Released: 02.03.09

The series Little Chefs was produced for Westcountry by Coleridge Productions and directed by Adrian Emerson, Head of Creative Arts and Technology at UCP Marjon.

Also Stuart Moore – lecturer in Creative Arts and Technology at UCP Marjon is nominated in the Collaboration between Business and Young People section for his company Sundog Media’s DVD project with young carers in Plymouth.

Little Chefs was a six part regional entertainment feature in which three celebrity chefs worked with three teams of three 10 year olds in a light hearted competition to win the Little Chefs 2008 title.

Adrian says ‘Our purpose was to make something entertaining for a Sunday tea time family audience and our viewing figures grew substantially in the schedule over the series. The major issue was always logistics and time management – given the constraints of working with this age group. Final day shoots always had two camera crews, a large cast and endless Little Chef family support networks. In business terms the challenge was to deliver this on budget, on time and to editorial satisfaction and this we achieved.  It was to echo one of our (losing!) Little Chefs ‘the best time of our lives’.

Young carers are children who have to look after members of their family, because a parent is ill, has had an accident or is disabled, or cannot be the head of the family for other reasons. A young carer takes on the responsibilities for their family, often in very difficult circumstances, and ensures that siblings and parents are fed, that the home is cleaned, that bills and rent are paid; and, in many cases, young carers are responsible for administering prescribed medicines and other medical needs. A young carer does all this as well as studying at school, and, typically, has little or no time for simply ‘being a child’, playing, or focusing on their own needs.

Stuart and his colleague Kayla Parker worked in collaboration with young carers aged from 8 to 15 years old. He says: “The aim was to create a DVD that told people – without pulling punches - exactly what it is like to be a young carer: the jobs they do, the problems and issues they face, and the kind of help and support they need from teachers and healthcare professionals. Dr Roger Morgan, The Director for Children’s Rights for England, kindly lent his support to the project, and introduced the DVD.”

Find out more about the awards at:
http://www.mediainnovationawards.com/items_default.asp?catid=3026&L1=L13026