Children across the Fens have been given a chance to develop their skills for the future whilst having fun through the official launch of an online learning programme.

Neurons, created by 20Twenty Productions in March, was previously designed as an email subscription service in April to help families earlier in the coronavirus pandemic.

Now, it has become an online membership service which offers a range of creative learning activities, from arts, crafts and Lego to film-making and photography.

“We wanted to explore what topics would be of interest, what level the children wanted the activities to be pitched at and how much parents would get involved themselves,” Tim Nightingale, digital director at 20Twenty Productions, said.

“We held a focus group with parents to gather qualitative feedback, which was extremely useful. We have also engaged with teachers and headteachers to benefit from their input.”

The service aims to provide fun for children and parents outside of school in a bid to develop essential skills required in their education, as well as the workplace, in an organised way.

Users can also benefit from other offerings, such as building and installing apps through AppShed and taking part in online quizzes on Kahoot, as well as a chance to participate in the Trinity Arts Award programme.

“Our team believes that creative learning and arts participation is a fundamental part of a child’s growth and educational need, and every activity is structured the same,” Tim said.

“We hope that learners - having been given a solid understanding of concepts through a low entry point into an activity - will create things that are meaningful and unique to them whilst exploring and discovering for themselves.”

During the pandemic, 20Twenty Productions has encouraged creative learning by delivering 431 literacy bags to Year One children for the Wisbech Reads festival and creating 350 heritage sharing boxes containing monoprint materials and Discover Arts Award booklets.

Tim believes that with Neurons, this can be a platform for progress both in the short and long-term.

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“In the short-term, we are hoping that children are engaged and excited by the range of creative opportunities that are on offer,” he said.

“The long-term goal is to prepare them to thrive in this rapidly-changing world. The skills and competencies they will need as they progress through education and into the workplace are going to be way beyond the ability to take a standardised test.

“We believe Neurons is an essential service that every child should have access to.

“Being able to develop ideas, express them via art form and problem solve them creatively is an essential skill that all children need to develop.”

Neurons offers both a free and paid-for monthly membership. For more information and to subscribe, visit https://neurons.org.uk/.