WELCOME!
Streetwise Community Circus offer a wide range of circus-based activities for everyone throughout Northern Ireland
STREETWISE AT 2024 ST PATRICK'S DAY
This year we participated in the Belfast & Strabane St Patrick's Day parades
Huge thank you to all the staff and children from St Catherine's Primary, Sion Mills Primary and Holy Cross College who worked with us to deliver such a great parade for the Strabane St Patrick's Day. We are already planning to be back next year.
Congratulations to all the Streetwise stilt walkers who trained and then performed in the Belfast St Patrick's Parade. For many this will have been their first performance, and it opens the opportunity to be part of many more!
SIT-DOWN CIRCUS
Since 2020 Streetwise have been developing "sit-down" circus techniques to make circus accessible to a wider range of abilities.
Belfast film maker Michael McNulty has created this short film demonstrating this new development.
NEW DEMENTIA CLUBS SUPPORTED BY LFT
LFT Trust are supporting our dementia clubs which will be running in Lislea Community Centre on Thursday mornings 10.30am – 12.00noon and Morton Community Centre on Fridays from 11.15 to 1.00pm. Both these sessions allow people living with dementia to participate in circus sessions tailored to their own needs while also being part and socialising with of our regular “Age-ility” circus groups which take place at the same time. These sessions will run weekly from January 12th to March 29th 2024
ARTS COUNCIL REAP PROGRAMME
This programme which allowed “Age-ility” groups and youth groups to develop public showcases which took place in December in Whitehead, Tamlaght and Millisle will conclude with the final showcase in Lislea on 6th February in the Lislea Community Centre.
STREETWISE PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES PROGRAMME
This programme currently runs regular workshops for older people enjoying circus in their own community groups in Whitehead, Lislea (Newry), Tamlaght (Enniskillen) and Millisle.
CURRENT PROGRAMME
Streetwise Community Circus are now running our full Autumn and Winter programme from October 2023 to March 2024. Check the What's On page for more info.
Thanks to the ongoing support from our funders: Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Lottery Community Fund and Belfast City Council we have been able to continue the “social circus” programmes which have supported so many people throughout the covid crisis across Northern Ireland. For the next 6 months we can offer the opportunity for people to enjoy circus across the following programmes:
Young People can join us on Friday evenings in Morton Community Centre to participate in long term circus skills development across the full range of circus skills including juggling, stilts, unicycle, acrobatics and aerial skills. This programme also includes a pathway for participants to acquire the skills and training required to become tutors and performers.
YOUTH CIRCUS
Youth Circus show September 2022
AGE-ILITY PROGRAMME
Older people are welcome to join us on Friday mornings from 11.00am - 1.00pm to enjoy the full range of circus skills including aerial skills. These sessions currently include an additional experienced “sit-down” circus tutor funded by the Arts Council’s Arts and Older People programme to make the sessions to increase the accessibility of the sessions.
Friday Age-ility session in full swing!
Streetwise Family Lantern Parade, Lisburn, Halloween 2022
STREETWISE DISABILITY PROGRAMME
We are currently running a regular Thursday afternoon session for participants who can attend independently while also running an extensive programme of workshops in partnership with health trusts in day centres across large areas of Northern Ireland. These include: Downpatrick, Carrickfergus, Belfast, Newtownabbey, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Antrim, Ballycastle, Magherafelt and Larne.
STREETWISE PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES PROGRAMME
This programme currently runs regular workshops for older people enjoying circus in their own community groups in Whitehead, Lislea (Newry), Tamlaght (Enniskillen) and Millisle. In addition to this this programme is now developing a new links with sheltered accommodation centres across many areas supporting some of those left most isolated by Covid. Currently these programmes are running in 5 Belfast Centres, 3 in the Ballymena area, 3 in the Ards and North Down area.
Through our ACNI Arts and Older People programme we can run workshops for 3 dementia schemes and add “sit-down” circus tutors to regular programmes encouraging participation from people living with this condition.
Whitehead community circus
DEVELOPING NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO KEEP DELIVERING
As we continue to develop “post covid”, we are continuing to see new opportunities for our work. This includes the development of a programme for asylum seekers which is currently in the planning stage following a pilot this summer funded by Belfast City Council and the expansion of our work in sheltered accommodation following the need created by Covid in this area.
DONATION SCHEME
All these programmes are free to participants, although as financial pressures continue to grow on all areas of society, we are increasingly dependant on income from donations from those able to support our work to enable us to maintain our programmes and grow in the future. This led to us opening our Donation scheme in 2021.
Check out our new Donation Scheme page for more info.