The National Youth Agency - ADISA at Bread Youth Project

ADISA at Bread Youth Project

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Case study date: August 2007

Local authority in which project based: Bristol

Date started: January 2006

End date if not ongoing: July 2007

Type of organisation: Voluntary sector and charity

Brief description

Bread (Bristol Education for Action in Development) Youth Project works with young people, local organisations and communities of Greater Bristol to develop young people's skills and confidence through informal and social education. Bread's Adisa project worked with 22 young people and a range of heritage professionals to explore historic links between Bristol, Ghana and the transatlantic slave trade. The young volunteers took part in field research and workshops to explore their heritage and gather information about the trade. Work included a visit to Ghana by a core group of eight young people and opportunities to share learning with the wider community through the creation of an exhibition, a film to promote discussion within local schools and a series of talks about the project. Young people have also been trained as peer educators as part of an eight week 'global citizenship' course delivered by partners involved in the project.

Collaboration

The project worked in partnership with Bristol City Council's Museums, Galleries and Archive Department (BCC MGAD) and two youth groups (Full Circle Youth and Family Project, and The Mill Youth Centre). Bread was the lead partner. It also built on existing links with youth groups in Ghana.

Funding

The Herritage Lottery Fund/NYA 'Young Roots' programme provided core funding of £22,500. BCC MGAD provided £30,000 to fund the Ghana trip.

Staffing

One full-time and one part time youth worker, employed by Bread, supported the project together with two full-time workers from the other two youth groups. Museum staff included one community history curator and one freelance camera operator.

NATURE OF PROVISION

Which groups of young people does the project work with?

The project worked with an initial group of 22 young people aged 14 to 21. They were from a range of socio-economic backgrounds and most were of Afrikan-Caribbean descent. A core group of eight (four young people with dual-heritage and four British born of Afrikan-Caribbean descent)visited Ghana and went on to create the Adisa exhibition. There was an equal gender balance in the group.

How was the need for the project identified?

Bread Youth Project was approached by BCC MGA as the only youth group in Bristol doing Black (and Afrikan-centred) specific work at the time. The museum wanted to involve the local community in the council-organised celebrations of the bi-centenary of the abolition of the slave trade act. Other partners became involved to open up the project to a range of young people in addition to those involved with Bread.

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

Young people were recruited through three local youth groups and volunteered to take part following discussions about the project. Those who showed a full commitment to the schedule of work involved (including two evening sessions per week, eight full days' training and a team building residential) were chosen to visit Ghana and take part in follow up work.

What are the main approaches used and activities offered?

The work was spilt into four distinct phases: research and preparation; a 16-day field trip to Ghana; exhibition preparation and opening; and peer education training.

Stage one involved an exploration of Bristol's historic links with the transatlantic slave trade, focusing specifically on its involvement with Ghana. The 22 young people undertook a structured programme of training in museum skills designed by museum staff in dialogue with youth workers. This included curating, marketing and publicity, designing exhibition space, and filming and camera work.

The Ghanaian collection at Bristol City Museum was used as a basis for their research and the group also e-mailed youth groups in Ghana. They attended theatre productions, including 'Black Heroes Hall of Fame' and 'Chain Reactions', and visited museums in Liverpool and Birmingham to inform the work.

A core group of eight young people went on to an educational visit to Ghana where they gathered further information about the trade and its impact on Ghanaian history and culture. Activities included lectures by university historians; visits to buildings of historical significance; meetings with chiefs, village elders and other young people; attending cultural displays; and digital recording of experiences.

These young people used their research findings to create their own exhibition, 'Bristol faces, Afrikan footsteps'. Work for this included identifying artefacts, writing text to accompany objects, editing digital material, interviews with local and national press, and presentations at the launch of the exhibition at Bristol's City Museum and Art Gallery. They went on to undertake peer education training so that they could deliver workshops and presentations to other young people, both on the Ghana experience and wider global citizenship issues.

How are young people involved in shaping the project?

Volunteers from each youth group were involved in planning the project from the start through regular weekly meetings. Young people also formed part of a steering group set up to manage the project.

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

Young people of all abilities took part in the initial phase of the project so a variety of learning methods - including video and audio materials - was used to be inclusive. Individual work programmes were tailored so that young people could work according to their strengths. Youth workers provided one-to-one support and pastoral care as appropriate.

Young people's transport costs were also refunded.

OUTCOMES OF WORK

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

Be healthy: participants learned about diet and avoiding certain foods in Ghana. They also learned about the importance of inoculations and avoiding contracting illness before travelling.

Stay safe: they learned how to be respectful of other cultures and avoid conflict in a foreign country.

Enjoy and achieve: evaluation indicates that participants enjoyed their research trip and considered it a life-changing experience. They had not realistically expected the exhibition to have been as successful as it was.

