survey responses of young people who attended our Heritage Market Festival workshops in 2023:-
100%
Enjoyed the activity they took part in
100%
Learned something new
100%
Of Facilitators say our work has a positive impact on young people taking part
98%
Felt good, amazing or great after taking part
97%
Felt they made a positive difference to their community
95%
Made one or more new friends
Want to join our mailing list and hear more about upcoming E2M opportunities? Let us keep you in the loop!
Fancy helping out? We are always on the lookout for new volunteers. Join the team!
