· Re-connect @ Platform 1- Patricia Howell
· Sydenham Arts Festival Forest Hill activities – Jonathan Kaufman
· Friends of Devonshire Road Nature Reserve- Jacob Twyford
· Sydenham School - short DVD
Minutes:
Re-connect @ Platform 1- Patricia Howell
Patricia explained that the essence of the Re-Connect programme at Platform 1 is to ‘ raise aspirations’ and ‘change behaviour’ by re-connecting the participant to understanding the link between their values, emotions and actions, using life events to help young people to understand ‘why they do what they do’. Areas of change are explored through therapeutic art, drama/ group discussion workshops and movies.
Feedback for the young people attending the programme included:
(f) aged 14
I come here to help build my self-confidence, I wanted help to be more respectable, I like the rope exercise because it helped me to reveal more about myself. I have now become more confident. I would like to do a swimathon for charity one day and to achieve this I need to believe in myself
The 3 best things about the workers are that they understand my position, they can relate to me, they believe in me and I like being able to unwind from the week.
(f) aged 15
Making more friends and learning to keep friends. When I first came to the group they gave me confidence to talk to people I don’t know. I like just coming having freedom with my friend and not staying home. My best things is coming, meeting people and having fun. I would like to be the next Young Mayor.
(f) age not known
It feels like a family and is a place where I can express my feelings.
(m) age not known
Platform 1 has helped me with my people skills, I feel less alone and feel good about myself.
(m) aged 12
To learn to cook and be more social with the world, I hope it would achieve happiness and get better at talking to people and making them laugh and gain the ability to ask questions and ask for help. What I like doing is learning to make smoothies and cooking. I don’t like spending too much time on the computers because it stops you from socializing. Well it really made me think that I can talk to people more and ask questions, to ask how things happen and why. I have got the help I hoped to get and what’s changed is I’ve become more talkative than I thought.
Next I want to achieve making movies and talking out loud to lots of people. My best things is being able to talk to them about anything, they can help you to do more activities and be motivated to do fun stuff when your down. They teach you things you thought you could never do.
Sydenham Arts Ltd - Forest Hill activities – Jonathan Kaufman
Jonathan (Director) explained that the Sydenham Arts Festival is for Forest
Hill and thanked the assembly for funding them.
The Summer Festival will be from 4th – 12th July. They are aiming to have 23
out of the 65 events in the Forest Hill area and hopes to see people there.
He explained that they are looking for volunteers and new ideas, and will be
holding focus groups in the future. There is also an online survey.
For more information on volunteering contact:
volunteersmanager@sydenhamartsfestival.co.uk
Helen from Sydenham Arts explained that they are developing a new family
and young children performance. It will take place at the Albion Millenium
Green and be called ‘Away with the Fairies’ It aims to raise awareness of
our environment. They are keen to engage with local groups and residents for
input and ideas
For more information, or if you want to get involved in any aspects of the festival visit:
sydenhamarts.co.uk
Friends of Devonshire Road Nature Reserve- Jacob Twyford
Jake thanked the assembly for the current funding he received to put an electricity supply into the garden which was successfully completed. He explained that the Friends of Devonshire Road Nature Reserve has received 4 years of funding and highlighted the importance of the continuation of assembly funding to enable the valuable work it allows community groups and residents to achieve. In the midst of the current cuts, he urged that pressure must be kept on local Councillors and the Mayor to enable the assembly funding to continue.