For Ophelia, Harriet, Ava and Vesper, music has always been more than just something to listen to. Through their KEY+ journey, it became the inspiration for a project that would grow from a simple idea into a live gig raising money for mental health, a cause that is important to them.
Stage 1: Discovering the Idea
From the very start, the group knew what direction they wanted to take: “From the beginning, we knew we wanted to do something with music.”
Their Stage 1 project brought them closer to the music world. The group organised a trip to a music studio where they could explore instruments and learn how a professional recording studio works, alongside budgeting for lunch together afterwards.
Stage 2: Taking the Idea Further
For their £500 project, the group decided to experience live music from the audience’s perspective. they bought tickets to a variety of performances, including gigs like the ‘Love Amelia Christmas Gig’ at the Fire Station and an amateur theatre production of ‘We Will Rock You’, alongside planning transport, snacks and meals.
Watching events from the audience’s perspective helped them understand what works well and what doesn’t when putting on a show. And that’s when they decided: “We decided for our [£1,000 project] that if we’re going to go to a gig, we may as well look at what goes into them as well” – Vesper.
Stage 3: Creating their Own Gig
For their Stage 3 project, the group planned something amazing: their own live gig at Newcastle College, featuring several local bands and raising money for Mental Health Matters: “We wanted to support mental health because music can help people with mental health so much. [And] we’ve all had things that happened in our lives that can relate to having mental health, so it just felt really important to us” – Ophelia.
The group also performed their own original song, written during a songwriting workshop and developed in a rehearsal space they have organised as part of the project. The song featured Harriet and Vesper on vocals, Ava on drums and Ophelia on keys.
Harriet said that she was a little nervous but in the end “it just felt good getting our message out and the message of the song being the real you.” Ava explained this saying, “Because people, they wear masks every day, so this song is showing people who you really are behind your clothes.”
However, planning the event wasn’t simple. Managing a bigger budget and organising a live performance brought new challenges. The group carefully budgeted for t-shirts, printing, refreshments, rehearsal space and a songwriting workshop, while also preparing for the possibility that they might need to pay for the venue. When Newcastle College later confirmed they wouldn’t charge for the space, it freed up some extra funds – but budgeting was still tight.
“I remember, me and Ava went through the sweets and got rid of some of them because we went over budget” - Harriet. Prioritising what mattered most became part of the process: “It was basically having to keep telling yourself, ooh, I quite like that, but what’s going to sell well?” Ophelia said.
The Night of the Gig: Everything Coming to Life
When the day finally arrived, it still didn’t feel quite real for the group. Harriet admitted “It hasn’t hit me yet,” with the rest of the group describing the event as “surreal.”
As the event got underway, Ophelia reflected on how everything had finally come together: “It feels like it’s ran smoothly, honestly it just feels incredible. It feels like all of this effort that we’ve put in and then it starts to come to life and it just feels surreal.”
Talking about what they hoped people would take away from the event, Harriet explained that they hoped young people would leave inspired, saying she wanted others to see that age isn’t a barrier: “I hope, if there’s a kid, or, we’ve already been speaking to people and they’ve said they’re going to take inspiration from us… We just hope that people take away that, we’re all 13, and just because you’re younger and you’re only 12/13, doesn’t mean you can’t do stuff like this.”
Ava also reflected on the deeper meaning behind the event and summed up the emotional impact of the night: “It’s really important because it helps people with their mental health and to make fantastic memories.” Harriet added: “Mental health is important because some people struggle with it silently and don’t get help and we hope that this also encourages people if anyone is struggling to get some help.”
Strengthening Friendships & Building Skills Along the Way
While the project has been about music and mental health, it’s also been about teamwork and skills that will stay with the group for life. The best part of the project for the group was “getting to spend time together [and] building a relationship.”
The group said: “I think our friendships have become a lot stronger and I think we’re able to work as a team a lot better than we did when we started.” Over time, their KEY+ experience brought them closer together as Harriet said “It’s just strengthened all our bonds.”
The Quackdoodles also said they developed lots of skills and confidence that they will carry into the future:
Raising Money for a Cause That Matters
Choosing a charity was an important decision for the group: “I think, when we were looking at charities, we wanted to make sure it was something that we all had a connection with and all of us have had some sort of connection with mental health and it’s just so important for us” said Harriet.
They initially considered national charities before deciding to support something local: “We decided to look for a local mental health charity and that’s when we found Mental Health Matters and I think it’s just so important for us that we fundraise something that’s really close to the heart and something that’s important to all of us” said Harriet.
The group ended up raising over £800 for Mental Health Matters! Amazing!
Believing in Themselves and Looking Ahead
Looking back, it’s hard for the group to believe how far they’ve come: “I can still remember how I felt sitting in this room listening to Miss Cheape tell us about KEY+ and I was like, we could never do this but here we are” said Ophelia.
Harriet agreed: “Yeah when we sat with them, I was like it could be a really great experience if we did it, but doing £1,000 sounds like a lot of work and I didn’t think we were going to be able to do it so it’s amazing what we’ve been able to accomplish.”
Ultimately, the thing that the group was most proud of was being able to complete all 3 stages of the KEY+ Challenge. Ophelia said: “For me, I think it’s just the fact that we managed to do this, we managed to get there, to work as a team and to overcome every hill, every challenge. Before we did KEY+, I was assuming the worst and that it’s never going to happen, [but now] I believe in myself more.”
And their message to other young people thinking about taking part in KEY+ is simple:
- “I would say if you do it, don’t give up, stick to it. It’s really worth it in the end. It’s probably been one of the best experiences we’ve ever done. Definitely just stick with it.” Harriet
- “Don’t succumb to peer pressure, do whatever you want to do with your KEY+ project.” Ophelia
- “Just do it, like, if you’re scared, just do it anyway, it just makes you happy. It’s really fun.” Vesper
For this group, what started with an idea about music has become something far bigger: a live event, a fundraising effort for mental health, and a journey that’s strengthened their confidence, friendships and belief in what they can achieve together and alone.
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The Key