Tropical Isles is an award winning arts organisation who make and explore Carnival with, by and for young people. At their East London studio they learn to design, construct and test costumes working with professional designers and choreographers. This year-round activity nurtures artistic skills and creative thinking as well as providing a safe and supportive meeting place, friends, work and role models for young people who otherwise might not have them. By celebrating festival and carnival traditions they support socially excluded and disadvantaged children and young people, primarily - but not exclusively - from the Black and Caribbean communities.
In collaboration with Create London we have been supporting Tropical Isles, a carnival organisation based in Hackney. We are working alongside them to develop and scale up their youth work, build a strategy for the future and create a solid business plan for achieving this. In addition we have supported them through the Arts Council National Portfolio process and have provided coaching for their staff.
