Image from Year 3 students at Kings Ash Academy who took part in a print-making workshop with Double Elephant Print workshop.
Across February to September 2026, the Torbay Arts in Schools Network has been working on a pair of new pilot initiatives – the Brave Pilot Micro-Commissions and the Artspiration Travel Pass. Both of these experimental scheme are in live delivery stages this summer, and we’re excited to continue to share the outcomes with you as they unfold.
What is TASN?
Torbay Arts in Schools Network (TASN) is the Torbay Family Arts Network and Torbay’s Local Cultural Education Partnership.
TASN is a grassroots network which has been in existence since humble beginnings in 2020. For our first 4-5 years, we operated as a completely unfunded movement, built entirely off goodwill and shared passion and commitment to improving children’s access to the arts in Torbay. This same values core is still very much what drives the work, and we’re delighted to report that the network is now functioning thanks to a small regular funding from the Family Arts Campaign which has been in place since November 2024. This provides some small-scale financial support for some of the time to coordinate and administrate the network.
You can read more about the network’s impact here, in our impact report.
You can see the 2025-26 Shared Menu, which features many of the arts & culture partners here.
Micro-Commissions (Brave Pilots)
Following on from the 2025 Summer Symposium, the TASN partners then proposed an idea as part of the Local Motion systems change movement currently taking place in Torbay. This was in response to a shared collaborative process articulating challenges and systemic barriers. Thanks to funds from Local Motion to experiment with new approaches, we have been able to try out a new way of working. This enabled us to do an open call in Feb/March 2026, inviting schools to express interest in partnering on a Micro-Commission, which would allow them to welcome an artist or arts organisation into their school.
This approach came about because TASN’s Artspiration Working Group identified a key systems change driver as the need for ‘small brave pilots’. The network felt this would enable school partners to experiment and try new innovative arts-led approaches, where possible, bringing artists and arts organisations into the school to demonstrate transformative curriculum change. TASN partners wanted to explore offering 4 of these across this academic year for Torbay schools and to help increase schools’ awareness of what kind of aspirational arts offers could be available in their local community. It was a brilliant outcome to be able to offer 5 of these Micro-Commissions in total in 2026, exceeding our expectations and proposed reach.
Artspiration Travel Pass
At the same time, TASN also suggested piloting a new initiative which could help to make creative arts field trips more possible for schools. The Artspiration Travel Pass provided small-scale financial support to enable schools to take a field trip to a cultural, heritage or creative setting which they wouldn’t be able to do otherwise. 7 of these Travel Passes have now been granted, enabling field trips across Torbay and the surrounding areas of South Hams and Teignbridge between May and Oct 2026.
This idea arose because the TASN partners wanted to experiment with various systems-change approaches to the very real transport challenges in Torbay. Schools don’t have any budget for coach/bus hire and as a result aspiration-raising field trips with a creative arts focus are extremely challenging for schools to provide at the moment. We are luck to have so many arts-keen and experienced teachers in Torbay with remarkable creative skill working in our regional schools – this particular challenge is a budget and transport issue, and needed addressing as such. As a first phase of a larger ambitious game-changing project, TASN wanted to try a first step by piloting small bursaries for schools to request transport costs support for Artspiration field trips. This is part of a test-and-learn approach which we hope can lead on to wider future scaled-up work.
Decision-Making Panel:
In order to determine which proposals would go through to activity stage, a decision-making panel was formed. A group of TASN partners were invited/volunteered to serve on the panel, with the condition that they felt they could bring objectivity, fairness, and neutrality to the decision-making process. The nominated panel met twice to consider the proposals, and to determine outcomes. This was a really useful process, and very different from usual shortlisting processes. One panel member commented:
‘Being part of the panel was hard – there has to be a no to someone – but the process of getting there felt equitable and fair. I think what’s different is that the panel members are all deeply invested in Torbay and can bring different levels of context to paint a fuller picture to enable us to make decisions. Furthermore, between us we found other ways to support applications that did not quite make the cut. This felt like a really human and relational way of working – a breath of fresh air!’
Where We Are Now, Learnings & Next Steps
Some of the field trips have already taken place across May & June, and others are about to occur in July & Sept. The Micro-Commissions are nearly complete as we near the end of Summer Term. Every school and arts partner will complete an impact report so that we can learn from the data and evidence how these pilot schemes have gone. We’ll then reflect on that data/evidence and share the learning from these pilot initiatives, in hopes that we can carry this work forward and expand/deepen it into the 2026-27 academic year and beyond.
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As Torbay begins its journey as a DCMS Priority Place for Culture, this work will be a key part of how we push forward, in united partnership, in honest and respectful collaboration, and as a region committed to actioning meaningful change for our children.
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Interested in getting involved with TASN? You’re warmly welcome. It’s an open door.
Just email Erin – erin@doorsteparts.co.uk.