NET pop up #06: Growing hope and power (March 2024)
A write up of March 2024’s North East Together Growing hope and power pop up event with Southampton University’s Dr Kate Paradine and Professor Harry Annison by Robert Laycock
At this event we learnt about how Dr Kate Paradine charity leader and Visiting Fellow at Southamption University, and Harry Annison Professor in Criminal Justice at University of Southampton, explored, with other academics and charities, dynamics relating to the academic and third sectors, particularly the opportunities and challenges of collaborating with the aim of achieving positive change. Their project took as its particular focus women caught up in the criminal justice system and those experiencing male violence against women and girls.
In the session Kate and Harry presented their project and paper ‘Growing hope and power — charities, academics and evidence’.
Twenty-one people took part in the session — Austin, Carolyn, Cheryl, Chris, Christina, Claudia, Gill, Greta, Hannah, Jen, Jim, Joanne, John, Laura, Mary, Melanie, Ngozi, Odeth, Paula, Sarah, and Sue — plus Kate, Harry, Stephanie, and Robert.
In his presentation Harry highlighted the following challenges when working in collaboration — in this case, with other academics and charities
- Competition
- Investing in long term goals
- Desire for evidence
- Better interrogation of (learning from) failure
- Fault lines, unexplored differences, shying away, lack of engagement with victims
- Different views, different desires
Kate added to this with her thoughts on barriers to more, and more effective, collaboration — citing three things
- Divisive binary thinking and lack of nuance — “silence or anarchy”
- Distrust and lack of respect for knowledge of professionals — lack of power, “learned helplessness”
- Lack of attention to evidence — academic and other
Kate ended with three suggestions to overcome these and other barriers
- Make space for dialogue
- Respect professional knowledge
- Focus on key messages and manifestos
Our conversations
We then broke into seven groups of three using the following prompts to connect, share and explore
- First minute — super quick introductions — who you are, what you do
- Minutes 2–7 — take turns to respond to the following prompts (up to 2 minutes each): What did you think? What stood out for you? How might you grow hope and power in the work you are involved in?
- Last minute — come up with a question for Kate and Harry
Here’s the main themes from the breakout group discussions
- Change funding, educate funders
- How we grow hope and power — “moral accountability”
- Backing cross party government for long term change
- Deregulation of services
- How to work towards long term change
- Learning from failure
Sharing what’s useful
The participants generously shared the following tools, resources, links and useful bits and pieces with each other during the event
Southhampton’s Civic University Agreement
And UPP Foundation has more on civic university agreements.
Thanks to everyone who took part.
North East Together upcoming events
- The essence of leadership? Pop-up event 07 with Austin McNamara, Tuesday 16 April, Newcastle upon Tyne
- Lead and manage: Best self, great teams, amazing together (spring 2024), starts Wednesday 17 April, Newcastle upon Tyne —
- Coaching… making the difference, Tuesday 14 May, Newcastle upon Tyne
- North East Together event 26: more than you imagine is possible… building momentum for change and effective collaboration: early insights from LocalMotion, Tuesday 21 May, Newcastle upon Tyne
About North East Together
North East Together is the network for social change leadership in the north east.
Our collective mission here at North East Together is to create the conditions, and platform for, collaboration to become the norm in the north east and to nurture a healthier social change system.
Our network offers mutual support, enables collaboration and inspires social leaders. We offer a series of dynamic network events; whole day events, self-organised collaborative working groups; pathways into coaching; and independent social change events. Our events are supportive spaces where leaders can meet one another, explore issues of social change, network and begin to collaborate. It’s for leaders from the voluntary, charity, social enterprise, education, public and private sectors. It’s for experienced, new and future leaders of organisations, work, and ideas.
North East Together is hosted by Yes We Can and is a collaboration between Yes We Can and Newcastle University Business School. We’re grateful for the support both organisations give to North East Together.
