Ball Out

The Cage TM presents Ball Out, a creative summer programme supporting young people in Thamesmead to explore the rich culture of basketball and joy of creative self-organising and production.

Between July and August 2023, The Cage Team will work with the core five young people to organise activities and invite many more to take part, giving them the resources, the confidence and the skills to put together their own events, to experience first hand the vibrant London Basketball scene, to expand their networks, to foster friendships and to actively create their local culture. 

The programme includes:

July 10 and 20: Identity and Design Workshops, at the Lakeside Centre, Thamesmead.

July 22 and 23: Ball Out 3x3 National Tour, The Cage TM sponsoring a local team to compete, trip out to Finsbury Park, London. 

August 15 and 17: produced indoors by the young people, Mini Tournament/Games at the Belvedere Community Centre Sports Hall.

Ball-Art is developed in close collaboration with the young people in South Thamesmead. It looks at cultural agency and sport as important aspects of life, bringing joy, encouraging socializing and giving those involved a sense of achievement. We want to offer the youngsters an opportunity to work and to get a sense of what a freelance creative work might look like - something that schools rarely prepare for. 

The Cage: “We are a group of local people associated with The Cage in Wolvercote Rd, South Thamesmead. Our aim is to create a programme of events to encourage and grow street-culture in our neighborhood, with an emphasis on Basketball and art. We want to provide young people with the skills and agency to organise their own events, an ability to take advantage of local funding and a sense of ownership of their public spaces. We’d like the Cage to become a firm part of a London-wide Basketball community, through both inviting people in and organising trips out for the local youth”.

Ball-Art is curated by the Cage ™ with the support of Peabody; it’s commissioned by Three Rivers Bexley and funded by Arts Council England.