All of this year's activities were designed to increase opportunities for artistic participation and creative engagement within the local community. In December 2024, we launched the 2024–25 edition of our Creative Writing Competition for short stories, drama scripts and songs, publicising it locally and nationally through social media. We received entries from across the UK and overseas. Entry fees funded prizes for the winners, while the competition itself was administered and judged entirely by volunteers. Groups of experienced readers and musicians prepared the respective shortlists, which were then assessed by panels of expert judges. The winners were invited to perform or present their work at the Mini Arts Festival. The Mini Arts Festival was held on Saturday 31 May 2025 in Glaisdale. The event was free to attend, with voluntary donations invited. Winning plays were performed by local actors, with some of the playwrights attending the performances. Winning short stories were read by either their authors or local storytellers, while the winning songwriters had the opportunity to perform their own compositions. Two performance spaces, indoors and outdoors, enabled audiences to enjoy not only the competition winners but also performances from a wide range of local musicians, actors, poets and pupils from local schools. Visitors, particularly children and families, were also able to take part in creative workshops including mask making, folklore postcards, nature printing, and Esk River wildlife and storytelling activities. The event continued into the evening with performances from five local bands and was deemed a great success by attendees, with excellent feedback received from participants and visitors. In October 2025, we launched the 2025–26 edition of our Creative Writing Competition for short stories, drama scripts and songs, publicising it locally and nationally through social media. We also invited members of the community to attend a 3-Minute Arts Autumn Gathering at Sleights Supper Club, providing an opportunity to contribute ideas and feedback on our future programme while enjoying an informal evening of music, poetry and drama performed by local participants. In November 2025, we launched Moors & Coast Mysteries & Folklore, a series of talks, archive visits and creative workshops exploring local heritage and folklore of the North York Moors. The first event was a talk by Jane Ellis entitled Reading the Landscape: Uncovering Mysteries of the Moors & Coast. This was followed by visits to the archives at Staithes Museum, Ryedale Folk Museum and Whitby Museum, where participants explored historical documents relating to a range of local historical topics. Then two creative writing workshops were delivered by experienced local facilitators: the first focused on writing articles and short stories, while the second explored scriptwriting for the stage, with both workshops drawing inspiration from archive material selected by participants. The series concluded with a talk and workshop on local folklore for Revival North Yorkshire at their Sleights gathering. The series was generously supported by the North Yorkshire Council Stronger Communities Inspire Fund and developed in collaboration with Revival North Yorkshire and local Museums and Archives. A total of 112 people participated in the project, many praising its originality, inclusivity and welcoming atmosphere. Our local amateur acting group, founded by 3-Minute Arts, continued to develop original community theatre in collaboration with Everwitch Theatre. The development of the first production, Lore of t' Moor, was generously supported by the North York Moors National Park and performed at the Mini Arts Festival 2025, the National Park Centre in Danby, and two other local venues. It was widely praised for its creativity and inclusive approach. The second production, The Hauntings of All Hallows Hill, was developed between August and October 2025 as an immersive, site-specific promenade performance. It was presented to small audiences on four occasions during October 2025 and received highly positive reviews. In November 2025, the group also began developing a new community play with music, Around the North York Moors in 80 Hours, for performance at the Mini Arts Festival in May 2026.

Our stakeholders include: - the five Company Directors; - an informal volunteer ‘Steering Group’ of friends and supporters; - competition entrants, shortlisters and judges; - performers, workshop leaders and visitors at the Mini Arts Festival; workshop facilitators and participants; - local funders and supporters, including North Yorkshire Council, the North York Moors National Park Beacon for the Arts, the North York Moors Association, Richardson & Smith, Airbnb and members of the local community through donations; - partner organisations, collaborators and venues, including Revival North Yorkshire, Everwitch Theatre, Ryedale Folk Museum, Whitby Museum, Staithes Museum, The Robinson Institute, Loftus Library, Esk Valley Camphill Community, Bow Bridge Community Meadows and other local cultural organisations and community venues. The Directors meet regularly to review objectives, monitor progress and discuss future activities. Competition entrants are able to contact us through the website and many choose to provide feedback, expressing their appreciation for the opportunity for creative expression that the competition provides. Shortlisters and judges also offer informal feedback, frequently commenting on how much they have enjoyed the process and the opportunity to engage with others involved in the creative arts. An annual ‘Steering Group’ meeting is held with stakeholders involved in the Mini Arts Festival to help shape and develop future events. Feedback from partner organisations and venues is gathered through ongoing collaboration, with many projects being planned and developed jointly. Festival participants and visitors are invited to complete feedback forms, and responses were overwhelmingly positive while also providing several constructive suggestions that will help improve future festivals. A WhatsApp group has been established for workshop participants and facilitators, enabling ideas arising between sessions to be shared quickly and incorporated into the ongoing creative process. Feedback from workshop participants has been extremely positive, with many describing increased confidence, creativity and enjoyment as a result of taking part. Participants are also invited to complete evaluation forms at the conclusion of each workshop series, helping to inform the planning and development of future activities.

No remuneration was received

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration