It was clear that the scheme covers a huge range of different investigations and potential products for healthy ageing – it was fascinating to hear about self-help websites, rapid production of orthotic devices, new ways to support those with cognitive issues. Wise Connections is certainly situated at the more sociological end of the spectrum but, on hearing what Paul Kirby, founder and CEO of Zinc, had to say, WC absolutely responds to the need for fresh thinking. The morning session panel was Cynthia Bullock from UKRI and Susan Kay from Dunhill Medical Trust. Susan talked about the need for interdisciplinarity to really understand the context and position of initiatives for healthy ageing, and Cynthia talked about the absolute relevance and need for sociological perspectives, and the importance of collaborations and connections with community organisations. That certainly made the Wise Connections team feel good about our project which has had community connection and empowerment at it’s heart and uses iterative and exploratory co-design methods. The session broadened out from thinking of healthy ageing as individual issues of decline to thinking much more about the wider context of an ageing society – ‘aspiration not desperation’ as one of the presenters put it.
Blog post by Tot Foster.
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On a cloudy Thursday afternoon fourteen people came together to collectively and collaboratively think about the next iteration of the box. This was an eclectic group – older residents, people working in community development, volunteers, researchers, artists, academics … and some people who are all of those things! Between cups of tea we all went to sit in a GP’s waiting room – unfortunately the fictional GP’s were all too busy to see patients for 20 minutes and so that was a chance to explore the Dare to Hope game together in role play. We got to know each other better and the existing concept of the Dare to Hope game. The strengths and flaws that previous experiments had revealed were reiterated, and we then moved on to thinking about the box in a one-to-one domestic situation. In pairs we explored the concept of the box if it were to be used by those involved in social prescribing, with one person playing a facilitator moving from person to person so that the box accumulated ideas which others could see, tap into and add to – whilst also helping the facilitator with opening out conversations and adding to their own understanding of the needs of individuals and the community. We thought about the mechanics of the box and the interactions, what it might feel like, for whom, and how it could be useful – and importantly, how that might be turned into action. The bringing together of such a diverse group allowed for us all to understand others’ perspectives – and it’s amazing how much volume fourteen people talking enthusiastically can create! The second half of the workshop then focused on designing boxes which could be used in participants actual contexts to mobilise latent skills, and to bring people together. Everyone brought their own knowledge and experience to thinking about how the box could work for their community. Four groups discussed, wrote, got hands on with making materials, and, in the case of the group I was part of, had a good laugh too. I hope everyone had fun – I was too engrossed in our own conversation to notice. And four completely different ideas emerged: the first was to use the box to develop community events to bring people together to enjoy themselves and then have another box to explore a theme at that event – gathering thoughts, wishes, promises, ideas, and then sharing them. The second group fed back ideas for an existing group to empower those who contribute infrequently to be able to make suggestions and have their voice heard in the group as a whole, particularly those who find it difficult to get out. The group also reported how challenging they felt it would be to get people to engage without significant facilitation. The third group created a solid and practical seed swap box with an attached audio recorder and space for photos so that those who had grown plants could share their ideas and green fingered achievements. The final group focused on how the box could be used by a resident in the group, aged 85, to create a rich record of herself simultaneously for herself and those around her; to express herself, remind herself and celebrate her long life.
Blog post by Tot Foster. We have been working in four areas of Bristol to try out the Dare to Hope game in different communities and types of venue. The boxes have been in libraries, a community centre, a café and other spots – in these spaces they have been unfacilitated but left in prominent positions for several weeks. The boxes have also been introduced to groups by people who run them such as Sarah at Hillfileds who set up the Silver Explorers club, and by community development workers. A key part of these experiments has been three tea parties. Invites were left in the boxes and in some venues posters put up the week before. Food and drink are always such great excuses to sit down and chat. There were cakes, scones, biscuits and fruit (I enjoyed the opportunity to use a three-tiered cake stand inherited from a great aunt). All comers were welcome including kids, people at art classes next door, and passers-by, as well as those who had contributed to the boxes. One of the tea parties was held for Silver Explorers as they and Sarah had been keeping an eye on the box and getting people to contribute in Hillfields library. Although these were ‘box opening’ tea parties, we learned a great deal more from these conversations than people’s aspirations for their community and what they could contribute; we talked about the concept, design and operation of the Dare the Hope game and the materiality of the box – these conversations are so powerful in informing the next iteration.
