Contemporary Craft and Special Educational Needs

Contemporary craft and special educational needs is an unusual combination that brings together hands-on design and making practice with the specialist knowledge needed to work effectively with learners who have additional needs. Contemporary craft is a field concerned with material processes, whether in ceramics, textiles, jewellery, print, or mixed media, and with the creative, cultural, and social dimensions of making. Special educational needs encompasses the study of how children and adults with a range of learning differences, disabilities, and complex needs can best be supported in educational settings.

Together the two disciplines open distinctive pathways into education, therapeutic practice, and creative work with diverse communities.

At Liverpool Hope University, this three-year full-time programme offers a supportive community environment in which emerging makers and designers develop their creative practice while also building knowledge of inclusive education and special educational needs provision. You will develop your own craft practice, work on innovative projects, and explore the relationship between making and learning. The programme includes a sandwich year, a year abroad, and a work placement, giving you substantial professional and international experience alongside your studies.

The combination is designed to lead to specialised craft work, innovative projects, and career paths that might not be available to graduates of either discipline alone.

You will develop practical and creative skills in your chosen craft area, and theoretical and professional knowledge in special educational needs, building the reflective and analytical capabilities that teaching and practice roles require.

Graduates go on to work as craft educators, art therapists (with additional training), teaching assistants, support workers, community artists, and practitioners in a wide range of settings including schools, special schools, charities, and therapeutic organisations. Further professional training, including teaching qualifications, and postgraduate study in education or art therapy are common next steps.