It was wonderful welcoming a group of Canalside residents to our dedicated Simple Acts circle. This was a space where everyone honestly discussed challenges around participation on the estate. They remembered the period of regeneration, when residents felt more engaged with each other. They talked about the potential of using simple and everyday actions to wake up that community spirit.

Everyone expressed willingness to reinvigorate the community and a better sense of ‘neighbourliness’ by organising simple and appropriate. One of the easiest of actions carried out earlier in the day by one of the residents was to help out a sick neighbour with shopping. Simple but invaluable!

Residents brought up the following:

• The need for spaces and reasons to meet: events, groups (film clubs, reading group, laughing club, homework help); activities for young people but also for the residents in their 20’s and 30’s.
• Intergenerational activities and involving local schools and partners
• Finding better ways of communicating estate news including the news from the housing association
• Promoting existing communication tools such as Canalside Residents’ Association facebook page (link to https://www.facebook.com/canalsideresidents)
• Finding ways of bringing different communities together
• Ways of using and sharing the existing knowledge and expertise
• Cooking and sharing meals together
• Sharing memories

The next step for the group is to carry out a survey amongst the residents, to find out what they already do and how they would like to engage with their neighbours and how to communicate better with each other. Questions and methods of collection will be agreed shortly and the survey will be carried out in March.

Thank you to Hemma, Lauren, Ben, Robin, Marcia, Justin and Áine for being so vocal and creative in your thinking. We will see you soon, anyone else interested in joining the Simple Acts on Canalside circle, please contact Dijana at dijana@counterpointsarts.org.uk