We found out that it is very difficult to get people to interact with the box unfacilitated. There is a reticence, something about ‘this isn’t meant for me’; unseen barriers that are tricky to define. Suggestions included leaving the box open, having signs around the box, but ultimately it seems that some level of facilitation is needed. Also, we found that if kids add to the box - which is wonderful –adults see their decorated envelopes and conclude it is an activity for kids and do not contribute. There were also adjustments to the design of the box which were revealed – if people are being asked to explore what others have added that cannot happen if envelopes are sealed. Therefore, envelopes without glue could be used. Some things are so obvious when they are pointed out, but not obvious when you are putting the contents of the boxes together! At every one of the tea parties a discussion of the words ‘hopes’, ‘gifts’ and ‘community’ came up. Some people liked the openness they afforded, but many wanted things pinned down – ‘what exactly is meant by a gift?’. One of the other big questions was ‘what happens to our hopes and gifts’?. After the tea parties the whole Wise Connections team met to unpick all these experiences – building on the positives, identifying barriers to engagement, considering the box in mutiple contexts. We began to formulate the next iteration of the box and consider how it could be used in one-to-one conversations. To be continued…. Blog post by Tot Foster. The backstory Since 2016, Local Learning have been working in partnership with Southmead Development Trust, Bristol Old Vic and the local community to create the Southmead soap opera, Meadows to Meaders, telling the true stories of people who have lived, worked and grown up on one of Bristol’s largest interwar council estates. The intergenerational show starring local residents spanning eight decades was initially intended as a one off project, but after six months of intensive rehearsals culminating in a day of fully booked performances live on the streets of Southmead, we were all left feeling a little bereft. Anyone who has ever enjoyed the intimacy and camaraderie that comes with being together in a play will know that there is only one solution … Southmead is full of stories and histories, some of which were woven into our first episode, but we always knew there were more. Building on the wonderful characters and script created by Bea Roberts for the original M2M, community participants are now co-writing our fifth episode, still featuring the two fictional families headed up by matriarchs, Rose Meadows and Iris Meaders and a few newcomers as they grow up together on the estate. The cast regularly come together and share stories of their own or explore ones we have collected from local residents. As everyone is talking and laughing over old times, a narrative emerges and our script starts to take shape. Our cast has continued to grow and each episode has reached further into the community, to the people best placed to tell stories about Southmead’s history, gathering stories from a time when it cost half a crown to see the doctor, a time when many recall being encouraged to fail the 11+ because a grammar school uniform and travel were too expensive. We have recalled the bitter winter of 1947 when Henleaze Lake was frozen so thick people could skate on it and the great friendships that were forged as some Southmead families opened their homes to German children whose parents were struggling to rebuild their lives after the war. We have continued to celebrate the sense of community and goodwill that has always been present and whilst we are currently writing Meadows to Meaders 5, Fab Living on the Mead welcome the people of Southmead in helping us to shape this latest episode. Bespoke M2M boxes The aims of Wise Connections and the concepts that we had been exploring together as a team to help bring communities closer together and better connected were relevant and applicable to the development of M2M. And so before Christmas, a series of bespoke boxes were distributed across Southmead to support the creation of the 5th episode of Meadows to Meaders asking for people to share their memories around our existing themes of prefabs, Saturday morning kids’ cinema and outdoor play alongside an invitation to suggest new ideas for our soap opera. We provided a variety of questions to ensure that all potential participants could engage with the activity whatever their connection with Southmead and regardless of how long they have lived in the area. Continuing with our philosophy of inclusivity and accessibility we wanted to make sure that anyone could be involved whether they were born in Southmead, or came as young adults with the Windrush generation or recently arrived later in life. Accessibility is a high priority for Meadows to Meaders, even more so since the Pandemic and ensuring that all participants can continue to contribute and play an equal role in shaping how we share our stories, contribute to people’s connectedness and reduced sense of isolation. Many of our cast are retired and very few had any previous experience of theatre. There were those who had watched the original performance from the side lines, less