On Monday 22nd & Tuesday 23rd September, people from across the UK travelled to Torbay for a Local Motion Learning Visit. This was an exciting opportunity to welcome partners from elsewhere to Torbay, to share our ongoing Local Motion work and learn from each other. Huge well done to Jed and Jen and the rest of the Torbay partners who did so much advance prep work to host this event – particularly the hire of a beautiful marquee which made such a magical gathering space at Parkfield across the two days.
About Local Motion…
Local Motion is about creating long term systemic change; building a social, economic and environmental justice movement, by communities, for communities.
The network seeks to understand local strengths in the places where we live and work and nationally the regions comprise Carmarthen, Enfield, Lincoln, Middlesbrough, Oldham and Torbay, places in England and Wales that all want to fulfil their ultimate potential.
Local Motion Torbay wants to create a connected Torbay; enabling citizens and professionals to work together as equals to solve deep rooted systemic issues, in a way that develops voice, capability and agency for all involved.
Each location hosts a Learning Visits every couple of years to bring all the places together and create a space for co-learning and conversation. As part of Torbay’s Learning Visit, young people planned an evening of festivities featuring live music from young people and local artists, a pizza school bus and a crepe horsebox!
Doorstep Arts brought together a group of young people to share some songs, celebrate people coming together, learning from each other and celebrating the work we are doing in communities in Torbay.
A group of DAS seniors, alongside the talented young people from Sound Communities performed a variety of songs, from original material to musical classics. It was a special event where people could celebrate being together, while also giving young performers a platform to shine.
- To amplify and share opportunities which are aspiration-raising for children & young people, using the arts as a vehicle, creating more connectivity and building bridges between existing work/initiatives, to improve clarity and collaboration
- To work in concentrated way toward time-bound ‘wow’ moments – i.e. Creative Careers week, youth-led events, aspirational big productions/festivals, school trips
- To support teachers and those working within the education sector to dream, imagine, invent, and systems-change, via game-changing training & CPD (Inno-Play), improving access via new initiatives like the Culture Bus or travel grants & continuing to provide schools-based artist micro-commissions or micro-grants to pilot new ideas, collaborations and ways of working creatively
- To bravely try innovative new solutions which enable the next generation to make things happen – i.e. #MakeItHappenCrew, Sound Alive
What IS Artspiration?
The early scoping work has been taking place within the Torbay Arts in Schools Network (TASN) which has 71 partners and which meets every 3 weeks to improve children, young people and family access to the arts in Torbay. TASN is the Local Cultural Education Partnership and a Family Arts Network.
How is it Happening?
Targeted Arts-piration work is now also being carried forward via a Working Group made up of self-selecting TASN partners who represent a range of sectors. These include teachers (primary/secondary/alt ed), creative freelancers, arts organisations and the local authority.
Why is Artspiration happening?
‘Imagination kept me out of trouble – kept me alive.’ ‘If you can’t see it, you can’t be it.’
‘Project Management is an arts skill’ ‘What Would Help You Stay in this Place?’
We are a team of people working to create moments of wow, of inspiration, of aspiration, of believing in something bigger and better for the children and young people who grow up here. We are making positive things happen, building avenues of self-belief via regular pathways and nurturing confidence via regular opportunities to believe, try, and fly.
Current work:
- Big Wow Moments: Creative Careers month (November) – signposting to opportunities, improving cross-sector connectivity across Education, Local Authority and nonprofit sectors, improving pathways opportunities for young people
- The Culture Bus – exploring outside-the-box solutions to access/transport challenges, enabling all children to be able to explore, be curious, access & dream
- Teacher Support – supporting education sector-based teachers as innovators and change-makers who operate from within the system, encouraging their creative innovation to dream differently (Inno-Play CPD programme)
- Brave Pilots – i.e. Young Changemakers, #MakeItHappenCrew – supporting young people who want to lead on their own events planning, including tech/production skills. Nurturing young women’s confidence in tech & production areas via scaffolded regular small-scale opportunities in community spaces – i.e. art, creativity & aspiration can happen anywhere
Want to find out more about the Artspiration strand of Local Motion work, or even get involved in the Artspiration Working Group? All are welcome! Just email Erin – erin@doorsteparts.co.uk.