In my previous blog post I was pleased to announce that I have begun a collaboration with Community Chesterfield part of the local charity, Derbyshire Voluntary Action . We have been busy working away, creating a vision for delivery for the Create Change Chesterfield project. It was thrilling to be able to take part in my own 'future visioning' exercise and explore both the ambitions and the practical aspects of bringing the ideas to life.
Why Derbyshire Voluntary Action is the perfect home
The story of Create Change Chesterfield begins with grassroots, voluntary action. (I've used this blog to capture the whole journey so feel free to browse back to the beginning, if you'd like to know more). I felt disempowered, struggling with the world around me being so far from the world I hoped to be part of. In response I held the Create Change events and gathered a community of other people in my hometown who felt the same. We explored what it would be like to become a Change-maker, to become active in building the world we want to see. Delivery was brought to a halt due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Earlier this year I connected with Derbyshire Voluntary Action when we discovered that there were many similarities in the impact that we hoped to make. Their project ‘Your Life, Your Chesterfield’ was hosted online during early lockdowns and brought people together virtually to share enthusiasm for community change in Chesterfield.
Separately these 2 projects engaged hundreds of passionate residents desiring positive change for their town. The strength of this collaboration is that it brings together our networks and experience of engaging people, including underrepresented and diverse communities, together, to reignite passions and propel sustainable change in Chesterfield.
Derbyshire Voluntary Action, collaborates with ~500 grass-roots VCSE organisations. They excel at driving support to Chesterfield’s communities. Our partnership now has connections with so many sectors across our town, including local businesses and council officials. Derbyshire Voluntary Action also has a well-established strategic partnership with University of Derby and we have secured keen support for the learning journey element.
Why this is the right time for this project
Developing this collaboration has allowed Create Change to pick up where it left off and rebuild post-pandemic. This new sustainable plan for delivery enables us to build on the foundations of what has been delivered previously, but with a confidence that we can commit to supporting the community for a number of years, as it grows.
What our ideas look like
Create Change Chesterfield will be critical in developing the social infrastructure to support and grow a community of Change-makers in our town. We will convene and organise. Our activities will cross sectors to provide the necessary opportunities for individuals to gather together, express their voices and learn about effective action. We believe that providing this infrastructure will unlock the potential of the people of Chesterfield and empower them to take meaningful action.
There are 3 streams of activity for this project.
- Community events to convene the growing community of active citizens. Events will include participatory activities, expert speakers and creative learning. They will be an opportunity to connect, learn and inspire action.
- Art workshops and curated exhibitions - engaging hidden voices and captivating imaginations around positive futures through participatory, artist led workshops in community settings, schools, adult education and workplaces. Curated exhibitions will nurture aspirational thinking and help to widen our community networks.
- Change-maker learning journey – learning from diverse experts (including University of Derby partners) will equip participants ready to take action on personal change-maker projects. Peer networks will support participants in their ongoing change-maker journeys. The outcome will be a group with local stories of change to share with the wider community.
The 3 approaches will support one another. We expect people to move between the activities and engage in different ways across the 4 year delivery. This will take participants on a journey of discovery; building confidence and building connections.
Creativity plays a key role in the delivery of this project. We believe creative experiences act as a beacon, bringing people to events and encouraging participation. We also believe that creative experiences are a facilitator for learning and enable positive future visioning. They support deeper understanding and activate creative thinking. Creativity will be a golden thread running through this project.
As the impact of this project is seen in the people of Chesterfield we expect to see tangible outcomes which will make a difference in our town. Individuals and groups will become skilled and confident, this will lead to action being taken on the issues that they care about. This will have an impact of the services and systems in our town. Empowered citizens who feel confident can deliver impact.
We are committed to allowing the outcomes to be directed by the community that engages (enabled by our feedback led model). Our hope is that as the engagement becomes more and more widespread and reaches all diverse communities in our town we will see, not just the loudest voices making an impact, but the hidden voices becoming impactful as they openly advocate for the issues that matter to them.
At the core of this project is a belief that every one of us has the potential and the right, to be part of building the future of our world. This growing movement and positive engagement of partners and local infrastructure will prime the system so it is ready to make critical changes. We will nurture the connections and lay the foundations needed for a better understanding of the needs and voices of individuals and communities, which will then place them at the heart of future decision making.
We believe that everyone in Chesterfield has the power to be a Changemaker, and we’re here to provide the space to make that happen.
What next
We now have clear plans for delivery and we could not be more excited! This video explains the ideas further. In a very 'Create Change' approach I have explored my animation skills here and made the ideas visible! I hope it captures the energy we intend to build and shows how the community will spread and grow. 🌱🌳🌼
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