Frequently Asked Questions
General Information about classes
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Every weekly course booking page includes a link to “Course dates and programme” where information, including materials required, can be found. One day courses include supplementary information on the booking page which can be found by scrolling down.
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AIl our tutors are practicing artists and experienced teachers. Every course indicates the tutor with a link to a page with more information about them.
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Pottery and Sculpture classes usually include all necessary materials.
For other classes, when a taster session is offered materials are usually provided by the tutor for the taster session.
For regular attendance you will usually need to obtain your own kit: if you enjoy your taster, ask the tutor and they will be able to advise you on obtaining the necessary materials in the most cost-effective way.
If you would like some more advice, please get in touch using the contact form.
The School and its location
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Please see the Directions pages for our centre at Pavilion Studios, where you will find full details on how to reach us on foot, by bicycle, by car and by public transport.
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All our courses currently take place at Pavilion Studios, Alexandra Gardens, Chiswick W4 2RX. If you would like to see the classrooms, please contact us to arrange a visit.
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We are proud to offer the best quality art teaching at affordable prices. Please see the following page for more details: What makes CAS different? — Chiswick Art School
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Information about courses in the future
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We announce the courses for the following term around half term:
Our Autumn term classes are announced mid-May.
Our Spring term classes are announced mid-October.
Our Summer term courses are announced mid-February.
We also run one day workshops and these can be published at any time: for more details see this page, and if you would like to be kept informed of new and upcoming courses please join our mailing list.
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If you are on our mailing list and you have indicated that you are interested in a certain type of course then you should receive information about those courses.
If you "unsubscribe" then we are not allowed to send you any more emails. If you have unsubscribed and you wish to receive information again please re-join the mailing list as this will remove the unsubscribe status: this can only be done by you.
You can also update your mailing preferences, which allows you to tell us which information you would like to receive. The easiest way to do this is via the buttons on the emails you receive but you can also do this at any time by visiting your preferences page.
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All available dates are shown on the website. If you are not already on the mailing list, please join via the contact page, and we can then inform you when the next dates are available.
Courses for Children
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Our regular Young Artists' Club is for children 8-14 years of age. We sometimes also run holiday classes which also welcome younger children.
Please keep an eye on our Young Artists' Classes page or if you would like to be notified when new courses for children are announced, please join our mailing list specifying that you would like to receive notifications for Young Artists' Classes.
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Our children's classes are for ages 8-14, so we wouldn't be able to help with enquiries for younger children. We suggest that you contact Celia Pickering at artwithlittlepics.com:
Celia may be able to help you with a suitable course.
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All our courses with the exception of the courses in the Children’s Classes section are for over-18’s only. Under certain circumstances, a child nearing 18 years of age accompanied by their parent may be allowed to join a class with prior agreement. Contact us if you would like to ask about this.
Introduction and Beginners’ Courses
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Our Beginners’ courses are suitable for all levels of experience. If you are not sure about one of the other courses, we will be very happy to talk it through with you. Contact us with your question.
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Thank you for your enquiry, and congratulations on beginning your Art adventure!
Here at Chiswick Art School the best place for you to start would be a Beginners' Art Club, which works as a weekly introduction to different mediums and techniques.
You will gain confidence and familiarity over the twelve week course, and you might then decide to continue at your own pace, or perhaps pursue a specific interest in one of our other painting or drawing courses.
There are daytime and evening options for the Beginners' Art Clubs - please see this page to find out more and book. More specific information about the course programmes can be found by following the Course Dates and Programme links for each course.
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All our introduction classes are included in the Beginners' Classes section.
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Introduction courses are also for refreshers, and concentrate on basic techniques. If you are in doubt or feel that your techniques are rusty, then we would recommend an Introduction course. If it proves too basic then subject to availability we can move you to an Intermediate course.
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You will need to specify a course for the voucher, as vouchers are issued on behalf of the relevant tutor.
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When you make a booking the system sends out a confirmation email to the email address you booked with. Ignore the fact that the receipt is marked "pending".
You can see al programme details including dates, syllabus and recommended materials by searching your course on the website and clicking the "course information" or "course programme and dates" link on the booking page.
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A problem on the payment page could be due to the fact that the button is low down, and it may require scrolling down on a phone to find it.
In some cases, there is a delay before the final payment page appears and this may throw the system.
In either case the problem can usually by solved by re-trying the process.
If the problem persists please let us know.
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Yes, when you receive an order receipt your booking is confirmed.
Please disregard a "pending" status: this simply refers to the fact that you have booked a course in advance of the course start date.
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The booking system automatically sends out a booking confirmation as soon as the booking has been completed. This is sent out to the email address you booked with.
NB admin emails for the course you are booked on will also go to this address, so please ensure that you use an email address that you monitor.
Bookings and Vouchers
Cancellations, missing classes and Illness
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We will follow current guidelines in this case. During the last pandemic, we offered refunds to students who were unable to attend due to a positive Covid test. Currently there is no health emergency so in common with other similar organisations our policy is that absence due to illness is at the student’s own risk.
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Please refer to our Terms and Conditions for details of our current policy.
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Each tutor works with support tutors to ensure that there is cover available for all classes. In the unlikely event that cover is not available or a session is cancelled for any reason a full refund of the affected session(s) will be offered.
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No problem, the tutor will be able to help you catch up next week. NB this is not always possible for Pottery beginners’ courses - please contact us to check.
Please note that "no-shows" are not transferable as credits, as our ability to provide high quality cost effective classes relies on planning for the attendees as scheduled.
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Our Introduction to Painting and Drawing courses are based on learning and practising basic techniques. There are multiple opportunities to reinforce your learning throughout the course, so it is unlikely that you would miss anything crucial if you cannot attend one or two sessions.
For an Introduction to Pottery course, it is important that you attend the first class as this is a very intensive session and can’t be repeated later in the course.
I have read the Q & A and I have some more questions
We will be glad to help with any further information you require. Just get in touch using the contact form