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Legacy Event for Generations Together / Inspiring Communities 1 st February 2011 Eland House, London Lorna Stanley Andrew Haydon. Project Aims & Set-Up. A series of 20 community group and schools-led projects. Culminating in Festival of Ages 2010.
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Legacy Event for Generations Together / Inspiring Communities1st February 2011Eland House, LondonLorna Stanley Andrew Haydon Generations Together - Reading
Project Aims & Set-Up • A series of 20 community group and schools-led projects. • Culminating in Festival of Ages 2010. • Involving 1,300 volunteers - 650 older, 650 younger. • Benefiting a further 1,000 recipients and wider participants. • Targeting the most deprived areas within Reading. • Delivery managed by Age UK Berkshire & Central Berkshire Education Business Partnership, reporting quarterly to our Local Authority. Generations Together - Reading
Primary Desired Outcomes • Improved perception of young people by older people. • Improved perception of older people by young people. • Increased ability to make a positive contribution to the life of the community. • Increased involvement of educational institutions in the local community. Generations Together - Reading
Achievements • Delivery of 22 projects, working with volunteers from all areas of Reading. • Recruited 1,357 volunteers. • Benefited a further 1,406 wider participants and 372 recipients. • Festival of Ages 2010. • Evidence of success achieving all our desired outcomes through our local evaluation. Generations Together - Reading
Biggest Challenges • Enabling community groups & schools to understand intergenerational work. • Consent from parents for under 16s to participate in national evaluation. • Gathering sufficient evidence from participants. • Changes in safeguarding legislation. • Older Volunteer Recruitment: • Hard to reach groups • Males • Autumn/winter projects Generations Together - Reading
Lessons Learnt (1) • Level of success dependent on lead community group’s or school’s capability, willingness to learn, responsiveness to feedback and flexibility. • Role of project management team & partnership working are vital in ensuring the activities stay on track. • Developing a strong brand creates a visual identity, which aids PR and publicity. Budget for marketing and communications is important. • Approaches to safeguarding need to be proportional to the level of risk posed. Generations Together - Reading
Lessons Learnt (2) • Older volunteer recruitment benefits from using multiple methods e.g. visiting groups, pooling existing resources like databases, networking. • Evening and outdoor projects work best if started between March & October, when older people feel more confident leaving the house. • People are happy to give feedback face-to-face, but can feel overwhelmed by forms and are suspicious of phone calls. • Some of the best and most effective projects cost the least amount of money! Generations Together - Reading
Festival of Ages 2010 • Gala Day celebrations – showcasing some of our projects’ achievements. • Let’s Sing – 250 people of all ages turning up to have a sing-song (in spite of torrential rain!) • A selection of the Week’s Events: • Fit as a Fiddle Allotment Project • New Town Primary – Poetry & Music • Broad Street Mall Open Day • Ranikhet Primary – Tai Chi & Lunch • Blessed Hugh – Tea & Performances & Choir Generations Together - Reading
Festival Challenges • Buy in from community groups, no contractual obligation to participate in festival for: • Performances at the festival (Stage fright!) • Activities for the week • Time of year – October was not ideal, July would have been better. • Ability to use (cheaper) outdoor venues. • Many schools project reached a natural conclusion at the end of July. • Easier to tempt older people outdoors when the weather is warmer and evenings are longer. • Celebrity commitment for festival. Generations Together - Reading
Recommendations for Future Work • More time needed in planning phase before starting delivery (4-6 months rather than 5 weeks!) • Develop commissioning process: • 2 step process of application and presentation • More partner representatives on panel • Young and older people on panel • More face-to-face evaluation techniques • Start grassroots projects with less money, providing more funding dependent on success. Generations Together - Reading
Any questions? Generations Together - Reading
Contact Us • Andrew Haydon – Schools Liaison Officer – Central Berkshire Education Business Partnership - andrew.haydon@cbebp.co.uk – 0118 984 6947 • Until 31st March 2011: Lorna Stanley – Project Officer – Age UK Berkshire - lornas@acberk.org – 07795 481 764 • Until 31st March 2011: Generations Together Office, Age UK Berkshire, Huntley House, 119 London Street, Reading, Berkshire. RG1 4QA. generationstogether@acberk.org - 0118 902 3598 Generations Together - Reading