by Fiona Moon
CHWA has spent the last few months catching up with people who attended the Making Change Conference in October last year. We were really keen to hear about what they had been working on, how they were feeling, and the impact that attending the conference may have had on them, both personally and professionally.
We did a series of paid, deep-dive legacy interviews, giving practitioners working on various scales and at different points in their journeys the opportunity to reflect on their practice, their experience of the event, and their hopes and thoughts for how they want to move forward. These interviews were invaluable in opening up our thought processes, understanding the current needs and concerns of practitioners, and providing a rich basis for discussions within the team.
For some of the people we spoke to, there had been a very clear, linear set of progressions as a result of Making Change eg. I attended the conference, as a result, this happened, and now, I'm thinking more about/doing more of/working on this new thing. However, we know that many of the outcomes and impact of the work happens in the magical in between or in the moment interactions, it can be hard to have a clear idea of whether or not positive change is happening. At CHWA, we've been reflecting on how we might best capture those moments and share them within the organisation and the wider sector. As part of this, we've been exploring the use of visual storytelling, discussing the value of reflective journals and artputs, and of how we can evaluate work in a way that is relative, isn't extractive, and that utilises that same magic that we all know can happen during a creative experience. Below are some examples of the legacy stories we heard.
Did you attend Making Change 2023? Has your practice changed, evolved or developed as a result? If you would like to write a blog for CHWA on your experience, please get in touch via info@culturehealthandwellbeing.org.uk. Please note have a limited amount of paid blog slots available and will prioritise practitioners and organisations currently underrepresented in the sector.