We have two new opportunities for Trainee Creative Play Facilitators to bring our successful family art and play group to Workington.
Tent Club so far...
Since September 2024, Rosehill has run Tent Club in the South Whitehaven community. Through weekly after-school sessions centred around open-ended, exploratory, and playful activities, we have built a supportive community where families from all walks of life have gathered, been creative, and chilled out together.
Thanks to support from Francis Scott Trust and University of Lancashire, we now have an opportunity to set up a new Tent in Workington in partnership with The Carnegie. We are looking for two people who are passionate about play, appreciate the importance of creativity in learning and who want to develop their skills in group facilitation by doing.
The Role
You will work within Rosehill’s creative families team, led by our Creative Producer, to establish and deliver the Workington Tent Project. Over a period of two years, coordination of the project and associated roles such as these will transition from Rosehill to The Carnegie. The intention is for the two projects and organisations to continue to work in parallel.
Each successful applicant will be buddied up with one of our experienced practitioners and spend a term working in the two Tent sessions (Whitehaven and Workington), collaboratively developing new ideas and relationships. After these two terms, you will be put together as resident practitioners within the Workington setting to deliver the sessions there. Some experience (paid or voluntary) in either a creative or family-focused role would be beneficial, but not essential.
In addition to The Carnegie, this project is closely aligned with Dr Suzanne Wilson’s family advocacy research at the University of Lancashire, and as such there will be opportunities to engage in this work.
The sessions are set up to be open-ended, invitational and family-led. Our work focuses on the process and experience of creating and playing, rather than fast gratification. The practitioner’s role is to provide resources, be a soothing, friendly presence, and observe how families engage with the space. Adaptability and flexibility are a must!
We pride ourselves on making this opportunity accessible to those with caregiving responsibilities: we are happy to discuss facilitators bringing their own children to sessions, and we understand that life responsibilities can unavoidably clash with work. We work hard to offer as much flexibility as possible in these situations because we believe people do their best work when they can bring their whole selves to work.
Timing and remuneration
Submission deadline: 2nd November 2026
Candidates invited for interview: 6th November 2026
Interviews will be the week commencing 9th November 2026, and we will make our selection by the week commencing 16th November. The interviewing panel will include representatives from both Rosehill and The Carnegie, and the two organisations will make the shortlisting decisions collaboratively.
Once selected, you will be invited to a couple of paid introductory meetings and Tent Club Whitehaven sessions before the end of the Christmas term, and your Tent Workington and Whitehaven placements will begin in the week commencing the 18th of January 2027.
The hourly rate offered for this role is £27.50 per hour during the training period, rising to £31.25 per hour upon completion of the training period. The contract is for four hours per week on average during term times, although it may increase if additional work is required.
Our Ideal Candidate
Most importantly, you will be passionate about the relationship between play, creativity and wellbeing, and you will genuinely enjoy this work. This role is for an early-career practitioner, and we welcome applications from anyone who wants to gain skills and experience in this kind of work.
Successful applicants will need to provide details for a DBS check.
Some qualities we value in relation to the role are:
Willingness to experiment.
Build reflection into your work; open to ongoing assessment of what’s working and what isn’t, and able to shift approach where necessary.
Has the ability to hold space for and listen to participants, and is able to relate to a variety of different people with warmth, compassion and understanding.
Some kind of artistic/creative practice and not afraid to try new things. However, as this is a trainee position, you do not need any professional experience.
Strong imagination and a positive and constructive attitude.
Interest in working with a diverse range of families.
Interest in working with children, particularly under 5s, and/or SEND families. Formal qualifications are not required, but are a bonus.
Willingness to learn about new creative approaches.
Able to respond effectively to developing situations and shift their approach depending on the group they are working with.
Energetic, approachable and positive.
Working with Rosehill and The Carnegie
We view this position as an opportunity to build on our previous success and invest in the Workington community. Your ideas and lived experience will shape the programme's direction. As it is a reflexive, experimental and multi-partner programme, this means that occasionally plans and circumstances may shift, and that sometimes we think on our feet and improvise with limited and/or rapidly developing information
This is a dynamic and exciting way of working, but we recognise it can also be unsettling and unfamiliar if you're not used to it. It is important that you consider how at ease you are with potential uncertainty when applying. We are happy to discuss this if you have any questions about what to expect.
Accessibility is important to us, and we welcome ongoing dialogue on how we can best support you while at work.
To Apply
Please email your application to Hannah Kessler - hannah.kessler@rosehilltheatre.co.uk. Instead of a form, we would like you to please answer the following questions in either a written or video format:
What made you want to apply for this role?
Have you done anything like this before? Please describe any voluntary or paid experience or qualifications you have.
What do you feel is the biggest challenge facing families in West Cumbria today?
How is creativity a part of your life and/or work?
(Please keep answers to 250 words maximum per question response)
Note: all applicant details will be shared with The Carnegie as part of the shortlisting process.
If you have any questions before applying, or if an alternative application format would suit you better, please contact Hannah with details of your request. If it works for us too, then we’re more than happy to adapt the process.
