At these Conventions you learn that what each member has, collectively, is the power – the power to change everything”
- Amelia Bilson, Middleport Matters Community Trust
Locality Convention ’18 was our busiest yet! The schedule was packed with workshops, visits, and even our brand new Locality Awards.
You can find out what went on further down the page, but if you’d like to find out more about Locality Convention ’19, be the first to hear the news from our newsletter.
Day One – Wednesday 7 November
9:30 Open
9:30 – 10:30 Registration and refreshments
10:30 – 12:15 Unlocking the power of community – plenary session
Welcome from Tony Armstrong, Locality CEO.
Every week our membership network supports 400,000 people, helping to transform lives with the power of community: hear stories from our inspiring members.
Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP, Communities Secretary
Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol
Amy Kinnear, Hartcliffe and Withywood Community Partnership
Suzanne Wilson, Lockleaze Trust
12:15 – 14.45 First breakout sessions and lunch
Delegates can choose between a workshop or a visit
Workshops
- Creativity and the art of thinking differently: developing skills that will impact your community
Identify the potential impact on performance, engagement and development of adopting a creative and innovative philosophy in your work. Through a series of practical, engaging and highly interactive activities, develop and reflect upon new ideas generated in the workshop. And smile. And laugh.
- Can your organisation help deliver the affordable homes your community needs?
This workshop is aimed at organisations new to community-led housing (CLH) who would like to explore whether they could add CLH to their services. We will give you an overview of all the approaches to CLH and a guide to the different types of support and funding available at all stages.
- People power – Localism in practice
Hear about the next phase of our Localism commission and emerging learning from our action research with three local authorities. Discuss practical models for building community power and engagement in your communities.
- Start measuring your economic impact (also offered on Day Two)
Want to make the compelling case for your organisation’s local economic impact? In this workshop, we will showcase new resources and tools from our Keep it Local evidence and take you through our 10-step practical exercise. You will gain confidence to demonstrate your impact when applying for funding and in local commissioning.
- Income generation for small organisations
This workshop is for you whether you are just starting out on the income generation path or wanting to learn more by sharing your experience with peers. We’ll explore different approaches to income generation and its practical impacts across areas such as governance, financial resilience, communications and collaboration.
- Income generation for large organisations (also offered on Day Two)
Learn from sustainable organisations which have diversified their income streams, and hear from Locality’s expert advisers about your options for new income generation.
Visits
- Knowle West Media Centre
Community-led manufacturing and community-led housing
- Windmill Hill City Farm
More than just a farm….
- Barton Hill Settlement and Wellspring HLC
Partnership and merger: a new approach to building community resilience
- Trinity Arts
Our rocky road to community asset transfer whilst championing the arts and heritage!
14:45 – 16:45 Second breakout sessions
Delegates can choose between a workshop or a visit.
Workshops
- NEW – The Power of partnership: housing associations and community organisations working together
In this session, explore how to build mutually beneficial collaborations learning from the experience of others – highlighting both the successful and the not so successful approaches. Sponsored by LiveWest
- Board games: working effectively with your board
When things are going well and not so well! Lessons from the field, getting the balance of power right, and board responsibilities in difficult times
- Arts and the community: tools for engagement
In this highly interactive session, we apply successful toolkits for community engagement that ensure projects are inclusive and involve the most isolated members of the community. We also explore the role arts organisations play in the communities they serve.
- Lighting the way: lessons from Locality’s new resilience healthcheck tool
In this interactive session, we will share lessons from Locality’s work supporting organisations to be strong and successful and the major issues which can threaten the long-term future of community organisations. This will be an opportunity for participants to discuss how to address these problems at an early stage.
- Transforming the approach to social impact measurement in a single year
At the beginning of 2018, BARCA Leeds reviewed their approach to measuring impact, resulting in the design of a new measurement system. Murray Hall Community Trust have also recently transformed their approach to impact measurement. This workshop will provide an overview of their journeys and will include practical discussion on methodology, challenges and solutions. Useful for any organisations with ambitions to approach their approach to impact measurement.
- FULLY BOOKED – Health matters: community-centred approaches for health and wellbeing (also offered on Day Two)
Learn from innovative case studies of community-centred approaches of achieving health outcomes and hear from commissioners perspective on funding these approaches. Gain understanding of how to demonstrate your health and wellbeing impact in your community projects.
Visits
- Knowle West Media Centre
Community-led manufacturing and community-led housing
- Windmill Hill City Farm
More than just a farm….
- Barton Hill Settlement and Wellspring HLC
Partnership and merger: a new approach to building community resilience
- Trinity Arts
Our rocky road to community asset transfer whilst championing the arts and heritage!
- Ujima Radio CIC and Bristol Cable
Making community media work for you
16:45 – 17:45 Keep it Local: for services that transform lives – plenary session
For years, mega outsourcing contracts have been preventing communities from providing local services. But is the tide beginning to turn? Hear about how councils and community organisations are doing things differently and working together to keep services local.
