An arts initiative run by young people for young people has involved thousands of youngsters.
Fife Youth Arts Hub was established in 2014 through a Creative Scotland investment of £3.1 million for nine youth arts hubs across the country.
Led by Fife Cultural Trust, it makes children and young people key stakeholders and decision-makers in shaping provision.
Events for all from babies to young adults have attracted 4,000 participants and included a multi-arts festival, an exhibition at the Edinburgh Fringe, Totfest activities for toddlers and babies and a number of classes including singing, dancing, theatre skills and digital arts.
The hub has also coordinated young people’s involvement in other events, such as last year’s Diane Arbus exhibition at Kirkcaldy Galleries and the town’s Bringing of the Light Christmas celebration.
As it comes to a close this year the body is focusing on its legacy and how it can leave behind a new kind of arts strategy in its wake.
The hub is led by a team of directors and connectors, aged from 12 to their early 20s, and offers vocational experience as well as involvement with various arts, often through internships.
Creative producer Jennifer Durie, 23, said: “The project started with the aim of finding out what was already in Fife and, by having a dialogue with young people, what was missing and what we could bring to Fife.”
A highlight was last year’s Festival 15, which brought live music, dance, drama and more to Kirkcaldy’s War Memorial Gardens, Kirkcaldy Galleries, the Mercat Shopping Centre and Adam Smith Theatre, and is to be followed up by Festival 16 in July.
Jennifer, of Kirkcaldy, said: “Festival 15 was a day to come along and try something new or listen to something you wouldn’t normally listen to. It was a fantastic day and we had lots of positive feedback. With Festival 16 we are trying to expand it across Fife and have a mini festival in each area coming together for a big festival in Kirkcaldy.”
Social media project manager Ciaran Sneddon, 19, of Milton of Balgonie, said the hub offered a platform for youngsters to build their career prospects.
He said: “It’s about the creative arts but it’s also about so much more.
“It empowers the young people of Fife and shows them that they can make a difference in their local area.
“We recently met up with our directors and connectors and asked what they had learned.
“One person said that before this they had nothing to write in their CV but now they were taking things out because there was too much.”