“What keeps us well?” A Heritage Project
Open Call for Young Creatives
“Woven into the days of stress
The golden threads of thankfulness”
– ‘Shalford, 1921’ by A.F. Freeman
Between wandering and wondering lies opportunity.
Share how you navigate what keeps you well.
Enter here
Deadline: Sunday, 18 January 2026, 11:59 pm (GMT).
Inspired by A.F. Freeman’s 1921 poem titled ‘Shalford, 1921’, discovered in a Shalford Women’s Institute scrapbook at the Surrey History Centre, we invite artists, writers, and filmmakers to reflect on our prompt.
WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR
We welcome creative responses in any form. Examples include, but are not limited to:
-
Visual art: Drawing, painting, illustration, sculpture, photography, mixed media, digital art, etc (high-quality image, 300dpi), or film (up to 3 minutes, submitted via Vimeo or YouTube link)
-
Written work: Letters, poetry, prose, short reflections, etc (up to 500 words)
If your work doesn’t fit into these examples, that’s absolutely fine — we encourage creativity in any medium.
If you have any questions about what kind of work you can submit, or need guidance on formats, please contact: hello@itsnotyourbirthdaybut.com
CATEGORIES
1. Under 18s – Visual
2. Under 18s – Written
ELIGIBILITY
- Young Creatives aged 11 - 18
- Entry is free, and you can be based anywhere in the world.
- Anyone with an idea is welcome to enter - you don’t need to consider yourself a highly experienced artist or writer. We welcome entries from young people with a wide range of creative experience. Young artists and writers, students, and those with more experience are all encouraged to apply.
- You can send multiple submissions across categories.
HOW TO ENTER
Submit your work here by Sunday, 18 January 2026, 11:59 pm (UK time).
- All visual artwork must be uploaded as a high-quality digital image (300dpi). Film/video entries must be provided via Vimeo or YouTube link, and all written work must be uploaded as a Word Document.
- Selected entrants will be contacted about exhibiting original works.
- An independent panel will select the winning works and pieces, which will be shared more widely.
- All entrants will be notified by the end of February 2026.
If you’d like any support with accessibility, please email Samantha: hello@itsnotyourbirthdaybut.com
PRIZES
We invite submissions from artists and writers, with separate prizes for each category. The winner of each category will receive:
- £250 in high street vouchers
- The opportunity to be exhibited in the final What Keeps Us Well exhibition
- An exclusive invite to a vast and incredible archive of wonder containing traces of lives over the last 800 years in millions of documents held behind the scenes at Surrey History Centre in Woking.
- Additional prizes including high quality art materials and book tokens will be offered to runners up.
FAQs
Terms and Conditions
Download the Open Call U18s
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Alongside three community partners, The Halow Project, Surrey Gypsy Traveller Communities Forum, and Surrey Youth Groups, we’ll dive into SHC’s rich archive to uncover how communities have stayed well through food, exercise, coming together for shared activities, taking notice of the world around them, nature, creativity, connection, and more.
Return to What Keeps Us Well
Send something you’ve created to someone you appreciate today. When it’s not your birthday but just an ordinary day, it feels even more special to receive something unexpected that someone has made just for you.
Email us:
hello@itsnotyourbirthdaybut.com
Call us on:
020 8079 2938
Monday – Friday
9:30am – 5pm
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