Age Action Alliance
Creative Arts Working Group meeting Notes & Actions
9th February 2015 - The Claremont Building
Present:
Jackie Richards – Creative Dance 60+ (co-chair)
Dr Scilla Dyke – Royal Academy of Dance (co-chair)
Paul Cann – Age UK Oxford
Jessica Harris – Cultural Commissioning Programme
Paul Stanfield – The Claremont Project
Tanisa Gunesekera – British Museum
Hester Jones – Open Age
Jon Pushkin - The Redbridge Music Lounge
Claire Hankinson – Fabrica Gallery
Mark Windisch – Capital Age Festival
Clair Chapman – Capital Age Festival/Bolder Voices
Debbie Sharples Kirkbride MBE – Anchor
Nigel Watts-Plumpkin – Well Over 21
Emily Georghiou – Age UK
Simon Wilkinson - DWP
Apologies:
Michael Baber – Age Watch
Jan Roberts - ex Stratford-on Avon DC
Liv McLennan (Sound Sense)
Tim Joss - AESOP
1. Welcome, apologies and introductions
Jackie and Scilla welcomed everyone to the meeting, and everyone introduced themselves and
their organisation.
2. Jessica Harris - Project Manager: Cultural Commissioning Programme
The Cultural Commissioning Programme is funded by the Arts Council England. Jessica provided
some brochures for the group, and spoke from a set of slides, attached to these notes. This
strategic programme is time-limited, across England, aimed at bringing together some of the
initiatives that are going on, much of which is quite dispersed and can be hard to locate. Jessica
works for the National Council for Voluntary Organisations, which led the winning bid. Partners in
the project are the New Economics Foundation and New Philanthropy Capital. The remit from the
Arts Council is that arts museums and libraries are better able to engage with commissioners to
secure contract income to deliver outcomes for people, and that commissioners are more aware of
the opportunity of using the arts and cultural sector to better deliver social outcomes.
Jessica went on to say that strategic commissioning in a good relationship is far broader than
buying services, and starts from working from the needs of the target demographic, understanding
those needs and engaging in a positive and creative relationship with potential providers and
service users over the shape of services and then going through the formal tendering and
procurement processes, and finally understanding the effect of that intervention on the target
demographic.
The programme has been running for 18 months, and following a research phase met with Arts
Council England and identified areas of focus as older people, mental health and wellbeing, and
place-based commissioning.
The added value that the cultural sector brings is around such things as encouraging sustained
participation, working on the preventative agenda, addressing inclusivity, and good at building on
exiting community assets.
Through the research the challenges for commissioners were identified as the current pressure on
budgets to deliver, and the difficulty to evidence preventative-based approaches.
Questions/comments
Paul Cann – a very important programme, interested in advocacy on the basis of evidence, and
how the programme will share that evidence?
Jessica – the links to evidence have been collated, and the programme is considering the impact
on adult social care, including publishing research on case studies
Jon – how to encourage commissioners who are under pressure from budget constraints to look at
what a programme will deliver?
Jessica – one workstream called Commissioning Partners seeks to shift the culture in this way
Emily – how can individuals tap into the programme?
Jessica – by attending the learning programme – 2 rounds coming up in London which has spaces
on it – check out website:
https://www.ncvo.org.uk/practical-support/public-services/cultural-commissioning-programme
Jackie – there needs to be partnerships where large and small groups can come together and
obtain funding together
Scilla – this has to be communicated in a way which plays a political game, captures evidence and
presents qualitative data as well.
Jessica – there are a variety of ways of working together – might be as a cultural consortium or a
with a charity or local CVS
Jessica can be contacted at: Jessica.Harris@ncvo.org.uk
3. Age Action Alliance update
Simon distributed a set of slides (attached to these notes) - the Age Action Alliance is now over 3
years old and had continued to grow steadily with over 720 members. Recent joiners include EE,
Centre for Ageing Better and the Equity Release Council.
Simon encouraged the group to send him any blogs they would like posted on the Age Action
Alliance website, and referred to Nigel’s recent posting: http://ageactionalliance.org/are-we-too-old-tomake-it-in-music/
Recent practical outcomes include:
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“Overcoming the barriers to access for older people” - report from the Transport Working
Group.
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Money Advice leaflet” developed by the Money Matters Working Group, which has been in
great demand, currently looking for funding for a second print run
A second edition of the FirstContact Schemes: Extent & Impact Report was published in July
2014 by the Elderly Accommodation Counsel which surveys the current 35 schemes
throughout the country which are looking at ways to link people to local services. An online
video allows those interested in developing FirstContact schemes to get an idea of how the
schemes work and the issues to be considered when setting up a scheme.
The Fuel Poverty and the Living Safely at Home Guides are recent additions to the suite of
products being developed by respective working Group. The Alliance is looking to run
workshops later this year, training older people to become Energy Efficiency Advocates in
their communities.
The Digital Inclusion Working Group has been working closely with DCLG on the
Government’s blueprint for digital connectivity.
