Owners
What it's all about
I am planning to set up a debating and dramatics club which targets disadvantaged young people (14-19) from Inner city boroughs in London. This will be a great chance for them to voice and address the issues which affect them, their communities and young people in Britain today. Hopefully, allowing them to debate these issues in front of an audience willing to listen and who can relate will help ease many of their anxieties and help foster a sense of wellbeing.
I also intend for them to discuss current affairs and world politics to help increase their understanding and awareness of the world around them. Such topics are notorious for being a ‘bore’ among young people, so I hope to make them more interesting and accessible through the medium of drama and dance. Just imagine acting out the fate of the European Union through amateur dramatics and stereotypical European costumes!
In my opinion, one of the principle causes of the recent nationwide riots is that many young people today, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds, feel totally disenfranchised with the government and modern society in general. This, I believe, stems from a lack of life opportunities and misconceptions about why things are as they are in this difficult climate. All of this leads to a sense of being abandoned and marginalised.
Through this scheme I hope to give marginalised young people the opportunity to express themselves about issues that affect them, including the major issues in society today. In many cases, all young people want is just someone who is willing to listen to them. The club will help improve and nurture their confidence, presentation and public speaking skills. These are skills which I think many young people particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds lack. Such skills will also be important for their futures when looking for employment. By making the big issues the world is facing more accessible to younger people, I hope to prepare them for the future by helping them become mature, knowledgeable and self-assured individuals willing to create a positive impact on their local communities and perhaps on even grander scales.
The first stage of this project would be to set up a couple of preliminary sessions to get a general idea of how the club and general logistics would work for the real thing. Any volunteers in London for this would be welcome!!
What's needed to make it a reality
I am determined for this project to succeed and I am willing to give the project 100%. I intend for this scheme to be up and running this summer and before I go back to university at the end of September this year. For this to happen I am going to need some help and advice on a few things as I have never done something like this before.
Firstly, I need advice on where I can get a suitable venue for the club. I am also still undecided on where the venue should be in London and whether I am targeting a specific borough or aiming to accommodate many Inner city boroughs. It would be great if I can discuss where the most effective location for the club would be in order to make the best impact. Additionally, I would need a way to advertise the project. However, a target location needs to be decided first.
If am to incorporate drama and dance into the scheme then I may need some help from people with experience or training in such activities. At this stage, I am still unsure about whether I would need funding or not. I just want to emphasise that this is mainly a debating club with elements of drama and dance to re-enact current affairs. So people with some knowledge and expertise of drama and dance are not required to help out full time. From my initial thoughts the cost of the scheme shouldn’t be too high regarding venue hire, equipment and general logistics to start up.
If anyone here has experience in doing anything related to what I am planning to do, please feel free offer an insight into what you have learnt and what I should hope to aim to achieve.
Comments
I’m Ravi, part of the Helpdesk team, here to support you with putting your idea into action. A debating club which incorporates drama seems innovative and you’ve clearly done some well thought out research into this. Are you planning to run the club by yourself, or do you have any friends or contacts that may be able to support you in management?
With regards to a location, you may be able to find a suitable space in a local school, theatre or community centre. Perhaps you could contact some of the borough councils around London to see if they would be interested in promoting your idea or assist with advice on finding a location for free?
You might want to think about getting in touch with amateur drama groups in the area to see if they would be interested in partnering with your debating club for this venture. They may already possess some of the equipment you require such as costumes and small props, and perhaps even the necessary audio equipment. Your ideas for advertising seem like an effective combination of on- and off-line marketing and in addition, you may want to consider creating a website for Sessions in Expression (www.wix.com is a favourite of other Junction49ers).
If you would like to apply for funding, there are a couple of options which might be suitable:
-O2 Think Big http://www.o2thinkbig.co.uk/
Awards of £300 for your project, given in stages, for projects to improve the community. This is open to 13-25 year olds.
- Live UnLtd http://www.liveunltd.com/
Live UnLtd will give up to £2,000 of funding and all the support needed to turn a great idea into a reality. Open to 11-21 yr olds.
Feel free to look around the site and contact other users who may be able to offer advice from a similar perspective. For example, Hema has experience in setting up a youth group and may be able to share her story with you - http://www.junction49.co.uk/idea/2515/your-th_voice/ .
I hope this helps you get started – please contact us with any further questions you may have and keep us up to date through the diary!
Best of luck,
Ravi
Junction49 Helpdesk Report Abuse
I'm Ada a junction49 help desker.
Just looking at your project and wondering how's it all going and if you managed to get a chance to look at http://www.o2thinkbig.co.uk/ or http://www.liveunltd.com/ for funding??
Let me know if you need any help in any way :-)
Ada Report Abuse
I was just checking out your idea and thought you might be interested in getting in touch with Annabel who has been running a project called DramaJam for the past 3 years in London with groups of young people in schools. She might be an interesting person to collaborate with on your project or chat to incase she has any advice. You can check her idea out here: http://www.junction49.co.uk/idea/1834/dramajam_youth_for_youth_dramatic_arts_outreach/
Sarah Report Abuse
I was just wondering how things were going with this idea. Did you manage to get it set up or are you still looking into starting it? If you need any help at all, let me know and I'd be happy to assist. Alternatively if you would find it better to arrange a meeting to discuss your idea in more detail then please do not hesitate to get in contact.
I hope to hear from you soon,
Sarah Report Abuse
Thanks for your message . Unfortunately I have to postpone the project indefinitely because I received a job offer to work in Singapore for a year and a half . The job starts this summer and so it meant that I couldn't continue the project for the foreseeable future .
I really appreciate everyone's interest and I was sure it would have been a great project !! Report Abuse
Not to worry at all, but thank you very much for replying to my message. Congratulations on the job offer, that sounds like a wonderful opportunity.
All the best,
Sarah Report Abuse
Log in | Register