The Observer and the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (Nesta), the organisation that promotes innovation in Britain, jointly launched a search for Britain’s 50 new radicals – people and organisations that are taking risks, and “changing the world for the better” – and we’re thrilled that we’ve been included! This article in The Observer goes into greater detail, and also introduces the other organisations, people and projects who have been included in the list.

Judge Alicia Navarro, founder and CEO of Skimlinks, commented: “3Space is a complete win-win. It doesn’t cost anyone money and the city/town itself benefits from looking alive and dynamic, as well as being exposed to the great work of local community groups.”

Being chosen as one of Britain’s 50 New Radicals also means that our work will be showcased at a London reception in early 2012, and we look forward to participating in workshops and events supported by NESTA as we become part of the New Radicals alumni, designed to inspire more fresh ideas that can change the world for the better.

The 3Space team are excited to meet the other winners, and we look forward to forming partnerships and sharing ideas which will help to expand the work that we already do as a charity.

The charity’s director, Matt Houghton, has provided some photographs of HYPE’s most recent activities. In these  we can see the space being used to celebrate a very lucky young man’s second birthday party; the day was so successful that since then at least three other children have booked their own parties! Run by the community staff from HYPE, the children are entertained with card tricks, athletics games, sports coaching and, of course, traditional party games like musical bumps, pass the parcel and musical chairs. This is a wonderful example of how HYPE mix sporting activities with simple, fun games so well.

Also seen here are the members of a youth club for people from Birkenhead aged 11-16. The young people arrive at 5pm and stay until 7.30pm, engaging in fun, positive activities. The workshops have been so popular that HYPE have seen some children travelling quite a distance to be involved. It’s a fantastic opportunity to get young people thinking about sports and healthy activities early and in a really positive way.

Lastly we can see the members of the Coach Training Day. Unemployed 16-24 year olds who are interested in a career in sport are brought together for training days where they are taught skills useful to a career in sports and with young people. They deal with practical elements such as policies and procedures, for example health and safety, safeguarding and CRB checks, and also teaching methods like the various sessions that young children respond to in an educational environment.

We are thrilled with the kind of work going on in the Birkenhead space and are very pleased to be able to provide HYPE with the opportunity to get the local children into sports, cultivate a love of exercise and drive home the message of being healthy and getting active. We can’t wait to see what else HYPE will get up to in their space!

Here you can see members of the Company perfecting their lines for ‘The 39 Steps’, which is to be performed in Norwich from the 27th to the 31st March 2012. They will be using the space to rehearse their upcoming productions throughout their golden anniversary year.

Here we have another great example of an organisation who are keen to embrace the opportunities which a pop-up venue can offer. We wish The Great Hall Theatre Company the very best for their rehearsals, and hope that they enjoy using the space!

Hosted by one of the UK’s premier Empty Shop organisations, Slack Space Colchester, in partnership with Firstsite, the event will look at working in empty shops and other disused spaces and will combine an interactive focus on case studies and success stories with practical advice and contextual understanding. 3Space will be discussing the various ways in which arts organisations have previously used our spaces, and hope to highlight the ways that all non-profit organisations can benefit from pop-up projects in disused properties. Other organisations partnering on this event include:

- Slack Space is one of the premier ‘empty shop’ organisations in the UK and has been successfully putting art and performance into empty shops for over two and a half years.

- Firstsite is a contemporary visual arts organisation based in Colchester with a mission to make contemporary art relevant to everyone.

- Artside is a CoExist project featuring two weeks of art and interventions in Southend High Street. Artists work directly with venues to create site-led work.

- TAP is housed in a converted waterworks. Currently, it houses CoExist Galleries and Studios, The White Bus, MEET, Solug and Open Arts.

- We are Bedford is a community collective. The group put on the Castle Quay Weekender in March 2011, an arts festival in seven empty shops, and run various other successful community events.

- Meanwhile Space is led by the Development Trusts Association as part of the Advancing Assets programme, with support from the Department of Communities and Local Government.

- Empty Shops Network is the national network for organisations and individuals working in empty shops and other disused spaces.

The Transforming Spaces conference will take place on Saturday 17 March 2012, from 9.30am – 5.15pm. For more information on the event and for details on how to book tickets, please see the Firstsite website.

