The mentoring programme is available to young people living in London, Greater Manchester or Merseyside who are preparing to take their first steps out of compulsory education (e.g. college or sixth form) and thinking about a future in the creative or cultural industries.

After completing a year of mentoring, mentees remain part of the Young Community where they can access networking and development opportunities until their 26th birthday.

We try to work with young people who most need the support of an Arts Emergency mentor, and therefore mentees should meet at least one of the criteria below:

• Your parents or carers didn’t attend university in the UK or abroad
• The main household earner when you were 14 had a ‘working class’ occupation (i.e. a technical or craft occupation; a routine, manual, or service occupation; or was long-term unemployed)
• You have been eligible for free school meals
• You are receiving the government's 16-19 bursary
• You consider yourself as being from an ethnic minority background
• You consider yourself to be disabled
• You consider yourself to have a learning disability or special education need