A WayWORD Festival Legacy project has helped Hazlehead Academy to achieve an LGBT Charter Silver Award from LGBT Youth Scotland, who are Scotland's national charity for LGBTI young people. They are the first school in Aberdeen city or shire to receive such an award, and the six-week Art & Activism project run by WayWORD with Kirsty Lawie and Naomi Christie with young people from the School's Equality Alliance group was instrumental in the process.
University of Aberdeen’s WayWORD Festival has helped Hazlehead Academy become the first school in Aberdeen city/shire to achieve a Silver LGBT Charter Award, running a six-week ‘Art & Activism’ project as part of the festival’s community legacy programme. Collaborating with Outlines Collective, a graffiti artist organisation, pupils learned about the history of graffiti as activist art and produced designs for pasteup posters and a mural wall. The ‘Love Wins’ wall was painted by pupils working with Naomi Christie and Kirsty Lawie from WayWORD and Outlines Collective. The mural incorporated images designed by the students and characters and symbols from popular culture. The message was chosen to celebrate diversity and inclusion in the school. LGBT Charter Awards are given by LGBT Youth Scotland, who are Scotland’s national charity for LGBTI young people, and complimented Hazlehead Academy for ensuring their school was inclusive, with measures such as “Creating inclusive anti-bullying, uniform, and social dance policies”.
WayWORD Festival is a student/youth-led literary arts festival exploring alternative forms of expression, curated by UoA WORD Centre for Creative Writing, Outlines Collective are a group of graffiti artists who bring colourful spray paint projects to local communities.