2024 marks 7 years of Ideas Alliance. Over that time we’ve grown from a small story sharing platform to a social consultancy on a mission to make co-production and collaboration the norm across the country. Co-founder Helen Sharp starts our celebrations by looking back at how it all started and what's coming next.
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One of our new critical friends George Fielding BEM spoke to us about his compelling motivations for community work and life in general. George has raised more than £15 million for charities since becoming an advocate for young wheelchair users at age 12.
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This blog features the 2.8 Million Minds project. Between November 2021 and May 2022, over 120 people contributed to A Manifesto for 2.8 Million Minds, a youth-led, artist-centred, and Disability Justice-informed approach to how young Londoners want to use art to begin to radically reimagine mental health support, justice and pride.
This blog features Kooth, a digital mental health service providing online support from self-help to peer support and structured counselling. They worked with two grassroots organisations – BLKOUT and Cultures CIC to understand black men's relationship with their mental health and the challenges they face in accessing effective services.
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This blog features the North West London Suicide Prevention Project, which connects organisations across North West London Integrated Care System, including the voluntary sector, local authorities and the NHS. Using the principles of generous leadership, this programme is based on alliance building and a social response to suicide prevention.
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Year 2 of Not Another Co-Production Project has begun in the West Midlands. This is a three-year lottery funded project run by the Ideas Alliance in partnership with People's Voice Media. The 12 organisations we are partnering with to embed collaboration and co-production into their work, had an introductory meeting, where Sophie Ewan-Roberts took visual notes.
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Last year, we were privileged to work with the Elephants Trail in Manchester as part of our lottery-funded Not Another Co-Production Project. Patrick Tierney, Elephants Trail member, shares his brilliant blog post, Road of Restoration, which considers the role of hope in our lives and recovery journeys.
Selva Mustafa shares her process of visually recording events after her experience at the Not Another Co-Production Festival in Manchester.
Read articleLinda Parsonage, Elephants Trail Rochdale Co-Worker, took to the stage at the Not Another Co-Production Festival on Tuesday 5 July in Manchester's Museum of Science and Industry to explain some of the background to co-production. If you are curious about co-production, read on for Linda's explanation.
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The SE15 Community Fund was established in May 2020, as a response to the financial difficulties people were experiencing during the pandemic and a requirement to fund the needs of local mutual aid efforts. The administrators share the principles they hold to, the dilemmas along the way and plans for the future.
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Helen Sturman, Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire Area Development Manager for Parkinson’s UK, shares her experience of being new in the job when joining Not Another Co-Production Project. She outlines the importance of flexibility when rebuilding community connections with people with long-term health conditions, and how co-production values the range of life experiences, knowledge and skills that people can bring.
We need to see more women speaking confidently about issues that matter. 'Energy is more important than message', says Alex Barker.
Read article“The Hub acts as a glue bringing together people and organisations who are doing so much to positively disrupt their local systems.”
Burcu Borysik, Mayday Trust