Robin Tuddenham, Chief Executive at Calderdale Council
Paul Streets CEO, Lloyds Bank Foundation for England and Wales
Jessica Studdert Deputy Director, New Local Government Network
Heather Williams, Knowle West Health Park Company
Ed Wallis, Locality
Locality Awards
18:30 Reception opens
19:00 – 20:00 Buffet served
20:00 – 21:00 Awards ceremony
Presented by:
Jasmine Ketibuah-Foley, presenter and environmental activist
Neil Maggs, journalist and presenter
I was feeling a little bit deflated, and not very motivated, but now I’m full of energy, full of hope, full of power and I’m ready to fight when I get back home”
Amelia Bilson, Middleport Matters Community Trust, Locality'17 delegate
Day 2 – Thursday 8 November
08:45 – 10:00 Refreshments and exhibition
9:00 – 10:00 Surgeries / AGM
10:00 – 10:30 Doing Things Differently… “name you what?” – plenary session and energiser
What’s your name in British Sign Language? Don’t know? We can help you with that. Did you know British Sign Language (BSL) is not the same as English? In BSL ‘what’s your name?’ is signed as ‘name you what?’ By the end of the session you’ll be having animated conversations with people nearby without making a sound.
Find out how you can take this further and create a space where everyone feels welcome. A place where D/deaf, disabled and non-disabled people come together equally. David Ellington, Deaf Oscar winner, BSL user and key member of the UK’s first integrated circus performance company, Extraordinary Bodies, offers a practical, new angle on inclusion. Please speak to a member of staff if you would like the performance audio described or have any other access requirements.
10:30 – 12:30 Breakout sessions
Delegates can choose between a workshop or a visit.
Workshops
- FULLY BOOKED – Building genuine engagement with local marketing
How to create clever campaigns and events to really engage with local people.
- Work with your local authority to Keep it Local
When it comes to our public services, more and more councils now want to Keep it Local: for services that transform lives. Learn how you can engage your local authority as we launch our new campaign toolkit, and get involved in the new phase of our campaign.
- Start measuring your economic impact (also offered in Day One first breakout session)
Want to make the compelling case for your organisation’s local economic impact? In this workshop, we will showcase new resources and tools from our Keep it Local evidence and take you through our 10-step practical exercise. You will gain confidence to demonstrate your impact when applying for funding and in local commissioning.
- Income generation for large organisations (in Day One first breakout session)
Learn from sustainable organisations which have diversified their income streams, and hear from Locality’s expert advisers about your options for new income generation
- How to save and transform a space with community ownership
Hear the latest developments of our Save our Spaces campaign and learn about how you can save a space, transform it, and use it for the benefit of your community. Discuss challenges and solutions with groups who have done this successfully.
- FULLY BOOKED – Health matters: community-centred approaches for health and wellbeing (in DayOne second breakout sessions)
Learn from innovative case studies of community-centred approaches of achieving health outcomes and hear from commissioners perspective on funding these approaches. Gain understanding of how to demonstrate your health and wellbeing impact in your community projects.
Visits
- Knowle West Media Centre
Community-led manufacturing and community-led housing
- Windmill Hill City Farm
More than just a farm….
- Barton Hill Settlement and Wellspring HLC
Partnership and merger: a new approach to building community resilience
- Trinity Arts
Our rocky road to community asset transfer whilst championing the arts and heritage!
- Ujima Radio CIC and Bristol Cable
Making community media work for you
12:30 – 14:00 Plenary session – Ideas to unleash the power of your community: TED-style talks from inspiring speakers
Stella Duffy OBE Co-director of Fun Palaces
David Robinson, Community Worker
Miriam Delogu, The Circle
Carolyn Hassan, Knowle West Media Centre and Bristol Living Lab
Rebecca Trevalyan, Library of Things
Consolidate all the learnings and energy from two days of Convention and walk away ready to bring it back to your community!
14:00 – 15:00 Lunch, networking and exhibition
Expert surgeries throughout Convention
Locality specialist advice
Something on your mind? Get free one-to-one advice from the Locality team. We’re here to help with:
• governance
• business planning
• financial resilience
• community engagement
• impact measurement
• collaboration and consortia
• ownership of land and buildings.
Speak to Locality experts in the surgeries and refreshment area during all refreshment and lunch breaks.
How to prepare for the future
Post-Brexit Britain, the rise of artificial intelligence, hoverboards – you can’t always predict what changes are coming. At Locality, we’re working hard to create a five-year strategy to make sure all organisations in our membership network stay strong and successful.
Come and have your say on what you need from Locality over the next five years. You can also ask questions about your own strategy or how to create one. Visit the surgeries and refreshment area to speak to a member of the Locality team.
Loan advice
Tracy and John, the friendly and approachable Loans Officers from NatWest Social and Community Capital will answer your questions on loans. They’ll cover what a social lender looks for in a business plan, what financial projections should include and how lending can support your organisation’s growth and funding requirements.
Visit the NatWest exhibitor stand in the foyer for one-to-one loan advice.
Legal advice
Sarah Patrice from Anthony Collins Solicitors will answer your legal queries on legal structures, board issues, governance arrangements and
community asset transfer. If there is another legal query that you have then please do ask. If Sarah doesn’t know the answer she can probably find out for you!
Visit the Anthony Collins exhibitor stand in the foyer for one-to-one legal advice.
Social investment advice
Good Finance is here to help you navigate the world of social investment. Whether you want to understand what it’s all about, find out if it’s right for your organisation, or measure your social impact you can learn more at Locality Convention ’18.
Visit the Good Finance exhibitor stand in the foyer for one-to-one social investment advice and guidance.
Locality Convention ’18 is sponsored by:
Power to Change and Anthony Collins Solicitors.