confident this first time round, but who then wanted to be a part of this very positive shared experience. Since that first performance, Meadows to Meaders has become more established within the community and the soap opera is not seen so much as an isolated final outcome, but the culmination of a very enjoyable and engaging process. This process is as significant as the final performance, and the ever growing cast have taken on a more active role from the outset, shaping it at every stage and together striving to always be more ambitious and adventurous. As one cast member noted during Lockdown when we managed to move the entire cast from age 13 to 85 to Zoom, “It’s only when we’re all together that everyone can be supportive.” The most important outcome is that we have managed to remain connected and nobody has been left out on their own. Social prescribing and thinking outside the box The National Academy for Social Prescribing identify three factors to qualify as social prescribing:
Neighbours Connect Southmead Neighbours Connect Southmead has been working alongside Adult Social Care to help reduce the demand on the care system. With 40% of all older people saying that television is their main source of company, we need to start doing things differently. We think that a strong community is one that is connected to each other, where neighbours look out for each other and where people feel part of things. Neighbours Connect Southmead encourages this through the careful and considered pairing of volunteers with members of our community. There are currently 20 volunteers matched up with 20 local residents through NCS. Using the bespoke M2M boxes we hope to encourage NCS volunteers to begin with initial conversations to help collect stories for M2M around the identified themes, helping to engage their counterparts in this Southmead focused activity and providing a platform for all voices to be heard. We do not expect everyone to become involved from the outset, but this tailored one to one approach allows for more isolated people to become involved, contribute to and be a part of a wider group activity, recognize that their stories are valued and will be heard as they help to shape the narrative. Storycollecting is a vehicle that can be adapted and elaborated on as the project progresses and we envisage an opportunity to identify new themes and potentially take the script in a new direction. NCS can be involved in addressing bigger questions around the play – how to present, how to address contentious issues, how to reach more people and engage them in the process. The boxes can be circulated between volunteers and local residents before returning to the cast to allow new themes to germinate and a cross-pollination of ideas. Beyond the box A longer term aspiration is to provide the opportunity for NCS members to be more actively involved in M2M. We have a new cast member who grew up in the National Children’s Home in the 1950s but no longer lives in Bristol. She has been able to participate via Zoom and perhaps NCS members might also be interested in blended meetings as a first step with some members of the cast – with the box acting as an introduction and building on this until perhaps people can meet face to face, allowing for different levels of participation and ensuring it is accessible to all. It would be good to assess the extent to which this alternative approach has been useful for overcoming barriers, helping with motivation and engagement and promoting creativity. Building on their expertise and experience, we would like to bring NCS volunteers and local residents together with others to a co-design workshop to share learning, considering what worked well, was enjoyable, could be improved, adapted, is transferable beyond M2M and how other social prescribers could help shape the concept and use the box in other contexts. References and Links:
Blog post by Ruth Myers, Local Learning. Since January 2023, the St John’s Way Medical Centre in Archway, London, hosted a “dare to hope box” in their waiting room. The purpose of the box was to offer an opportunity for people to find and provide inspiration. The box invites you to explore and share messages of ‘hopes’ about things you want to see happening. The box also invites you to share a ‘gift’, namely any ideas, thoughts or experiences, that can make a hope come true. We have recently looked at some of the hopes and gifts in the box. We found a lot of letters about hopes that focused on health and wellbeing. This included hopes about social connection with others, hopes about battling illness but also gifts expressed as wishes or ideas for getting better. Some hopes and gifts were expressed as lived experiences or wisdoms to big issues such as love. We also found a number of letters addressed to specific recipients that ranged from family members (to my mum, dad or grandparents) but also to organisations such as the NHS. We also found an increased number of sealed letters addressed to imaginary/unknown recipients invited to open the letter only if certain conditions are met, such as: “This envelope is to be opened if you have an off day” We also found some cards advertising a mental health service available to young people in the area called Kooth.
