Creative Opps Membership Drive is now open
Applications open on 17 September and close on 19 October.
Are you looking for a community of people who share your creative interests? A space to exchange ideas, learn from others and take your work further?
Creative Opps Membership is a vibrant community for young creatives who want to connect, collaborate and make things happen. It’s a place to meet future collaborators, share skills, discover exciting opportunities and help shape what Creative Opps does next.
Since our last membership drive, our community has grown to nearly 200 young creatives. Members have made new connections, developed bold ideas and brought their unique energy and experience to Creative Opps.
Our members have led dynamic Learning and Development sessions on topics including music PR, community in design, lyric writing, low-budget filmmaking and workshop planning. We’ve also welcomed inspiring creative professionals and organisations, including Type1 Magazine, Greenacre Films and Clearview Research, for Industry Insight sessions. These events give members the chance to hear directly from people shaping the sector, ask questions and discover new pathways into creative work.
That spirit of collaboration came to life through Co:Lab, which brought together nine emerging creatives from across the UK for a collective exhibition at Art Against Knives. It gave young artists the opportunity to exhibit work across visual art, film, sound, writing, installation and digital experiences — with many showing publicly for the first time.
Now, we’re building on that momentum. We’re creating more opportunities for members to meet, share ideas, develop their practice and turn creative ambitions into action. Whether you’re looking for collaborators, feedback, new skills, industry insight or a supportive community to grow with, there’s space for you here.
We’re inviting the next wave of young creatives to join us, connect with the community and help shape what comes next.
What’s happening
Find your people through creative pods
Want to meet other young creatives working in a similar area?
You can opt into a pod: a small, self-organised learning space for people with shared interests. We will make the introduction, give you a simple guide and help your group get started.
Then it is yours to shape. Share work, swap skills, discuss ideas, give feedback, learn together or start something new.
Come to monthly collaboration sessions
Once a month, join a relaxed space to bring an idea, share work in progress, get feedback or meet potential collaborators.
You do not need to have a finished project, a big plan or even know exactly what you want to make. Come as you are, meet other creatives and see where the conversation takes you.
Meet people working in the creative industries
Our monthly Industry Insight sessions bring in creative professionals, organisations and guests who can share what they do, how they got there and what they have learned along the way.
You will hear about different creative careers, ask the questions you really want answered and discover opportunities across the sector. We will shape the sessions around the interests members share with us.
Share skills and support one another
Membership is about learning with and from each other.
Pods will create space for peer learning and skill sharing, and we can help members connect with a buddy where that would be useful. We also have ideas for future skill-sharing opportunities that members can help shape as the community grows.
Help shape Creative Opps
Your ideas matter to us.
Throughout the year, members will be invited to join focused conversations about Creative Opps’ strategy and future. These quarterly conversations will focus on our strategy and programmes.
In these conversations, you can tell us what support would make a difference, share your perspective and help shape the opportunities we create. The first three calls will focus on:
Membership, including input on the Creative Opps Time Bank
Work placements and partnerships, including how Creative Opps can create and improve paid-placement opportunities.
Communications, including how members want Creative Opps to represent, spotlight and communicate with young people.
After that, we plan to hold these conversations quarterly, ideally at least a month before trustee meetings, so Creative Opps members can inform our decision making and future direction.
Get connected to opportunities and support
As a member, you can access:
A members-only newsletter with jobs, events, opportunities and updates
WhatsApp community spaces
Opportunities to feature in member profiles and our directory, if you choose to opt in
Support with CVs, portfolios and references
Signposting to mentoring, work placements and other Creative Opps opportunities
Information about routes into leadership and governance at Creative Opps
Fill Out the Application Form
The application is quick and straightforward. We will ask about your creative interests, where you are based, any support needs, what you care about and the organisations or communities that matter to you.
That helps us connect you with relevant opportunities, shape future sessions and build a community around what young creatives need.