pottery workshop

Feel in a rut, uninspired, bored, unsatisfied or even lonely? We may be biased, but taking a pottery class in Manchester is the ideal activity to get your thoughts out of your mind and engage in the joy of creatively making pottery amongst a friendly community.

Our Manchester pottery class offers a unique setting to connect with the earth (literally) in a social group, and develop some skills you never knew were possible or even enjoyable to do. Here are 3 reasons why we think a pottery class could be the alternative creative activity in Manchester that suits you this Spring.

1. You’ll be brought into the moment without even realising.

There’s something soothing about smoothing clay through your fingers, coiling sausages of clay into useful containers, and manipulating mud into mugs. The concentration it takes will bring you out of your head and into the present moment, which will leave you feeling a sense of calm.

If you’re looking to de-stress, forget about work or take a break from the kids in Manchester then our pottery studio will help you get creative with clay, so you can zone out, relax and leave feeling like you’ve cleared your mind. You’ll know you’ve enjoyed yourself as the time will fly, it always does.

2. Pottery making in Manchester might give you the inspiration you need.

In the rush of everyday life—balancing work, responsibilities, and constant notifications—it’s easy to lose touch with your creative side. A pottery class offers a refreshing escape, inviting you to slow down, get your hands dirty, and reconnect with your imagination in a truly tactile way. Sometimes trying that new activity, a pottery class, is what will really get you feeling inspired.

You’ll be designing geometric patterns on plates, glazing rustic wheel thrown mugs and maybe even creating your own ceramic art sculpture. Will it be worthy of your living room plinth? Well it doesn’t really matter, you’ll be welcomed into our Manchester pottery studio to experience the joy of learning and making pottery without judgement. You’ll get used to failure, develop your patience, and will even make a great pot or 2 in the process. The varied activities and things to do in our Manchester pottery classes will help you develop the skills to express yourself creatively. The making process will fill you with ideas, developing into a passionate craving to make more.

3. A pottery class will connect you with a creative community in Manchester

One of the unexpected joys of joining a pottery class is the people you meet. Manchester has a thriving creative scene, and stepping into a pottery studio plugs you right into it. Whether you’re a total beginner or have dabbled in ceramics before, you’ll find yourself among others who are curious, open, and up for getting their hands messy.

There’s something wonderfully bonding about sitting around a table, shaping clay, and chatting as you work. Conversations flow easily, encouragement is shared generously, and mistakes often become shared laughs. 

Many of our students say their weekly class becomes something they really look forward to—not just for the pottery itself, but for the community it brings. It’s a chance to connect, learn from each other, and feel part of something creative and supportive right here in Manchester.

So why not try out and book a pottery taster class, see if it’s for you? But if you’re really wanting to connect with those around you get yourself onto a weekly evening or daytime pottery class, where you’ll have the time to develop those skills and get to know your class mates over several weeks.

There are numerous benefits of trying a pottery workshop in Manchester from meeting people, to learning a relaxing activity that helps relieve daily stress. There’s a good reason why celebrities, from Seth Rogan to Brad Pitt, are turning towards the craft and giving it a go. Here’s why we’d encourage everyone to try pottery out:

Making Pottery is Good for your Brain

As someone who has trained in Neuropsychology, and changed career to be a potter, I conducted research on how to train your brain. There were a number of things important in the research literature for longevity of healthy brain function in old age. These things can help build up your cognitive reserve, a kind of brain function strength that staves off the effects of dementias. What are they?: Exercise, socialising and novel activities.

These are the most stimulating things we can do for our brain. Well guess what? You’re engaging in all those things when taking a pottery workshop. It requires the development of fine motor skills and takes physical effort to roll, knead and centre clay, it’s very social when learning in a class, and it engages your brain heavily when you learn a new skill. It also helps to relax you and relieve stress which is great for your brain, and promoting good immune system function too. So taking a pottery course in Manchester is a great way to bolster your brain.

Taking a Pottery Workshop in Manchester can help you Relax

Meet New People in Manchester in a Friendly Workshop

A pottery workshop is a great way to meet new people in Manchester. As activities go, it really is easy to join one by yourself and make buddies with the other people there. People attending workshops also come from all walks of life, with a really diverse range of people helping to expand your access to different networks and ways of thinking. As there’s pottery making to be done there’s also no obligation to socialise, which is what makes it so great. You can sit down and focus on your pots if that’s what you want to do. However it is really common for classes to become socially supportive groups, that promote a sense of belonging and camaraderie. Lastly you’ll have a hobby to talk about to your current friends and family, gifts to give them, and ceramic art around your home giving you even more social capital. So if you wouldn’t mind making new friends in Manchester, then a pottery workshop would be a great activity to try.

Learning Pottery Enhances your Creativity

Through slabbing your clay into a ceramic art sculpture or trying a new mug handle shape, making pottery really enhances your creativity, even for people who don’t feel ‘arty’. There are so many aspects to pottery making that can be creative: You can make utilitarian pieces, varying their style, shape and design, and learning along the way what works, what doesn’t and what sort of aesthetic you want to create. You can focus on form, but you can also focus more artistically developing patterns or painting styles you apply to your pots to make them your own. You can also learn by accident, with the unpredictable nature of firings sometimes you can discover happy accidents, that teach you a new technique or effect. In making pottery you’re spending time practicing and developing your creative thinking and skills.

Pottery is FUN

Yep, well it isn’t surprising that doing things that are good for your brain health, relieve stress, and providing a community for you to make new friends, would be fun. It’s like when children make a mud pie, but for adults. A place you can play, no judgement. You’re likely to have a good time, all while making food vessels for your home to hold everything from tea to noodles.

Sam Andrew

Sam Andrew is a ceramicist creating Nerikomi tableware and ceramic art pieces focusing on material reuse, pattern and perception. With a background in Clinical Neuropsychology Sam learned ceramics since a young age and changed career a decade ago to design and make ceramics.