We found it really interesting how different people approached the box creatively, sometimes ‘thinking outside the box’, using it to keep children occupied while waiting, but also to show appreciation, share information or connect with others. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the St John’s Way Medical Centre for their openness and trust that made this little experiment possible. We hope you enjoyed the box! As experiments in Bristol are also underway, with different groups, in different community spaces, we feel excited to learn more about the kinds of interactions our boxes enable and to imagine new ways to employ them for the benefit of people of all ages. Post by Theo Zamenopoulos and Katerina Alexiou Sea Mills is an early council estate on the edge of Bristol built just over a hundred years ago as housing for families and men returned from the First World War. In the centre, tight-knit neighbourliness and well-trimmed hedges surround a large circle of grass with the main road cutting across. By the bus stop, within sight of the Methodist church, library and ‘smallest museum’ (in a phone box) is a concrete flat-roofed structure. Driving past it is unremarkable, but step inside and this is a gem. It’s a community café run by volunteers and it’s packed. On this cold Monday morning all the tables are full and three volunteers are serving teas, bacon sandwiches and hot spiced apple juice. Many of the people there are retired and come almost every day for a hot morning drink and a chat. Sea Mills is lucky to have the café, but it has no community centre and very few opportunities for people who don’t come to the café or church to know what’s going on, or to offer ideas, things, time or skills for the benefit of Sea Mills. Ruth Myers and I, both working a few hours a week on Wise Connections (the project behind the Dare to Hope game), are meeting Mary Milton – in the last few years she has been instrumental in getting the community mobilised to open up under-used spaces, to learn about local history, to create the smallest museum, to get people together. We explain the idea behind the box and the Dare to Hope game and she immediately sees so many ways in which it could be used in Sea Mills. There could be a box at the church, definitely a box at the library. It would be great to have a box in the café but there just isn’t enough room – so maybe mini versions for each of the tables, then perhaps there could be a box used as part of social prescribing activities. We all talk about how there will be a tea party in a couple of months time for everyone and anyone who has come across the boxes– we’ll open the boxes together and share what’s there. The contributions will be anonymous but the point is to enable conversation, to explore ideas from the experts in the life of Sea Mills (the people who live there!), and to make new connections. After our meeting I go home and start painting boxes with a sense of excitement about what could be, filling them with envelopes, decorating materials and cards. Maybe no-one will be interested and when we open the box there’ll be nothing more than a crisp packet and the examples it started with, but maybe something might just come out of it – someone clearing someone else’s garden, kids bringing their toys to a swap, a photography exhibition – perhaps someone will have Dared to Hope.
Dare to Hope game boxes are soon to be in four areas of Bristol and in London N19. If you would like to know more, have some thoughts on how the game could develop, or want a box to trial in your community please get in touch. Blog post by Tot Foster Have you ever hoped for something but dismissed the idea before it’s even fully formed; you might worry that you don’t have the skills, the resources, or the time to make it happen… The Dare to Hope game aims to build action in communities by turning hopes into possibilities. The game is about mobilising what people in your local community have to offer, so that not only can those hopes turn into reality but people get connected and feel good about what they’re helping to make happen. So, there’s an experiment called the Dare to Hope game happening in different areas of London and Bristol. It is about gathering hopes and then finding out what gifts – ideas, resources, time, skills – other people offer. The game takes the form of a box with envelopes on which you can write your hopes, and cards for gifts to go inside the envelopes – whatever you can think of, big or small. In Bristol, at Sea Mills a set of sky blue boxes is about to be launched in various community venues. In Hillfields, there’s already a box at the library – a warm and welcome space in this difficult winter. At Avonmouth there’s boxes in the library and the community centre. In Southmead a community group who produce plays about Southmead – Meadows to Meaders – have tried the box out already and made some brilliant suggestions as to how it could be used and developed. In London N19 there are boxes being passed through a neighbourhood from hand to hand with people adding their hopes and gifts, there’s a box for wishes in a café, and it’s hoped there will be a box at a GP’s practice. If you see any of these Dare to Hope boxes where you are, please add something. At the moment this is an experiment – you won’t be asked to realise your gift and please don’t leave your name or contact details. Once the hopes and gifts are collected we’ll explore how we can further support action locally. But if you are in Bristol and look in a box you’ll see an invite to a tea party – at these events we’ll open the boxes and see what ideas and conversations the contents spark, and take it from there…
Blog post by Tot Foster |
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