Make a positive contribution: raising awareness of issues surrounding the slave trade.

Achieve economic well-being: participants learned how to manage their own budgets effectively when in Ghana and how to work within a budget for the exhibition.

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

Young people developed a range of transferable skills including research, public speaking, interviewing and presentation skills, and exhibition curation. The project helped participants develop confidence, assertiveness, and self-identity - they have developed a greater stake in their community as active members of society as a result. Participants have improved their knowledge of Ghanaian culture and gained an understanding of the slave trade from Afrikan and European perspectives. They have used their newly acquired knowledge and skills to widen their discussions and challenge some perceptions and misconceptions. Participants also developed a greater interest in history as a result of the project and several have expressed interest in undertaking further study in this area.

'I feel different now I know my roots and understand my culture' (Roma, 17)

'When I was younger I did not see myself as Afrikan, I do now' (Thameril, 19)

Those who attended the 'global citizenship' course have developed skills in peer education methodology and gained knowledge of a range of subjects including climate change, poverty, trade, identity, personal contribution, food and health. They have since created a peer support network for each other.

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

Young people kept video diaries as a record of their involvement in the project. Progress was measured by comparing young people's knowledge and skills at the start and end of the project.

Training in heritage skills was accredited by City of Bristol College. Accreditation for achievements and learning was also provided through Young Bristol Youth Achievement Awards, Millennium Volunteers and the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme.

What has changed for other young people, organisations or the wider community as a result of the project?

Some 17 presentations have been delivered to the wider community through local TV and radio and directly to a range of audiences including schools, council youth workers, parents' groups and youth groups. To date, over 300 other young people have benefited as a result of Adisa through talks, presentations, events and stalls.

Up to 14,400 visitors have seen the exhibition so far. It is estimated that thousands more will visit it at Bristol City Museum and more still once it forms part of the permanent exhibition in the new Museum. Visitors have given positive feedback on the young people's work through a comments book. The loan of the exhibition to a local healthy living centre has further raised awareness amongst the local community.

MEASURING EFFECTIVENESS

How is the project evaluated?

The project is evaluated using information gained from young people's video diaries. Reporting is linked to Every Child Matters and Museum and Libraries Archive outcomes.

Evaluation of the impact on the wider community is measured through audience questionnaires on the exhibition, the wider programme of talks and community outreach work.

A three year internal review of the Afrikan Culture and Identity (ICI) team's work within Bread - incorporating the Adisa Project - was produced in September 2007.

What are the findings of any evaluations to date?

The evaluation found that the project has met its original aims and expected outcomes and exceeded the original ideas developed by Bread and the Museums Service.

What has worked well and why?

Having very clear focus on and expectations of young people.
Young people responded well to 'hands on' interactive methods of teaching.
Partnership work - working together brings in more resources and exciting projects.

What has been difficult and why?

Getting the right balance between staff input and actively seeking the views of young people.
The size and scope of the project was not realistic in the original funding bid and additional resources had to be secured to make it possible.
Long distance travel arrangements.

PARTNERSHIP AND STRATEGIC IMPACT

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

Bread has a strong track record in helping young people explore global issues and concerns, particularly issues of inequality, disadvantage and marginalisation. It also has experience in working with young people in informal settings to develop user-friendly resources to raise awareness of global issues among other young people and the wider community.

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

Partners involved in Adisa have delivered the 'global citizenship' course and developed opportunities for young people to pass on their learning to others through peer education. The approach adopted by the museum has provided it with invaluable insight into working with young people.

Have you experienced any particular difficulties in partnership working?

Initially the project faced some challenges relating to planning and communication which were met through a renewed commitment to group discussion and facilitation.

Do you consider this project to be innovative?

The project provided an opportunity for Bread to work with a new partner from the heritage sector. It committed resources to work focusing on quality and depth of understanding rather than targets and numbers, underpinned by Afrikan-centred principles.

How do you disseminate the learning from the project?

Through opportunities to display work within the museum, and the related talks and presentations. Workers use regular steering group meetings to share learning and good practice. The project has also made good use of local media contacts to promote the work.

Has the learning from this work influenced wider organisational strategies?

Bread is moving towards more peer education work within the ACI team as a result of the Adisa project training.

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

'Bristol faces, Afrikan footsteps' will form part of a permanent exhibition about the city's involvement in the transatlantic slave trade in the new Museum of Bristol due to open in 2009.

The next funding bid for the ACI team emphasises peer education, work with refugees and culture and identity work.

CONTACT DETAILS:

Jo Stallard, manager, Bread Youth Project, 20-22 Hepburn Road, Bristol BS2 8UD. E-mail: jo@breadyouthproject.org.uk. Website: http://www.breadyouthproject.org.uk/