West Midlands Grantholder Gathering
On Wednesday 20th of May, 23 representatives from Youth Music funded projects met at the first ever West Midlands Grantholder Gathering hosted at mac in Birmingham to network, share practice and learn about reporting and evaluation requirements associated with their grant.
Alex from Wild Earth demonstrates the digeridoo
Following a scene-setting introduction from Chief Executive Matt Griffiths , there was an opportunity to get to know each other a little better as we heard about projects run by community music organisations, youth services and music services working with a diverse range of young people delivering equally diverse types of music-making activities. Over the course of the day there was also the opportunity to hear more in depth information from various key contacts in the region, such as Tina Timms from Art Council England's Midlands Office and Susan Goodwin from the Bridge Organisation for the West Midlands, Arts Connect WM
Essential information was presented for new grantholders to support them in adhering to their grant conditions, as well as additional tips about how to write blogs, press releases, case studies and Youth Music's Discussion Groups. There was an opportunity to discuss how organisations in the region are making use of Youth Music's Quality Framework as a self-reflection template for practitioners, and in conducting peer observation. There was also time to take a whistlestop tour of what is involved in Taking an Outcomes Approach and the Evaluation Builder tools available before working through some examples of quantitative and qualitative evaluation.
Discussion Groups
Alex from Wild Earth provided us with an invigorating DIY digeridoo musical energiser to fend off that post-lunch-slump, which set everyone up well for some immersive discussion groups in the afternoon. Some of the main topics that arose are summarised as follows:
a) Engaging Referral Partners
Engaging with schools was discussed as being problematic, particularly in locating the right ‘gatekeepers’ to set up a project. Many organisations highlighted headteachers as being a keystone in the bridge-building process, as well as targeting music teacher focused events and communicating through parents. Some organisations found that locating key young people in wider community settings could provide an effective way of building trust and engage with the young people directly. Once young people are engaged, there is a plethora of different music activities recognised as being beneficial, not least access to a wide variety of genres, and the opportunity to make music in professional environments. Building on this, there is an appetite to further connect young people to existing music scenes within the region – particularly in Birmingham itself.
b) Workforce
Practitioners, and their diverse skillsets were highlighted as a shared strength for those present, although often the successes in communicating this expertise to partners varied from setting to setting. The Quality Framework was cited as having potential to help articulate this nuanced pedagogy beyond non-formal settings. The CPD on offer was also seen as a strength, but some organisations reported an issue of outward migration of music leaders from the region, resulting in a shortage of practitioners.
c) External Pressures
In terms of the external environment, recent closure of essential services such as Youth Services and Children's Centres in a number of areas in the West Midlands was identified as having a palpable knock-on effect on organisations working with vulnerable groups. Whilst it is not likely these services will be reinstated, organisations spoke of deep and respectful partnerships in place that would go some way towards meeting the need over the coming years. The importance of collaboration over competition was stressed, and an awareness of the potential for ‘mission drift’ viewed as paramount to mitigate against stretching resources in order to diversify income.
What Next?
The appetite for discussion in the room was clear from the outset of the day, and the preliminary responses to the Grantholder Gathering follow up survey highlight that useful new connections were made. The potential to focus in more detail about specific aspects of practice, and ways of working with different target groups seems like a logical development, and something that Youth Music hopes to be able to facilitate at future Grantholder Gatherings. In the meantime a few questions remain – how can we better connect organisations across the West Midlands, and what are the challenges that are unique to the region? What is the role for online networking, and how would you like to see the West Midlands Discussion Group put to use to bridge the gaps between face-to-face networking events? How can we work together to address the barriers faced by children and young people? What steps can we take to enable the non-formal sector to become more understood and better integrated within more formal settings?
Let me know what you think in the thread below or feel free to start a new discussion thread – I look forward to hearing your thoughts!