Living Archive – Music that Moves You

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Case study date: June 2007

Local authority in which project based: Milton Keynes

Date started: July 2006

End date if not ongoing: April 2007

Type of organisation: Registered charity

Brief description

Based in Milton Keynes, Living Archive helps local people develop a sense of community and pride by celebrating their lives and place through artistic and creative activities. The 'Music that Moves You' project worked with local youth organisations to enable 'hard to reach' young people aged 13 to 25 to explore their heritage through music, particularly grime and urban music. It offered young people opportunities to research, write, direct and edit their own films and interview family members and artists from the urban music scene. They also created their own soundtracks for the films and designed a website about their heritage with links to the Living Archive's website. The young people have presented their work to the local community and decision-makers and a DVD based on the project is being distributed to local schools and youth groups to raise awareness of heritage.

Collaboration

The project was developed in partnership with Milton Keynes Youth Service, The Energizer Bus Project, Close to Home and Woughton Parish Council. Other heritage organisations, including the British Library Sound Archive and School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), helped young people research their chosen topics.

Funding

The Heritage Lottery Fund's Young Roots Programme provided funding of £23,400 between July 2006 and April 2007. Other partnership funding, including in-kind support, amounted to £12,405.

Staffing

Living Archive employ a part-time artistic director to oversee the film projects plus a part-time film administrator, a full-time technician, and a part-time administrator. Participants had opportunities to gain Open College accreditation, and the project employed two filmmakers to help with this, working alongside Milton Keynes Adult Continuing Education Service.

NATURE OF PROVISION

Which groups of young people does the project work with?

Milton Keynesis a city of first, second and third generation immigrants which has recently seen the arrival of a more eclectic mix of new immigrants. The project worked with a core group of 30 young people aged 13 to18 living in Milton Keynes. Most, over three-quarters - were male, and three-quarters (22) were from minority ethnic communities (mainly African and Asian). For many, English is their second or third language and some have only spoken it for a few years. Garage and grime offered these diverse young people a unifying interest and passion.[1]

How was the need for the project identified?

Young people from the Energizer Bus Project (which engages 'hard to reach' young people in music) approached Living Archive with their ideas.They wanted to explore why people had come to Milton Keynes, the music they brought with them and how this developed into grime and garage. They were particularly keen to research reasons for the aggressive nature of grime music. The young people held three meetings with Living Archive, Engergizer and Close to Home to discuss the proposals and develop an application to Young Roots.

How do young people become involved? What, if any, commitment do you ask for?

Young people were recruited through the Energizer Bus Project, Woughton Parish Council and Close To Home youth workers (who use a mix of detached and centre based work to build relationships with 'hard to reach' young people).

What are the main approaches used and activities offered?

The project's work was split into four key phases:

Research and film production;
Film editing, music production and web design;
Celebrations and screenings; and
Evaluation.

Young people identified the themes for their research. They decided to:

Look into their own family's heritage;
Investigate from which cultures the garage and grime beats originated;
Explore African tribal songs, chants and beats, the importance of music to a community and the connections between these early origins grime as a musical genre; and
Look at how this music had evolved in Milton Keynes.

During the research phase the participants visited SOAS and the British Library to find out about African history, music and culture. They also visited the Open University to interview a historian about the origins of the 'teenager' in Britain and held interviews with artists from the urban music scene such as Lady Fury and Skinnyman.

They then worked with professional filmmakers to create a variety of films. These included:

Six family heritage mini films through which young people explored the reasons their families came to Milton Keynes and how young people from different backgrounds relate to each other. Subjects range from comparing their own childhoods in the UK with those of their parents in other countries, to exploring the cultural effects of growing up without a father.
'Merking Time' - a 25 minute documentary film about the roots of grime and urban music and its role in creating and dividing communities, which asks 'Why is grime music so angry?' Young people created their own soundtrack for the film, inspired by the sound of African drumbeats and tribal music.

Young people also worked with web designers to create a website (http://www.myrootsmymusic.org.uk/) to promote their work using video clips, photographs and music, including a trailer for 'Merking Time'.

How were young people involved in shaping the project?

Young people identified the theme, approach and outcomes for the project and went on to develop their approach to research and production and to presenting their findings and work to the local community. Staff also helped them evaluate the project.

How does the project respond to the needs of different young people, particularly the most marginalised?

It used flexible working arrangements to fit with the often chaotic lifestyles of 'hard to reach' young people.

OUTCOMES OF WORK

Does the project contribute to the five Every Child Matters outcomes for young people?

Making a positive contribution - young people gained an opportunity to take part in voluntary activities which benefited their community, and to have a voice in their community.

Economic well-being - it provided opportunities to achieve vocational qualifications and a range of transferable skills, encouraging progress into further education, training or employment. At least half of those achieving OCN level three qualifications had not attended school.

What skills do young people gain through their involvement in the project?

They developed skills in historical research and using libraries and archives, project management and coordination, interviewing, filming, editing and web development.

