We are really pleased to introduce the Grow Your Idea 2 competition winners, who will all be organising activities at The Mill over the next few months.
Rasheeqa and Yanire:
The Herbalistic Journal Project
A creative collaboration between an artist and a herbalist in Walthamstow, our project seeks to connect our wild green spaces with local residents to improve health and wellbeing, through a combination of plant medicine learning and creative expression.
We will offer a programme of guided local herb walks followed by practical creative sessions at The Mill where participants will make a Herbal Journal, collecting knowledge gained through the walks.
We will run 3 sets of the programme as follows:
Wednesday, 27 June – herb walk, Saturday, 30 June – creative session
Wednesday, 4 July – herb walk, Saturday, 7 July – creative session
Wednesday, 25 July – herb walk, Saturday, 28 July – creative session
Margaret:
Know your Bike
I would like to hold classes at the Mill that would provide an introduction to bicycle maintenance and repair. This would a restricted class size of a maximum of 3 people in order to allow for a more focused and hands-on approach to learning.
It is aimed at anyone that has a bike but does not know how to look after it or wants to learn more. It is specifically aimed at men and women that are intimidated by approaching bike shops for assistance.
My first two-day workshop will take place on 24 June and 1 July, 11am – 1pm.
http://themille17.org/events/know-your-bike-2018-06-24/
Joanna:
The idea I would like to grow, is a storytelling, movement, music and drama group for children with additional needs. While the sessions will focus on having fun with drama and imaginative play, it will provide a space for children and their families to connect and share experiences.
As a parent of a disabled child, I know how important it is to have groups that allow children to participate in their own way, but also for their siblings and parents to meet.
Alison:
I am currently developing a Community Interest Company working with curator, Sophie Persson. We are combining shared knowledge and expertise with the aim of connecting heritage sites with local communities and creative practitioners – through artistic commissions and public engagement.
The ‘Grow Your Own’ project will be a great opportunity to develop some of these ideas, with the aim of encouraging sustainability and ongoing impact.
I have a background in the arts, particularly in the creative learning/education sector including gallery engagement and interpretation. I design, manage and deliver a range of initiatives for learning, participation and well-being in a variety of contexts and enjoy supporting people to creatively engage with the arts.
Laura:
Family Portrait as a way of Phototherapy: For those who miss feeling like home
Family Portrait is a workshop for people who feel isolated and who do not identify with the place where they live because they miss their home.
I will run workshops to create a family album as a way of phototherapy where the participants can channel their frustrations and emotions, and also work through their conflicts in a personal way, looking for a way to progress towards a positive attitude to generate improvements in their life projects.
It aims to be a communication tool among the participants to be able to handle the loneliness in an environment to which they do not belong. You won’t need to have photography knowledge for this workshop.
Uzma:
My idea is to bring together my personal and professional fields – Oral history alongside photography. I am most interested in how individuals remember, narrate and share amongst themselves and others. I will be running a series of workshops, through which we use family albums and pictures as a tool to conduct oral history interviews and mapping. This process would involve participants to share, either through oral methods or through drawing maps, recording their locality and experiences. This activity would be aimed at the wider community and is not restricted to any ages or ethnic groups. The wider the representation, the more diverse and meaningful the content shared – which would be a true reflection of the residents of Walthamstow.
Possible connections explored could relate to migrant experiences, everyday exchanges/journeys around Walthamstow and inter-generational exchanges. This would be a great medium through which oral history, photographs and mapping would become a great tool in allowing all participants to interact, record and learn more about one another.
About Grow Your Idea 2
The Grow Your Idea 2 competition offered start-up support to six new group leaders to run activities or groups here at The Mill, thanks to funding from St James Big Local and Cooperative Food.
Grow Your Idea 2 is an opportunity to learn new skills, connect with other local people and build your confidence in your idea. The winners will be receiving a package of support:
- Free room hire
- A small bursary
- Mentoring support to get your idea up and running
- Training in sustainability to help your group continue after the funding finishes.
Thank you to everyone who submitted ideas to Grow Your Idea 2, and who’ve offered their support to the project.
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