Nottingham City Social Business Dragons' Den



In January 2015 Roger Moors, CEO of SEEM and I launched Nottingham City's Social Business Dragons' Den. Following an intensive programme, twelve Nottingham social entrepreneurs pitched to six city dragons in front of an enthralled audience gathered on the top floor of Waterstones. These inspirational people, of all ages and backgrounds, had ideas for businesses with a social mission - to help make a difference to people's lives. The Social Business Dragons' Den was part of the Building Enterprise project managed by Community Partnerships at the University of Nottingham.  Details about the programme and pitchers are on the website.

Public engagement in university research

The University of Nottingham Catalyst Project has been working to engage publics in university research. It spanned a range of disciplines and provided a small partnership fund to help community organisations, academics and other university staff work together. I'm currently compiling the final evaluation report as well as some of the fascinating stories, lessons and good practice emerging from the project. 

Mythical arduino robots in local libraries

Evaluating this exciting project. Local libraries in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Rutland are piloting a creative programme with young people aged 10-14 over summer 2014. Linking with the summer reading challenge, the Mythical Maze, and working with artists, storytellers and programmers, four libraries are hosting workshops to create two robots each using arduino kits. The robots will go on tour in October 2014. The project is part of the libraries exploration of building on their role as spaces for holding information and creative work to provide spaces for creating work.

Nottingham Blue Stockings Society

One of three founders of a new supportive space for women -  an informal environment where women freelancers and business owners can be honest about the challenges facing them.  A space for conversations about doing business differently, upholding our values, playing to our strengths and learning from each other. It is called Blue Stockings after a women's informal social and educational movement that broke new ground for women in the eighteenth century. Blue Stockings meets monthly in Nottingham.

What Would William Shipley Do?

William Shipley founded the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce in 1754. As a Fellow, I'm leading this project exploring how the founder's principles of enterprise and innovation for the common good might be pursued today with a focus on how we support existing and new generations of changemakers. 

Historians on Teaching TV

Managing design, production and launch of online resource to enhance HE History teaching and preparation of humanities graduates for rewarding working lives. Developed from co-direction of the first national survey of UK HE History teachers which was part of Graduates With Impact for the History Subject Centre, UK Higher Education Academy. The site www.historiansonteaching.tv was launched in December 2013 and development is ongoing.

Social Business Builder

Worked with Social Enterprise East Midlands to develop a proto-type for a social business game to be used with Further and Higher Education students.
2013/4

Ingenuity Knowledge Hub

A multi-partner collaborative project to enhance connection between small local enterprises and the University of Nottingham. The Good Work Guide (Jeanne Booth) was responsible for recruiting three small businesses for an 'In a Fishbowl' online programme and a panel of academic and local business experts, managing their interaction over the project. Read the case study.

Passion, Purpose & Value: history teaching and preparing students for making a living


Article with Alan Booth in History Graduates With Impact, Higher Education Academy. The article uses data from the largest survey of university history teachers we designed and conducted as co-directors of the History Passion Project.  Link to article

Student-centred work placements

Working with the team from the University of Nottingham on this JISC project (digital technologies for education and research) to review, enhance and evaluate student experience of university administered work placements. Placement activity does not occur in isolation. It involves administration, teaching and learning, employability, networking, business engagement and more. Case study.




How great history teaching prepares graduates to thrive

 Demonstrating to Australian Policy and History Forum how great history teaching can prepare graduates to thrive in 21st century, with Alan Booth, April 2011. Download presentation

Beyond employability

New ways of looking at employability and the graduate labour market. Includes overview of report on skills for creative and cultural sectors written for East Midlands Regional development Agency and SALAMI Labour Market Intelligence Data project. Presentation to Deakin University Arts and Humanities Faculty(April 2011)

View or download presentation

What else can I do?

Organised Good Work Guide workshops 'What Else Can I do?', 'How To Make a Good Living' and 'How to Buy a Gallery and Make a Good Living' working with education and employability consultant Paul Hacking, Nottingham's women's bookclub organiser, Karen Oehme and artist and former gallery owner Alysn  Midgelow Marsden. (2011-12)
Workshop details 

The Good Work Guide

Launched the Good Work Guide social enterprise collaboratory January 2011 to organise workshops and events to help people learn how to make a good living.
More details

Beating the recession


Over 50 free (or cheap) things you can do to increase sales or reduce costs. Presentation to creative businesses at the Creative Greenhouse

Best bits from best business books for creatives

What can creative sole traders get from business books? Quick summaries from books recommended by creative people.

Presentation & notes

View From The Top gallery and conference venue

Negotiated with Waterstone's Nottingham to take over their top floor for an art gallery and creative meeting venue. View from the Top ran for five years (closing when Waterstone's ownership changed) and hosted over 200 exhibitions, events, conferences and makers' markets.
Archive site www.viewfromthetop.co.uk

Repositioning University Careers Guidance

Do we need to revisit some of the major assumptions underpinning much of careers guidance? This presentation reflects upon changing work structures, new economic thinking including happiness research and Generation Y.  Presented in Berlin at the European conference of HE Careers Advisers with Paul Hacking, Head of the Career Development Centre at Nottingham Trent University.
Presentation
Website: www.headorheart.net

Engaging Small Businesses - new strategies

99% of UK enterprises employ less than 50 people and together they provide employment for nearly half the workforce, yet universities tend to focus on larger companies, reporting difficulties getting smaller ones involved. This workshop at the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services Biennial Conference 2009 reflected on my experience as a small business and co-ordinator of business networks and some strategies Careers Services might like to try.
Presentation with notes

Skills for the 21st Century: Creative and Cultural Sectors

What skills do creative people need to address 21st century challenges and thrive.  Report from research programme with Sector Skills Councils, creative & cultural organisations, Further and Higher Eduction and Learning and Skills Council to build collaboration & provide recommendations for skills strategy to East Midlands Regional Development Agency. 

Report

Presentation

Leap Ahead Interim Evaluation Report

The interim evaluation written for Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Lifelong Learning Network focussed on three major strands: Information, Advice and Guidance, Services to Business and Employers and Progression Agreements.

Report

Presentation

Rough Guide to Working in Partnership

How do you work in partnership with others and what is the role of a partnership manager? This report was written through action research with Aimhigher East Midlands and interviews with county directors and other highly experienced partnership managers. Widely used as an induction and reflective tool for collaborative projects including by Action on Access, 14-19 Diploma Partnerships and National Council for School Leadership. 

Report

Supplying Higher Level Skills to Smaller Companies


Scoping potential for developing regional graduate recruitment services for East Midlands Universities Association and East Midlands Development Agency.

Report

Good Learning and Employability


Good Learning and Employability: Issues for Careers Services and Guidance Practitioners, commissioned by the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services and Higher Education Academy.

Report

Minority Ethnic Recruitment, Information,Training and Support

This project ran from 2001-2 so it's pretty old but it produced some great resources and it would be a pity not to make them available for recycling! It involved six university careers working with large and small companies on recruitment, mentoring and placements. A major conference was held in Leicester and a website launched containing all the resources. I project managed MERITS on behalf of the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services - working with a great team - David Ross wrote much of the website, Chris Winson did the amazing designs and all the hard creative work was done by colleagues from the universities of Loughborough, Central England, Manchester and UMIST, Brunel, Manchester Metropolitan and Southampton

Magazine Report                    Website
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Artwork, design and production

Almost all of the artwork, design and production is carried out by my good friends at Line and Form - who I cannot recommend highly enough for their creativity, patience and fortitude!