A Barrow school hosted a creative careers day which invited organisations and professionals from the town's cultural sector.
The event, held at Chetwynde School, had contributions from Art Gene, Signal Film and Media, Full of Noises, Attic Records and content creator Chloe Wagstaff, a former Chetwynde pupil.
Organised by art teacher Charlotte Strafford, the programme is now in its second year and is set to become an ongoing part of the school calendar.
Ms Strafford said: "We want pupils to see that creativity isn’t just a hobby or something that lives in the art room.
"Creative skills are highly valued across many industries and can lead to a huge variety of fulfilling careers.
"A big message we wanted to share is that there’s no single ‘right’ route into a creative career."
Throughout the day, Year 8 students took part in workshops covering the environment, digital media, sound, and music.
They also heard about career journeys from practitioners in the sector.
Art Gene, one of the organisations involved, ran a creative consultation exercise as part of the Earnse Project.
A school spokesperson said: "As part of Art Gene’s engagement activities linked to the Earnse Project, students took part in a creative consultation exercise using colourful interactive tools and illustrated postcards."
Meg Bowyer, an Art Gene programme associate, said her own background demonstrates the varied skills needed in creative roles.
Ms Bowyer has a degree in fine art, along with A-levels in maths, biology and physics.
She said: "That science background is really helpful in my work now.
"In the Earnse project we don’t only work with artists, we collaborate with ecologists, engineers and soil scientists too.
"I did a traditional fine art degree, but my job now isn’t about sitting and drawing all day, it’s about managing projects, working with communities and bringing lots of different skills together.
"You don’t need a creative degree to have a creative job.
"It’s been really lovely talking to pupils who aren’t quite sure what they want to do yet but know what they enjoy.
"Encouraging them to follow what they love is a big part of why we’re here."
Gabby, a Year 8 pupil, said: "I’m interested in a career in music but there are so many parts to it such as skills in front of camera, music videos, production and the publicity side alongside the singing itself."
"It has been good to speak to people to find out more about the skills needed."
