Museum of London Inclusion Programme

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Case study date: July 2007

Local authority in which project based: Primarily East London boroughs

Date started: April 2005

End date if not ongoing: January 2008

Type of organisation: Museum

Brief description

The Museum of London Inclusion Programme aims to encourage participants to connect with their heritage through a series of projects that aim to enhance basic skills including literacy and ICT, and increase confidence and self-esteem. The three year programme targets three groups at risk of social exclusion, including young people predominately aged 16 to 25. Projects use a variety of arts such as media, visual arts, ICT, music and drama to engage participants, who include long-term unemployed young people, young carers, disabled young people and those not in education, employment or training. The projects also benefit the wider community through the tours, exhibitions and performances they develop.

Collaboration

The museum works in partnership with a range of local specialist organisations and referral agencies to support its work with young people, including Springboard Hackney, training organisation A4E Ltd, Fairbridge, TNG Workzone (which assists unemployed people back into work), Newham Young Carers, Newham Care Leavers After Support Programme (CLASP), Downview Prison Josephine Butler Unit and Sutton Library.

Funding

The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) provides core funding of £160,500 over three years (2005-2008). Additional funding was secured for individual projects from a variety of sources.

Staffing

The museum employs a full-time inclusion officer. Various other staff such as learning staff and curators assist in some of the workshops. Staff from partner organisations support individual projects as necessary and take part in advisory group meetings to help inform the development of the programme.

NATURE OF PROVISION

Which groups of young people does the project work with?

The programme targets three groups at risk of social exclusion: young people, long-term unemployed people and offenders. The youth projects work with young people aged 16 to 25, with the exception of one project working with 11 to 16 year-olds. Participants mainly come from the East London boroughs of Newham, Tower Hamlets and Hackney. Each project includes an average of eight to12 participants. Groups targeted include young carers, young people with complex disabilities, young people not in education, employment or training (NEET), and young care leavers.

How was the need for the project identified?

The museum was working with these groups before the Inclusion Programme to encourage their engagement with their heritage and promote the museum to a wider audience. It decided to apply to HLF for long term funding to allow it to concentrate on delivering and sustaining this work.

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

Young people take part in projects on a voluntary basis. They are recruited though a range of voluntary and community groups and referral agencies, which provide additional support during the projects if needed.

What are the main approaches used and activities offered?

The Inclusion Programme has run a range of short-term projects over the three year period. Projects for young people include:

Outside Art - the museum worked with eight long-term unemployed young people aged 16-25, a local primary school and an artist to create a mural for the school. The mural's theme, 'Coming to Brick Lane', was chosen by the school students and reflected the local area and its diverse heritage. The project involved research trips to the museum and areas of local interest to explore connections with the collections and inspire them to incorporate local archaeology and history. The mural has six sections depicting different cultures, such as the Huguenots, Jewish and Bangladeshi people who have come to the area.
Family guides - a 10-week project with six young people aged 16 to 25 who developed and delivered themed family tours. Participants attended two sessions a week, where they worked with experienced guides, curators and a specialist presentation skills trainer to develop, deliver and evaluate three interactive tours on life in Victorian London.
Now & Then - an inter-generational oral history project bringing together seven young carers and nine Asian elders. Over 12 sessions they worked together to create a website containing oral histories and photographs highlighting the similarities and differences in their experiences of London. The sessions included a visit to the Museum of London, and training on oral history, interview skills and recording and photography. (www.museumoflondon.org.uk/English/EventsExhibitions/Community/NowThen/Default.htm)
Endz Meet - the museum worked with eight young people, four of whom were NEET and four with complex disabilities. They worked with a digital artist to create a video based on issues that affect their lives in London. The NEET group began by researching and photographing places they chose as being significant. The two groups then came together for sessions on filming, editing, and linking to allow places of interest to be 'woven' together.
In the Picture (starting in August 2007): eight to 10 young people will create their own publication with artwork and writing inspired by pieces from the museum's art collection. Participants will research their chosen artworks, create an ideas board exploring the themes, then work with an artist to create their pieces. They will also photograph and interpret the artwork and brief a designer on the look and layout of the publication.

How are young people involved in shaping the projects?

Participants are encouraged to take creative control of projects as far as possible, depending on their level of ability. They also have opportunities to evaluate projects, in some cases giving anonymous feedback using post-it notes.

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

The inclusion officer ensures that the young people's needs are met through communicating with individual participants, supported by specialist staff from partner organisations as necessary. Projects such as Now & Then give young carers a chance to have fun away from their responsibilities.

