Members Connect 8.0 – Creative Collaborations
We held our eighth ‘members connect’ online conversation on 13th November as colleagues were adjusting to teaching under lockdown in England and to variances across the UK. Colleagues convened to discuss the ‘Creative Collaborations’ between members, sector associates and the wider sector.
The session began with a reminder of the priorities set our in the Association’s strategic direction paper; with a focus on the theme of ‘creating through member collaborations’. A copy of the slides from this presentation are available via this link.
The presentation focussed on:
The strategic focus of the Association within the construct of ‘distributed agency’
The role of the Association in enabling member collaborations
A framework for ‘wire’ groups: Working, Interest, Regional and Engagement groups
Priorities for early development and collaboration
Principles for cooperation, diversity and collective impact
Following the presentation, colleagues shared their interests and priorities for engagement. A selection of views expressed included:
Continuing the development of approaches to enhancing the practice experience and practice-based learning of our student cohorts
Enabling wider engagement with policy discussions across the membership to secure ‘shared messages’
A number of ‘themed’ interests for members to collaborate around: critical pedagogy; equality and diversity practices; the centenary of Paulo Freire’s birth; LGBT practices.
Support for research and peer-reviewed publications
Regional support by connecting members at a local level
Collaboration with sector partners on publications; policy and influencing
The discussion highlighted the commitment and value placed by members on working collaboratively and amplifying the voice of the community of practice. Further discussions between members on areas of interest were encouraged and the invitation is open for proposing shared initiatives. Please contact Paul Fenton via: paul.fenton@tagpalycw.org of you have any specific proposals that would benefit from wider Association support, resource or communication.
It was noted that formal invitations for proposals for collaborative projects would be circulated in future bulletins with financial support available to facilitate engagement.
Looking forward: our next Members Connect session on Friday 4th December that will take a focus on International Engagement in the run up to the European Youth Work Conference taking place between 7th-10th December. This forms a further objective within the Association’s strategic themes and colleagues are invited to join in the discussion about how our work connects with a global network of youth and community work initiatives through learning partnerships between and across national boundaries.
Further feedback is invited, email us at hello@tagplaycw.org