Grassroots is a registered charity based in Cardiff which aims to meet the needs of young people between the ages of 16 and 25. Grassroots endeavour to instill optimism and promote self-awareness and self-worth in young people. They have been using the space for workshops and activities where a variety of creative multimedia technologies are used to encourage progression onto qualifications or the use of advanced production facilities. Recently Grassroots, affectionately known as ‘Roots’ to their members, used the space for film and acting training. This included a collaboration with DJ Shadow and a young filmmaker from Grassroots was given the opportunity to shoot the film clip for his track ‘Scale it Back’. The entire video was recorded in one shot in the shop and i’m sure you’ll agree it is impressive work. We’ve included some photos of Grassroots working on the video and also the finished clip.

Also using the space are the University of Glamorgan’s Photography and Fashion design department.  They have used the 3Space unit for photography training which included the photo shoot shown below.

Another university, Cardiff Metropolitan University , has also been using the space.  During February second year students students from the Illustration course held an exhibition of their latest work. As well as displaying the student’s work, they put on a number of workshops, talks, live art demonstrations and activities for the general public.

Grassroots will be back in the unit soon with a guerilla art event, in conjunction with Cardiff School, which looks to include an exciting sounding poetry slam. They then have a drama performance lined up for March, and no doubt much more in the future!

Our Cardiff space is a wonderful example of the creative uses that are possible in an empty shop, and also the considerate way it is possible to share the unit between more than one organisation. Fantastic work all round!

The excitement and energy of the art and drama classes going on the Community Outreach Hub stood in stark contrast to the empty units just a few doors down. It was a great example of how unused shop units in a town centre can be an enlivening force as opposed to a negative one when the local community is given a chance to use them.

Check out the video below to see more about the activities taking place in our empty shop, and for those of you based in Warrington, pop down to the space and let them know what you’d like to see happen!

Our Finchley unit boasts a rather impressive, organisation-led example of the incredible charitable community that can be created in one building. The third floor has become a hub of activity for the seven organisations who occupy it.

• Aidexcel provide advice, information and support for parents and carers of disabled children.
• Living Way Ministries provide support for struggling parents and children, practical advice for families and create a community-led approach towards self-sustainable living.
• Everyday’s Tomorrow delivers training and support to disadvantaged women (particularly African and Caribbean women) to help them set up their own business, return to work or return to school. They also run health and fitness programmes and a project to help young girls at risk of involvement in gang activities.
• TEACH (Time To Educate Africa’s Children) Africa provide innovative and holistic educational programmes working to alleviate poverty through education in Africa.
• Energise Barnet CIC is a social enterprise that helps homeowners, businesses and other property owners install energy saving measures, such as insulation and new heating boilers, and create income by generating their own renewable energy.
• YASS and PP4DAN Barnet are two separate charities run by the same woman. They both deal with supporting disabled children and their families.
• National Autistic Society (NAS) offers local support to residents in Barnet affected by Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC) by running a weekly term-time youth club and clubbing night, providing family support and advocacy, assistance with filling out DLA forms and support at meetings.

Most of the organisations working in Finchley were either working from home or coffee shop tables before they occupied Balfour House. For groups like Aidexcel and PP4DAN Barnet this was simply not a workable model as they both work with parents and children. Their use of the Finchley space has entirely changed the way they operate; families can now visit the volunteers and workers in a comfortable and private space. They can run workshops, supported by the other users in the unit, and they can offer private consultations and help in person.

TEACH were based in Cardiff before moving to Finchley. They are now based in Cardiff, Africa and London and say that this is the first time they’ve had a central place for their staff and volunteers to work together; from a team of just four they’ve been able to build to over thirty members, all contributing to their fantastic work. When we visited recently they made a point of telling us that this is the first time since the formation of TEACH Africa that they have felt like a proper organisation.

These organisations have their own office spaces and also share three communal areas (a ‘buffet’ room where food and drink is provided at meetings and workshops, a huge workshop space and a conference room). However, the sharing doesn’t stop there. Whether it’s planning workshops, applying for funding, bouncing ideas off each other, running projects together or even just sharing a stapler, the hub at Finchley embodies the true nature of 3Space properties.