The inclusion officer has undertaken various training courses and worked with partners to improve support for young people with low skill levels and those whose first language is not English. Participants are encouraged to support each other to overcome language barriers. Where projects require reading or writing skills, young people with higher skills levels are paired with those with more basic skills. Disabled participants taking part in Endz Meet were supported by speech therapists seconded to the project. Transport and refreshments are provided for projects as necessary.

OUTCOMES OF WORK

Does the project contribute to the five Every Child Matters outcomes?

The Inclusion Programme contributes to the outcomes 'making a positive contribution' and 'achieving economic well-being'. It supports young people's voluntary and community engagement, develops their personal and social skills, and provides opportunities to gain transferable skills and experience that improve their employability. Two participants from the Family Guides project were selected to deliver tours on a paid basis after the project. Some young people have gained employment following their involvement in the programme.

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

The project provides opportunities for various learning outcomes, including increased self confidence; interpersonal skills; and a range of project-related skills including research, public speaking, listening, reading and writing, ICT and web design, photography, film-making, design and performance arts. They also improve their knowledge of the themes explored, the local area and its heritage.

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

Participants set themselves individual objectives relating to their wider life goals at the start of projects, and their progress is evaluated in one-to-one sessions. Their achievements are recognised through various celebration and launch events.

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

Local people and others benefit from the projects' exhibitions and performances, and from the website. Individual projects such as Now & Then have helped improve intergenerational relationships and provided opportunities for Asian elders to improve their spoken English.

The museum benefits from improved provision for visitors, such as family events or foyer exhibitions, and services tailored to meet local needs and interests.

MEASURING EFFECTIVENESS

How is the project evaluated?

Participants and workers record feedback in an evaluation diary as part of a formative evaluation of projects. At the end of projects, participants evaluate how they met their needs and the learning objectives identified through one-to-one sessions. The programme is also being externally evaluated.

What are the findings of any evaluations to date?

Overall, the programme has succeeded in meeting the learning outcomes set out at its start. All participants state that they have gained useful skills and knowledge from their projects.

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

Evaluation of earlier projects has shown that participants enjoy the involvement of museum staff and freelancers, as well as opportunities to visit other museums, so subsequent projects have incorporated as much of this as possible.

What has worked well and why?

Being flexible - allowing workshops to cater for all circumstances, abilities and potential changes in attendance.
Ensuring participants are comfortable in their working environment, e.g. by introducing them to all frontline staff as soon as possible.
Being fairly strict about things like punctuality provides structure which is often absent in many disadvantaged young people's lives and which many respond positively to.
Expecting the most from participants because they always surprise themselves with what they can achieve.
Having projects with tangible outcomes so participants can appreciate their work.
Holding celebration events to reinforce and celebrate project outcomes.

What has been difficult and why?

Recruitment: creating films or exhibitions in a relatively short time and coordinating this with referral organisations can be challenging

Building relationships with partner organisations is often time consuming.

Dealing with negative attitudes about excluded young people and concerns about relatively high costs for small numbers of participants. However, evaluation has demonstrated the benefits of working in small groups.

PARTNERSHIP AND STRATEGIC IMPACT

What does your organisation bring to partnership work?

The museum has a strong track record in working with excluded groups and can utilise the skills and experience of museum staff to support programmes that raise awareness of London's cultural heritage, histories and identities.

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

The programme has provided opportunities to build on existing partnerships and create new ones. It has helped build capacity and expertise within the museum and partner organisations, particularly in local basic skills initiatives and provision.

Have you experienced any particular difficulties in partnership working?

Invariably most organisations have different agendas so it became apparent early in the programme how important it is to frame the different benefits of the projects in ways that meet their needs. Partner organisations may have different priorities and timeframes, so flexibility and understanding of these is vital. Smaller organisations have fewer resources so need more time to get things done.

Do you consider this project to be innovative?

It demonstrates that there is a lot of exciting work involving museums and young people, and shows the benefits for partner organisations of linking with museums.

How do you disseminate the learning from the project?

Local and national press (including coverage of the Family Guides project in the Guardian)
E-newsletter to all partners
Museumof Londonwebsite
Seminar planned for early 2008 to share the learning, including feedback from the external evaluation.

Has the learning from this work influenced wider organisational strategies?

Individual projects help develop the museum's understanding of the issues involved in working with young people. Young adults are always included in consultations on new major exhibitions, particularly on the museum's new Capital City project, a three year redevelopment of the lower galleries and learning centre (due to reopen 2009).

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

The museum will continue inclusion work with young adults and intends to sustain the relationships with partner organisations through future programmes. It also hopes to start longer-term projects such as a youth panel to sustain participants' interests.

CONTACT DETAILS:

Lucie Fitton, Inclusion Officer, Museum of London, 150 London Wall, London EC2Y 5HN. Tel: 0870 444 3852.

E-mail: lfitton@museumoflondon.org.uk