Project aims to reclaim spaces for expression
WE HAVE been experiencing a steady decline in shared public spaces for many years. The demise of traditional meeting places like working men’s clubs, pubs, church halls and community centres has led to increased isolation and loneliness.
Reclaim the Space is a programme funded by the National Lottery Know Your Neighbourhood Fund until March 2025 in the Rochdale Borough wards of Milkstone and Deeplish, Spotland and Falinge, and Darnhill, Heywood.
The project builds on Cartwheel Arts’ creative consultation project in 2022/23 in Darnhill and Deeplish which focused on Community Safety and identified the barriers to accessible public spaces and asked how these should be addressed.
The focus of Reclaim the Space now shifts from community safety to social isolation and aims to understand residents’ views on what is needed to increase connection in their local area.
Reclaim the Space is a collaboration with the communities to co-create an artistic resolution. The increased creative engagement will offer opportunities for connection and a supported pathway from participant to volunteer.
The target will be specific marginalised communities within the localities who are most at risk of isolation and loneliness – this will be young people in Darnhill, through the Young Producers’ programme, and communities at risk of experiencing racial inequalities including refugee and asylum-seeking communities, in Milkstone and Deeplish and Spotland and Falinge. They will offer accessible opportunities for connection and a supported pathway from participant into volunteer, with a range of opportunities; from ‘micro volunteering’ at one-off events or for short periods, to joining a community steering group.
Deeplish families and individuals have already worked with artist Alex Blakey to create beautifully decorated planters.
The planters have been decorated with the words of local people and images of the community and places in Deeplish, including the local mosque.
Reclaim The Space included a series of creative consultations developed in partnership with Deeplish Community Centre. They found that the community desired more green space in their local area.
The community’s words were ‘harvested’ in a series of writing workshops facilitated by Salma Khaled, Shamila Irim and local poet Seamus
Kelly. Two poems were written in collaboration with children at Deeplish Primary School and women aged 50-plus at Deeplish Community Centre. These have been used to inspire the words and art painted on
the planters. The planters will be seeded with flowers and veggies, which will grow and flower this summer.
The voices of children and parents were captured during the workshops.
Here’s what they had to say: “I am having more fun than my kids!”
“I used to do so much art in college, but after I got married
and had kids, I forgot about it. I got the chance to do something today, and I want to do more!”
“I don’t have time to do these things during school times,
half-term is good for parent and children’s activities.”
“The artist is so good with children. She is patient and explained everything so well to my children.”