Always on
This project successfully funded on 1st March 2026, you can still support them with a donation.
Community Outreach Pottery Classes in Brighton
Brighton, Brighton and Hove, United Kingdom
Aim
To provide free community outreach wheel-throwing classes, expanding my ceramics teaching with new pottery wheels and a larger solo studio.
Hi I’m Mathew Paul Jinks, and this is my Crowdfunder to provide free community wheel-throwing pottery classes to support mental health in Brighton.
I need your help to buy 5 new pottery wheels and expand into a larger solo studio, so that I can grow my existing teaching school and help more people within the local community to access the benefits of working with clay.
- £2k = Securing my new, larger solo studio space.
- £5k = 4 wheels + 1 month's rent buffer in the new, larger solo studio
- £10k = 5 wheels + clay, tools and 3 months' studio rent buffer
- £15k = 5 wheels + clay, tools and 6 month's studio rent buffer + advertising budget + salary for the time it may take to get the regular teaching classes fully booked to support more free classes for community outreach.
The project will work with £2-5,000, but if I can get to £15,000 I can guarantee longer-term stability to offer the maximum possible number of free community outreach spaces, alongside my regular pottery teaching classes.
Community Outreach Wheel Throwing Classes
Each term at Jinks Pottery, I'll be offering a range of wheel-throwing pottery classes for members of the community who couldn't otherwise afford them, to experience the therapeutic flow-state and skills-growing benefits that working with clay can bring.
Fully-Funded, Free Classes
A portion of my wheel-throwing pottery classes will be completely free of charge to those who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford to access them.
I'll be collaborating with local charities to offer fully-funded lessons to people who would most benefit - whether that be because of homelessness, unemployment, or lack of access to resources.
Pay What You Can
I’ll also be providing an opportunity for those on lower incomes to pay what they can to open my teaching up to more people.
Men's Shed
A regular men’s shed session will be provided to hold open a supportive environment for men to communicate, share skills and connect.
Jinks Pottery School
Expanding My Existing School to Support More Ceramicists
The future funding of the teaching studio will come from fully-paid wheel throwing classes for local ceramicists from beginner to advanced levels.
Alongside teaching the core techniques and essential skills of wheel throwing, I'll also be sharing new ways to approach and consider what ceramics mean to us today.
While helping students explore different types of clay and glazing, I also bring a Fine Art thinking approach to help students consider the choices they're making around form, function and finish.
I’ve already been providing these classes very successfully for a year out of my small, shared studio on 2 borrowed wheels.
Now I need your help to grow a 5-wheel school.
The Vision...
My current shared studio is based at Yoyo Yard nestled just off the vibrant Lanes in Brighton. They have a bigger space available that can be mine to take on from 1st March 2026. It's a perfectly-sized studio for 5 wheels, with a lovely big window.
Students will benefit from being part of a larger community of ceramicists, and also from the amazing sauna facilities provided at Yoyo Yard which is a lovely place to spend time in.
The intention is to retain a focused teaching environment, where students can enjoy small classes and personalised support to accelerate their own skills growth.
5 wheels will be enough to create a vibrant and sustainable teaching community, while also maintaining a calm space to promote the therapeutic and flow-state benefits of working with clay.
How You Can Help
I’m looking for donations to help purchase 5 new wheels, cover launch rent, and fit out the studio with clay and tools.
Rewards
Help me turn this vision into reality by choosing from a range of lovely rewards...
- The top 5 Founding Members of my Bowl Club will receive 4 collectible seasonal bowls and have a pottery wheel named after them.
- There's also a Mug Club and a Tea Bowl Club, each giving you 4 unique pieces that will be sent to you seasonally throughout 2026, so that you can build out your own exclusive collection of my ceramics.
- Wheel-throwing vouchers: be first to secure your space on my intensive 1-2-1 teaching classes. Choose from taster sessions, 3-week, 6-week and 12-week courses, suitable for all levels of experience, and redeemable throughout 2026.
- Pay What You Can
Bowl Club, Mug Club and Tea Bowl Club members will receive 4 unique and seasonally-inspired bowls, delivered across the year in 2026 so that you can build out your collection.
Donate
Every penny you're able to contribute will help me reach my target and offer more support to more people.
If rewards feel out of reach, or you're not in the local area, you can still help. Please consider donating what you can to help me reach my target.
Thank you for all your support!
About Me
My name is Mathew Paul Jinks, and I am a ceramicist working out of a small, shared pottery studio at Yoyo Yard in Brighton.
I am particularly inspired by Japanese styles of ceramics, and love working with black clay, exploring natural glaze colours with expressive brush techniques.
With a background in Photography and Video, and having taught for 7 years at the Art Institute of Chicago, I bring a Fine Art approach to working with clay, in terms of how to think about form and material choices.
Alongside clay, I also love to make music, mend boats, bake sourdough and tinker with cameras.
Working with my hands matters to me. I am a huge advocate for the therapeutic benefits that working with clay can bring, creating a flow state where thoughts can settle and feelings can be processed in a safe and transformative environment.
View My Work
Connect with me on Social Media
Google Reviews for My Wheel-Throwing Classes in Brighton
- "Mathew is an excellent teacher. He has a really in depth knowledge of his craft and is keen to share his knowledge with you. His courses are relaxed and very fun, and the end results are fantastic. I highly recommend both his courses and his lovely ceramics :)"
- "A great gift idea for anyone!!!😁✨ Had a 3-hour session with Mathew as a present for my dad’s birthday. We both had so much fun! Mathew is good company and a patient teacher, the studio was lovely, clay great and just a fantastic experience! Highly recommend 🙌 !"
- "I had a great time, Matthew is a lovely and patient teacher."
Funding method
Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made