Check out the video below, filmed by the 3Space team on a recent visit to Finchley, which shows some of these organisations using the space.

Aidexcel provide advice, information and support for parents and carers of disabled children. The organisation works primarily with families who face difficulty accessing the services they need, including minority ethnic and refugee families who find themselves confronted with problems as they attempt to navigate their way through the various administrative and legal systems associated with caring for a disabled child.

Working through a variety of ways, the Aidexcel team say: “We are a parent-led organisation who really understand how difficult it can be, but know it can be better.”

Aidexcel have been using our community hub in Finchley as a base for their activities, which include training courses and workshops, support groups and events, and vitally, a help-line for parents and carers.

The pictures below show a series of training days based at our Finchley space, where parents were given free workshops in disability and inclusion rights, listening skills, person-centred planning and parents’ rights. Other photographs show the Mayor of Barnet, Councillor Lisa Rutter presenting ICT certificates to parents who have successfully completed one of the computing courses offered by Aidexcel.

Faith Unoarumhi of Aidexcel says:

“This space has provided us with an amazing opportunity – there is no where else that we would be able to work from otherwise. Without 3Space, we would not be able to do what we are doing, which is providing somewhere that parents can come to relax, get advice and feel at home.”

You can find out more about Aidexcel on their website at http://www.aidexcel.com/

]]> http://3space.org/2837/aidexcel-in-finchley/feed 0 http://3space.org/2448/how-to-use-3space-properties-2 http://3space.org/2448/how-to-use-3space-properties-2#comments Wed, 11 Jan 2012 14:23:50 +0000 Ben http://3space.org/?p=2448 This coming year 3Space will be getting more spaces for social organisations to use free of charge. I thought I’d spend some time going through some of the innovative uses of our properties from last year and outlining some more potential uses which we’d love to see happen.

Here are some of the things people used our spaces to run last year;

• Training Workshops

Many social organisations struggle to find spaces where they’re able to engage directly with their community and the general public. By occupying our units many of our users have been able to engage with their communities in ways they wouldn’t have been able to. In the past year we had fund-raising in Warrington and a Christmas fayre in Shepherds Bush, all examples of users being able to use our units to engage with the public in a variety of ways.

• Office Space

During this past year we’ve been able to support four exciting office hubs that have provided a wide variety of organisations with space to work. The hubs in Old Street, Chancery Lane, Finchley and Oxford Street have been home to over twenty-five organisations for a varying amount of time, enabling smaller organisations to network and share resources.

•  Rehearsal and Practice Space.

A number of our organisations have been using spaces as rehearsal or training spaces. From Circus House using our central Manchester unit  to teach circus skills, to the Bristol Old Vic rehearsing for their Christmas play in our space in a retail park in Bristol, we’ve been able to provide organisations with the large spaces they’ve needed in a variety of locations.

Here are some other ideas to get potential 3Space property users thinking.

• Charity Reporting

Charities have an obligation to their donors, the charity commission and the public as a whole to report on their work. Charities often fulfil this obligation by writing impact reports for their funders and blogging about their activities online. 3Space units offer a way for charities to show the public directly the impact they’ve made easily and effectively. Charities could use our units to run pop-up reporting events for short periods of time that draw on their impact reports.

• Public Consultation

It’s important for many social organisations to consult their community in how they can best work for local people. Our spaces are perfect for community consultation workshops to help these organisations decide how they can more effectively use their resources.

• Large Scale Fund Raising

Our units offer charities a great opportunity to run a high impact fund raising campaign in a high-profile area.  The size of many our units mean there is plenty of space for ambitious fund-raising activities like challenge events or community fund raising days.

These are just some ideas to get you started- the scope for the use of our spaces extend to any ideas which deliver a public benefit. Be creative!

This means that we now have the opportunity to work with a whole host of new non-profit organisations, and we’re looking forward to getting to know the charities who work in each of these new regions.

More details on each store will be available here on our website very soon, but in the meantime we can let you know that we’ll be making shop units available in Glasgow, Salford, Oldham, Bangor, Doncaster, Bury St Edmunds, St Helens, Cardiff, Norwich and Shrewsbury.

For inspiration and examples of how our empty spaces can be transformed, see our blog or our Youtube Channel!