Reaching Every Young Person: How Power of Hair is Expanding Creative Confidence in Specialist Education

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Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]

Creating meaningful social impact means ensuring opportunities reach every young person, not just those in mainstream education.

Through its partnership with Ideas Foundation, Pantene’s Power of Hair programme is helping students across the UK explore confidence, identity and self-expression through creativity, including those attending specialist education settings who may have fewer opportunities to engage with the creative industries.

This commitment was brought to life at Millcourt School in Halifax, where spoken word artists Adisa the Verbalizer and Abdullah Adekola delivered creative workshops with Years 7–8 and Years 10–11 students with a range of additional needs.

Using poetry as a vehicle for self-expression, students explored themes of identity, individuality and belonging, reflecting on their own experiences and discovering the power of telling their stories. Throughout the sessions, students grew in confidence as they developed original pieces of writing and shared their voices with one another.

IF creative workshop in progress

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Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Spoken word artist Abdullah Adekola
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Spoken word artists Adisa the Verbalizer (foreground) and Abdullah Adekola (background)
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Spoken word artist Adisa the Verbalizer
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Helen Poole of Ideas Foundation
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Spoken word artist Abdullah Adekola
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
Spoken word artist Adisa the Verbalizer
Ideas Foundation at Millcourt School, Halifax [photograph by Tom Martin]
All photography by Tom Martin.

The workshops demonstrated that creative excellence and inclusivity go hand in hand. By adapting delivery to meet different learning needs while maintaining high creative expectations, every student was able to participate in a meaningful and engaging way.

For Pantene, programmes like Power of Hair demonstrate how purpose-led partnerships can create impact across diverse communities. By investing in creative experiences that celebrate identity and confidence, the brand is helping ensure that young people from all backgrounds and abilities see themselves represented, valued and inspired.

Power of Hair continues to connect professional creatives with classrooms across the country, helping thousands of young people develop confidence, broaden their aspirations and discover the opportunities available within the creative industries.

Because when creativity is truly inclusive, every young person has the chance to find their voice.

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