Students Create Animated Health Resource to Support Young Adults

Anthony Hall
Nov 20
2 min read

Date - 14th Aug 2024

Digital Arts and Games Design students collaborate with Nottinghamshire Healthcare to help young people navigate essential health services.

Helping Young People Understand Healthcare

Creative media and games design students at West Nottinghamshire College have played an important role in creating a new animated information video designed to help young people aged 14 and above — along with their families — understand and access a range of healthcare services.

In collaboration with Nottinghamshire Healthcare’s Preparing for Adulthood (PFA) and the Children and Young People’s Services team, students produced a professional 2D animation explaining how to use services such as dentists, GPs, opticians, emergency care, learning disability nursing and more.

A Real Project With Real Impact

The project began when Nottinghamshire Healthcare approached the college’s media team to create an accessible visual resource that could support young people transitioning into adult healthcare.

Advanced Diploma Creative Media students Levi Black-Bordeaux and Olivia Ward took the lead in designing characters, scenes and animations using Adobe Photoshop, After Effects and Premiere Pro. Meanwhile, performing arts students recorded the voiceovers that guide viewers through the animated film.

Media tutor Tony Herd praised the group’s commitment:

“The students worked incredibly hard on this project and I was impressed with their professional communication skills to ensure the brief was met.”

A Valuable Tool for Families and Professionals

The new online resource forms part of the wider PFA digital support hub, which aims to help families understand the healthcare journey as children move into adulthood.

Shelly Hancock, Preparing for Adulthood lead at Nottinghamshire Healthcare, emphasised the importance of the animation:

“We wanted to create important resources such as this animation which teach young people how to access services and understand the range of support in the NHS. The students have produced something invaluable that will empower many young people.”

The video allows viewers to learn about:

How to book and access dental services
The role of different healthcare practitioners
What a learning disability nurse does
When and how to use other key health services

Developing Skills and Confidence Through Live Briefs

For the students involved, the project offered hands-on experience working with a real client, meeting deadlines, adapting to feedback and managing a project from start to finish. These experiences help strengthen both their portfolios and confidence, providing practical skills that future employers value.