Better Together
Young people told Public Health that it’s really important to ensure alcohol awareness messages can be heard by everyone and that some communities in Dudley borough are not getting these messages due to things like; cultural beliefs, language barriers or lack of understanding. So a group of young people took on the challenge to work with us, using an arts approach, to design messages about alcohol awareness across cultures. Resulting in ‘Which path will you choose?’
The group took part in a range of arts activities which included scenario planning, jewellery making and bottle art –young people were given empty alcohol bottles and turned them from rubbish to something reusable. This took into account other interests the young people had about recycling and looking after the environment.
The group also shared what they knew and understood about key health information around alcohol units, sensible consumption and the risks associated with drinking too much. They ensured that any messages and practice did not conflict with religious and cultural sensitivities.
Finally the group used graffiti as their main creative expression. A graffiti artists worked with the young people, teaching techniques and skills needed to create both individual pieces using graffiti pens whilst developing alcohol awareness messages which could be shared with others.