How are young people's progress and achievements measured, recorded and celebrated?

Eight young people completed their OCN level three in Filmmaking and Communication, Music Production and Team Work Skills. Others signed up for Youth Achievement Awards and used their experience towards Millennium Volunteers certificates.

Certificates of attendance and achievement were presented at a final celebratory event.

What has changed for others as a result of the project?

In addition to the 30 project participants, a further 20 young people and 30 adults (including musicians, librarians, journalists and community and family members) were interviewed as part of the research and filming. A total of 133 adults and young people attended the celebration.

The project has helped develop community cohesion by encouraging greater understanding, tolerance, and awareness of the heritage of different groups, which helped break down gang and territorial mentalities. The films aim to make others think more widely about their own cultures, lives and the impact different cultures have on society.

Through the project three youth workers received training in filmmaking and running filmmaking projects, which they can use with other young people in the future.

The project provides a resource for future generations: participants' films have been posted on the project's website (http://www.myrootsmymusic.org.uk/) with links to Living Archive's website (http://www.livingarchive.org.uk/) celebrating the contributions of established communities and new settlers; DVDs on the project are being distributed to local schools for use in PSHE classes, helping to raise awareness of heritage.

MEASURING EFFECTIVENESS

How is the project evaluated?

Living Archive made regular reports to Young Roots throughout the project, and young people were continuously involved in its evaluation. When the project was completed, Living Archive produced an evaluation report based on feedback from staff, partner organisations and young people.

What are the findings of any evaluations to date?

Film and music projects are successful ways of engaging 'hard to reach' young people. Heritage based projects can engage young people if they are emotionally and culturally connected to the issues they are investigating.

What changes/developments have occurred as a result of evaluation?

The project was extended so that sessions could be re-scheduled. Living Archive also recommends researching accreditation opportunities for under 16s before developing projects.

What has worked well and why?

The support of committed youth workers who already have strong relationships with the participants was critical.
Young people who had previously missed out on education were motivated by a second chance to attain skills and accreditation in subjects they enjoy.
Providing opportunities to meet inspirational role models helped promote young people's emotional investment in the project.

What has been difficult and why?

Maintaining attendance levels - despite young people's enthusiasm and commitment, additional social demands on their time and their sometimes chaotic lifestyles meant that sessions had to be re-scheduled and the project extended. The HLF's flexible approach was invaluable to this.
The lack of accreditation opportunities for under 16s, as both OCN and MV are only open to young people aged 16 and over.

PARTNERSHIP AND STRATEGIC IMPACT

What other agencies do you work with?

In addition to the key partners, Living Archive has been involved with a wide range of agencies including Millennium Volunteers, Young People's Rights Service, Young Carers, Alternatives at Rathbone, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service, Barnardo's, and local secondary schools, special needs schools and pupil referral units.

What specific experience and expertise do you bring to partnership work?

Living Archive has worked on film projects in partnership with many organisations over the last six years. It employs professional filmmakers, with experience of working with young people in the community, who can encourage them to express themselves in a creative, meaningful and positive way through film.

Has this partnership resulted in greater collaboration or increased understanding between partners?

All partner organisations met to evaluate the project in order to improve and build on good practice for future projects.

Many of Living Archive's young people's film projects involve some research into topics, which requires working in partnership with youth organisations, schools or alternative education projects. Future plans include young people working on a film with Gypsy Travellers about their heritage.

Have you experienced any particular difficulties in partnership working?

It is sometimes difficult for partners to understand the wider implications of organising a complex and large scale project. Regular staff meetings with partners are needed so that everyone is fully aware of how the project is progressing and understands the reasons for particular decisions.

Do you consider this project to be innovative?

The project encouraged young people to think about their heritage in new ways, by approaching their social history from a perspective that they find relevant and interesting. Other key innovative aspects were the strength of the youth-heritage partnership and the project being based on the young people's own ideas.

How do you disseminate the learning from the project?

Participants presented their films, launched their website and performed music at a celebration screening event held at Cineworld. This was open to families and friends and attended by the Mayor and other local decision makers.

'My Roots My Music' DVD is also being distributed to local schools and youth groups.

Has the learning from this work influenced wider organisational/service strategies?

Close to Home and Milton Keynes Youth Service were impressed by young people's achievements and the accreditation gained, and are now planning to put more resources into similar projects.

What plans do you have to sustain/develop this work?

Living Archive constantly seeks to work with diverse groups of young people to help them make films about issues that matter to them.

CONTACT DETAILS:

Jane Jeavons, Living Archive, The Old Bath House, 205 Stratford Road, Wolverton, Milton Keynes, MK12 5RL. Tel: 01908 322568. E-mail: jane@livingarchive.org.uk

[1]UK Grimeis a genre of music which has been developing in London's underground since 2002. Grime's tempo is around 140 beats per minute. The style and flow of grime can often be dark and aggressive, featuring MCs as opposed to singers.