Schools and Colleges Hub : Being a Boy

Being a Boy

At AUB, we believe that opportunities to engage with creative subjects and explore new art forms should be available to everyone. We also recognise the power of creativity as a tool to engage in conversations about important issues that affect our lives.

The Being a Boy project, launched in 2022, as a brand-new initiative which provides space for young men to creatively engage with the role of masculinity in their day-to-day lives. The Being a Boy project is proud to celebrate the creative successes and champion the voices of young men, learning from them what it means to be a boy.

In March 2026, AUB proudly displayed a Being a Boy Exhibition, sponsored by local MP Jessica Toale, in partnership with Boys' Impact, at the House of Commons. The exhibition reception was attended by previous Being a Boy participants, supporters of the project, and many politicians, and included a speech from Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy.

The project has received recognition in the sector as an example of best practice. It won the HELOA (Higher Education Liaison Officers Association) Best Practice Outreach and Recruitment Award, and HELOA Best Practice Collaboration Award in January 2023. Being a Boy was also a Silver Award Winner for Best Widening Participation Initiative at the 2023 HEIST Awards.

Read more about the House of Commons Exhibition

The Being a Boy project

The Being a Boy project provides a number of fully funded places on selected workshops that explore the themes of masculinity and identity. They provide a creative channel for participants to reflect on what being a young man means and their own lived experiences. The workshops are an innovative mechanism to conduct an exploration of the possible implications for boys’ future health, happiness and educational success.

If you'd like to learn more about the Being a Boy project, please take a look at our reports.

Eligibility criteria

The Being a Boy workshop places are available to young people living permanently in England. To be eligible for participation in one or more of the workshops, attendees must be studying in either KS3 or KS4 (aged 12–16) and identify as boys.

Participants must also meet at least one of the following eligibility criteria:

Received Free School Meals at any point during your school studies
Been in local authority care or looked after for three months or more OR are estranged from your family
Are a Young Carer
From a Gypsy, Roma, Traveller, Showman, or Boater community
Have a parent who has served, or is currently serving, in the UK armed forces
Are currently studying at an Alternative Provision
Current home postcode shows that you live in an area with low levels of progression to Higher Education falling within TUDRA LSOA quintiles 1 and 2.
Current home postcode shows that you live in an area that falls within the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) deciles 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Eligibility for the TUNDRA LSOA quintiles measure can be checked on this site and eligibility for the IMD deciles measure can be checked on this site.

Upcoming workshops and events

Being a Boy Exhibition Tour – Poole Museum, Monday 14 September - Monday 4 January

The Being a Boy exhibition continues its regional tour, expanding the House of Common exhibition from March 2026 with project archive materials, artwork, poetry, and exhibition activities. The exhibition celebrates the young men that have taken part from 2022 onwards, bringing their stories and voices to the community.

Learn more

Being a Boy Workshops for 2026/27

The Being a Boy workshops cover a range of creative disciplines including visual art and design. The fully funded workshops are designed to help young men reflect on masculinity, identity and future wellbeing. Event details and booking information will be published on our website. Please contact the team if you'd like to know more.

Being a Boy in the news

Explore the latest stories from the Being a Boy project below.

A group of 11 individuals, including students and adults, stands on steps in front of a modern building with large windows and greenery. The adults are dressed in formal attire, while the students wear casual clothing.

Arts University Bournemouth’s Being a Boy project gives young men a voice in landmark national survey

Arts University Bournemouth hosted Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza for an...

Three people are seated on a grey sofa in an office space. The woman on the left wears a blue blazer and smiles, the man in the middle is dressed in a white shirt, and the woman on the right is in a green top. Yellow banners with images and text about 'Being a' are displayed nearby.

Being a Boy regional tour continues with display at Tom Hayes MP's office

Being a Boy, the award-winning initiative launched by Arts University Bournemouth to champion the voices of working-class...

Group of people posing in formal room with green patterned carpet, yellow curtains, and framed artwork on walls.

Being a Boy project launches exhibition at House of Commons

Being a Boy, an award-winning project launched by Arts University Bournemouth championing young working-class men’s voices through...

A young person sits alone on stage at the Palace Court Theatre, giving a poem reading. A screen behind them shows a slide with text reading "I Come From Unknown by Emri".

Being a Boy to launch first-ever exhibition at Palace Court Theatre

The award-winning Being a Boy project will be opening their first-ever exhibition event at the Palace Court Theatre in Bournemouth...

The 2022 Being a Boy project group. A group of people stand and pose for a photo. One of them is holding a certificate.

Being a Boy heads to Pavilion Dance South West

A film exploring Arts University Bournemouth’s Being a Boy access and participation project has premiered at Pavilion Dance South West

AUB celebrates three wins at 2023 HEIST Awards

The Marketing and Access and Participation teams at AUB are celebrating after three wins out of three submissions at the premier Higher...

One person leans over and helps another person off of the ground with both hands.

AUB outreach staff celebrate double win at national industry awards

Arts University Bournemouth’s Access and Participation Team are celebrating two wins at the prestigious HELOA national industry awards.

Yellow Banner with the text 'Being a boy'. The male gender symbol has been integrated into the word 'Boy'.

Being a Boy: Attainment gap in white working-class boys explored in joint university project

Working class boys will be the focus of a new joint universities initiative led by Arts University Bournemouth.