High Peak Community Arts has been shortlisted for the Arts and Culture Award category in the prestigious Children and Young People Now Awards.

The awards recognise projects for children and young people that have delivered outcomes that benefit those taking part.

High Peak Community Arts has achieved the shortlisting with a project called ‘The AI Debate’, part of the charity’s Level Up Programme.

Sophie Mackreth, creative programme manager for High Peak Community Arts said: “Projects like the AI Debate are the best part of working with young people – their ideas are spot on and capture what’s important at that moment.

The debate panel from High Peak Community Arts discussing AI - and it was this project that has shortlisted the charity for a top national award. Photo submitted.

placeholder image — The debate panel from High Peak Community Arts discussing AI - and it was this project that has shortlisted the charity for a top national award. Photo submitted.

“They are finding that adults are often not in a position to advise them effectively on future options because we are all learning about this new technology together.

“It was impressive to see them challenging their own preconceptions and anxieties to gain a truly rounded view of something that will affect their lives immensely.”

In September 2025, young people aged 13 and over completed a year-long training programme culminating in ‘The AI Debate’, designed and created by them.

This public event was showcased at New Mills Festival.

The project explored the role of AI in the arts through live workshops, performance and panel discussion, turning widespread anxiety about AI into open, productive dialogue, whilst

involving and inspiring the community with thought-provoking ideas.

Level Up is a programme supporting young people in the High Peak to build confidence, creativity, and skills for the future.

Four groups each explored a different art form — dance, creative writing, music and visual arts — joined by professionals within that art form to create pieces exploring the use of AI.

The dance team drew inspiration from an abstract piece of art, exploring the creative process and questions of ownership while the visual arts team created pieces in

collaboration with AI, exploring how software could help bring their drawings to life.

The music team played live music alongside AI-generated music, comparing the two and the creative writing team experimented with AI in different ways, including inputting

characters to generate stories and using AI to read pieces back in their own voices.

High Peak Community Arts will find out if they are a winner in the Children and Young People Now Awards in November.