Studio Terms and Conditions

Please read through the following carefully - by booking on to a class/course/art cafe / studio session or membership you are agreeing to these terms and conditions

Cancellations of regular classes:

All our regular weekly classes are flexible (excluding art, clay night and workshops). This means for any reason if you can’t attend your class we will credit your session to another date or another class for you. You will never pay for a class you miss and we are happy to adapt payment for blocks if you know you will be away. If you need to cancel your class please let Sarah know via text, voicemail or call 07985405703 this allows us to know numbers on the day.

If stART studio finds it necessary to cancel a class, workshop or session, all participants/students will be notified immediately. If a course must be cancelled completely, we will give students the opportunity of a full refund or will transfer their payment to another course available at the studio on the grounds that there are still spaces available.

If unplanned or unforeseen circumstances prompt a singular session of a multi-week course to be cancelled, we will contact all students immediately, informing them of an alternative date to make up the total amount of sessions. Alternatively the offer of a refund for the singular session cost will be available. stART studio will refund the student(s) within three weeks of the session cancellation date.

Cancellations of Workshops or Art Nights/Clay Nights:

In the event that you need to cancel a stand-alone workshop or art night/clay night we would ask you to notify us 1 week prior to the class that you are unable to attend. A refund for your cancelled workshop or night will be given.

In the unfortunate event where 48 hours or less has been given we will do our best to move your booking to a different date but may be subject to us having spaces available and/or being able to fill the space vacated.

Non-attendance:

In the event of non-attendance or arriving late to classes it is not possible to provide alternative studio time, or for a class to be rescheduled. Our workshops and art nights are at fixed times to cover the cost of tuition. We run at full capacity so it is not possible to swap classes or use the studio outside of the allotted class times to catch up unless you have given us sufficient notice.

Refunds:

Refunds will only be issued up to 7 days before your class/course starts. After this period, if you cannot make the class your payment will be retained as we may be unable to fill your space. You may reschedule a single class or drop in session up to 48 hours before the session or transfer your booking to another person.

Pottery/ Clay / glaze / firing costs:

Clay space sessions, Art café, Clay night and Wheel Experiences – you can make as many items as you wish in the time allocated in these sessions. Please note that pievces that are too big or too small may not be able to fired at the discretion of Sarah. Pots made in these sessions take 2-3 weeks to dry and fire in the kiln.

Members; if you go over your designated kiln shelf space in a month you can purchase extra space at the same rate as the open studio firing fees.

One fired you have 3 options for finishing your pieces:

Collect your pottery, paint at home with acrylic or simply enjoy the natural exposed clay.
Clear dip glaze – let us know and we will dip it in our clear glaze for free. Then collect it sealed and shiny.
Book a glaze session during our Clay Space or Art Café and use our coloured glazes to add some details. This has an additional fee of £5 for 1 hour session and includes hot or cold drinks. Your pots will then need to go back into the kiln and can be collected with 3-7 days.

Collecting work:

Finished work can be collected any time within our opening hours for clay pieces made approximately 3-4 weeks after the making session. For pottery which has been glazed approximately 3-7 days.

You will receive an email or a text informing you when the work is ready for collection.

From the date of this email/text you will have 6 calendar months to collect your work. After this time your work will be disposed of (please let us know asap if there is a valid reason you cannot collect within that time period).

Although we do our very best, we cannot guarantee that work won’t be damaged in the kiln or not survive a firing. Any work damaged during the firing process is not the responsibility of stARTstudio and any work remaining in the studio after the above cut off times will be disposed of as we see fit.

Health & Safety:

It is important that everyone respects all Health & Safety regulations, start studio’s staff and other local residents.

Main points:

stART studio cannot be held responsible for any injuries caused through the misuse of the studio or equipment.
stART studio will not be held responsible for any illnesses or infections. You are responsible for your own personal hygiene.
Classes are for over 18's only unless clearly specified.
Please familiarise yourself with our evacuation procedure, our fire assembly point is at the Baptist church carpark if exiting the rear of the building or the Market Cross if exiting the front of the building
If you are unsure of anything regarding Health & Safety please ask your teacher or a member of staff at the beginning of the course or via email before the start date.
stART studio is not responsible for any damage caused to work and is not responsible for any work, belongings or money going missing or getting stolen.

We reserve the right to suspend or cancel any person from a course if any of the above points are not respected.

Please note: if you have a disability, you should make the studio manager aware of this when you come to work in the studio so that we can ensure we make appropriate adjustments in the interest of your safety, and that you are aware of the procedure that we will follow in the event of a fire.

Health and Safety (course students/open studio and cafe/members):

Participants will use the Studio at their own risk with awareness of the inherent hazards of a Studio environment, which include but are not limited to use of sharp tools and sharp edges, exposure to toxic materials, the dangers of using materials and equipment at high temperatures, and the risks associate with breathing silica dust.

All students will undergo a brief Health and Safety induction before they begin their class/course.

Each course participant must comply with all health and safety instructions given by stART studio’s staff at all times.

Smoking/vaping is forbidden in the building. Designated areas are available outside for smoking or vaping.

Members and art café and clay space participants must be able to work independently and safely without supervision in the studio. If unsure of equipment, materials or procedures please check with a member of staff.

Cleaning Essentials:

CLAY:

All students are required to spend at least 10 minutes cleaning their area of the studio at the close of each session. Clay and glaze dusts are toxic and must not be left anywhere in the studio.

Each participant is required to keep all surfaces clean of clay and glaze and to clean all areas including the floor around their work station thoroughly before completing their session. This is to minimise the risks to members and staff caused by breathing clay and glaze dusts.

Work areas should be left cleaner or as clean as when the member began working. Please ensure all tools and equipment are placed back where you found them and not stacked by the sink.

Participants are required to comply with the studio’s cleaning system for cleaning equipment for the use of clay and glazes as well as hand washing. These are explained to you at the start of classes or during your introduction to your clay space.

PAINTING:

When painting please move your brushes, waterpots and painting equipment to the kitchen. We will do the rest!