Secondary (London)
Dr Clare Stanhope has been teaching secondary art and design for over 25 years in inner-city schools across London. Alongside her teaching practice, she has developed an extensive body of practice-based research grounded in equity, creativity and social justice. Having completed a doctorate in arts and learning, Clare’s research focuses on the decolonisation of arts education and explores how creative practice can function as a powerful tool for empowerment, criticality and agency among young people.
Clare is the founder of the Centre for Creative Explorations (CCE), a research-led initiative that supports practice-driven inquiry with and for young people. The CCE creates spaces in which young people lead creative research, engaging with complex social, cultural and political issues while working collaboratively with artists, academics, creative practitioners and local communities. Central to this work is a belief in creativity as a relational and dialogic process capable of generating meaningful and sustained change.
Collaboration sits at the heart of Clare’s practice. She has worked closely with organisations that share her commitment to transformative arts education, including the Anti-Racist Art Education Action Group (NSEAD), the Gender and Transformative Education Group (NSEAD), the Future Power Project with the Fitzwilliam Museum, and the Making Sense Project (South London Gallery and UAL). Clare has also contributed at a national level, serving on the advisory board for the Runneymede Trust’s Visualise report, alongside her role as Secondary Lead and Subject Reviewer for the NSEAD/Oak Art, Craft and Design Curriculum.