The Alliance has also been invited to hosted the Older Workers Employers toolkit in March
2015
The Alliance now has its own Pinterest board - https://www.pinterest.com/AgeActAlliance/
- designed and populated by an Alliance Member and which compliments the Alliance’s Social
Media, and the photo gallery is still proving very popular – please send in any photos you would
like added to the gallery: http://ageactionalliance.org/galleries/
4. Paul Cann – promoting the Creative Arts for Older People (Age of Creativity)
Age UK Oxfordshire have been running a website called the Age Of Creativity, founded by the
Baring Foundation three years ago - http://www.ageofcreativity.co.uk/ - and requested that
members develop the site as a vehicle to be of help to everyone involved in the arts, and to make
personal contributions to the site.
Paul was instrumental in establishing the Campaign to End Loneliness, and went on to say that
the Creative Arts were central in taking forward a positive agenda to address loneliness.
http://www.campaigntoendloneliness.org/
The concept of the “convoy” which the Campaign used is a useful one, that each person has a
convoy around them of family and friends, good health, all of which slowly depletes as we get
older. Paul went on to say that he felt that the age sector has neglected the area of the things that
make people want to get up in the morning. He would like to see the creative arts hold a more
important place in the policy arena.
The website presents huge opportunities and he would like to see a community of interest grow
across the UK, sharing and learning. The steer of the baring Foundation was towards artsproviding organisations, but the next phase should more directly include older people’s and care
organisations.
Paul asked the group if a central theme should continue to be the value of evidence and research
to enable to make the case for the creative arts?
Paul is keen to develop this in partnership across the UK and is trying to develop a UK-wide
steering group, and asked the group to help promote and develop the community of interest.
Questions/comments
Clair – I have found Age UK not particularly arts-friendly – is there a reason for that?
Paul – There has been a challenge for Age UK in that we have been pre-occupied with the big
policy debates – pensions, health and social care, etc. We need to make the case through
evidence about the strength and power of creative arts, including finding a suitable language to
use.
Scilla commented that the Age of Creativity might be used to find the common language that Paul
suggested – what is that language? – and use the case studies and evidence base to argue the
case as coherently and concisely as possible
Jackie said it was important to offer people a range of activities and experience that will keep them
part of their communities.
Jackie said that one purpose of the group will be to communicate what is required, and get the
strategies right in order that they can be achieved.
Action 1 – Paul was invited to write a blog for the Alliance website, providing a summary and
setting out the direction.
Debbie shared how the power of the arts, particularly music and dance, had enabled her to
engage within Anchor in a positive way, securing positive press coverage as well as secure
funding as it has taken the arts up a level within the organisation. Debbie referenced the Anchor
Community Band, made up of care home residents.
5. Paper from Age UK London - Arts for Older People forum in London – Jon Pushkin
Jon explained that the paper he had circulated (attached to these notes) is London-based and
reflects a lack of arts focus in age-sector organisations. Age UK London have secured some
funding to create a symposium to look at some themes and decide what would be most useful,
followed by one or two further meetings. A steering group meeting is planned for 13th March (pm)
and Jon asked the group if anyone would like to represent the group.
Hester (Open Age) offered to represent the Working Group. Jon mentioned that Damian Hebron,
Chief Executive of London Arts and Health sits on the steering group.
6. Clare Hankinson - Winston Churchill Travel Fellowship
Claire explained that she had recently interviewed for a position on the Winston Churchill Travel
Fellowship with the intention of doing some research abroad how older people and their
communities can be empowered specifically contemporary art but also by art in general. Claire
hoped that the group wold be interested in the findings and also participate in a survey she hoped
to produce to inform what she might look to find out, and if the group could point her towards some
best practice.
Tanisa – the British Museum is engaged in programmes to develop confidence
Jackie – organisations like to display visual arts, and with more older people remaining in work,
this might be an opportunity to utilise the skills of their staff to produce something useful to their
organisation.
7. “Access to Creative Arts” project:
Actions from previous meeting:
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Paul would research network forums to find out what was already in place and he
would look at “Awards for All” grants -
Paul explained that at the previous meeting the group had discussed the need for online tools to
enable discussion. He advised that he didn’t find very much. He then looked at software that would
create the right kind of forum, which is not expensive, the main cost being someone to run it – this
is forming the essence of the Awards for All bid, which is in development.
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Asa (Anchor) and Paul would discuss other possible options
Paul will ask his fundraiser to contact Debbie. Once written the Claremont Project will be the lead
applicant, with Anchor. If successful, it can be decided how the forum fits in and informs the main
part of the project, looking how to provide people with access to the arts, the most important
elements of which were making sure people knew about it and making sure they could get there,
etc.
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Jackie would seek advice from Trish Hafford-Letchfield, Middlesex University, who
was from the health and social care faculty and had interests in creative arts and
older people.
Cleared - advice was that if there was funding available the university would be interested to get
involved.
Mark would feedback to Capital Age Festival to see if someone would like to join the group
and attend future meetings. He agreed to speak to John Puskin about potential funding
sources.
Cleared – (Clair has attended the meeting and invited to join the group)
8. Review of meeting
All present felt the meeting had been very worthwhile and valued the opportunity to share within
an independent group with the potential to do important national work. Also of value were the
opportunities to develop ideas and work in partnership, sharing with others who share the same
passion, tapping into different networks. It was also considered important that the group practically
achieve something.
Next meeting to be have a more practical theme/action-based
Jackie thanked everyone for attending and their contribution.
9. Date of next meeting: Monday 18th May 11.00 – 1.00 pm at the Claremont Building