Some personal thoughts from Leila d’Aronville, Bridge North East Senior Manager.
We are all writing personal blogs on our reflections of the last 3 years and it is harder than you think! There is so much that has happened and so many stories to tell, how do you choose just one? Or how do you manage to squeeze more than one into a blog that people might actually want to read?
I decided my theme would be risk…the risks we have taken over the 3 years, and how we have grown through our work, and also through mutual trust between colleagues.
The first risk we took was taking on the Bridge function. The Bridge function was a new role developed by Arts Council, and when we took on the role ACE didn’t know what they wanted Bridges to be, in fact I would go so far as to say they had unrealistic expectations…as did the rest of the sector. Cultural Education had gone from times of plenty (Creative Partnerships, Find Your Talent and Sing Up amongst those healthily funded programmes) to a small drop in the ocean. Bridge North East was functioning in one of the most deprived regions in England, but as we have a smaller population we were also doing it on a smaller amount of money than the other Bridges. In that first year the goal posts were moved a fair few times, and the landscape around us was also changing unrecognisably on an almost daily basis – with whole Arts Development teams being removed, the youth service crumbling before our very eyes and the way schools were developing never seeming constant.
Risk two was how we worked with colleagues. We could have decided on a very strict and stringent plan which everyone had to follow, however previous experience guided us towards one of fluidity and exploration. We had such a small amount of money to deliver such big targets over the three years of the Bridge, it seemed important we work WITH our colleagues to develop something that would work to fulfil more than just our aims, but theirs as well. Our intention of working in this way was that our partners would not need Bridge North East at the end of the three year period…we were ostensibly making ourselves redundant. Morally it was the only thing to do. We didn’t know if there would be any more funding, and if there was it was likely to have a different focus, so anything we set up needed to be sustainable.
Our third risk was around how we funded projects. It was important to us that people have different routes in to our programme, and so we made sure we had different funding streams. Some funding was large and needed the have a strategic lead (in many cases Local Authority) and some smaller and put out via an open tenders, so anyone from the sector felt like they could approach us with an idea. These smaller pieces of funding have been some of our most successful – see blog on Small Scale Investment.
Collectively as a team we have become very good at approaching risk. Obviously we work to mitigate it, but to be risk averse in this climate is more dangerous than taking risks. We have been in a really enviable position whereby we can provide support to those wanting to take risks…I really hope that carries on, and those risk takers can help others to take the plunge. At times of greatest austerity we must not shy away from innovation and exploration. It is at these times that the most exciting things can occur.
Bridge North East Blogs 