Participle

P'articles

A series of essays exploring the future public realm.

Engineering a Brighter Future - Loops

First posted at 15:41GMT on 14/06/10 by Cherie Fullerton

Alice Rawsthorn, writing in the New York Times on 13 June 2010, profiles Participle's Loops project for young people.

“We’d wanted to help young people for some time, but the urgency came when Unicef published a study showing that the UK was the worst country in the Western world to grow up in,” explained Hilary Cottam, co-founder of Participle. “The government’s response was to build new youth centers and to encourage young people to avoid risk — not drinking, not getting pregnant, not doing drugs. All the research shows that locking them up in schools and youth centers doesn’t work. Youth development comes out of having lots of experiences and engaging with risk. We felt there had to be a better way.”

See the full article here

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Ten Points for a Social Renaissance

First posted at 14:17GMT on 25/02/10 by Hilary Cottam

What should a new government do?

At Participle, we believe that public services must provide new ways for people to shape their lives in a more meaningful way. We work with and for the public to make this happen. The current system isn’t working. It is both failing to support people and failing to address the major issues of modern society. This has little to do with money – most of our solutions are cheaper.

Working with the public means that we have lived for six months on council estates to spend time with ‘families in chronic crisis.’ We spent most of 2007 intensively living and experiencing the lives of over 250 older people in South London. We have also spent six months living through the lives of over 60 young people. Through working in this unique way, immersing ourselves in some of the biggest issues of our time, we are fortunate to receive unique insights into particular parts of the population.

Those who have seen our work have asked, what should a new government do to allow these bottom up, low cost approaches to flourish nationally. Here are our 10 points for a Social Renaissance.

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Learning from the Extremes - Charlie Leadbeater & Annika Wong

First posted at 13:49GMT on 26/01/10 by Amelia Sanders

Commissioned by Cisco, Charles Leadbeater interviewed 100 social entrepreneurs seeking to meet huge needs without the advantage of traditional resources. What we can learn from social entrepreneurs are innovating radically new ways to take learning into the poorest places in to the world.

That kind of disruptive innovation may not come from the best schools. It is much more likely to come from social entrepreneurs who often seek to meet huge need without the resources for traditional solutions: teachers, text books and schools. Disruptive innovation frequently starts in the margins rather than the mainstream. Governments should continue to look to the very best school systems to guide improvement strategies. But increasingly they should also look to social entrepreneurs working at the extremes who may well create the low-cost, mass, participatory models of learning that will be needed in future.

To find out more download the Learning from the Extremes White Paper here

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Get-Together

First posted at 11:32GMT on 18/01/10 by Hugo Manassei

In 2008, we piloted a wonderful service we call Get-Together. It's aim is to reduce some truly horrific statistics. Currently, in the UK, 3.1 million people over 65 do not see a friend, neighbour or family member, at least once a week and 1.8 million have no contact with friends, family or neighbours at least once a month. The link between social isolation and mental health is very strong, highlighted well in Daniel Goleman's book, Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships - “Studies done over two decades involving more than thirty-seven thousand people show that social isolation - the sense that you have nobody with whom you can share your private feelings or have close contact - doubles the chance of sickness or death. Isolation itself, a 1987 report in Science concluded, "is as significant to mortality rates as smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity and lack of physical exercise." Indeed, smoking increases mortality risk by a factor of just 1.6, while social isolation does so by a factor of 2.0, making it a greater health risk."

So, Participle, in conjunction with Westminster Council, developed this service called Get Together. For the past year, we have been developing a business case, and getting partners on board to finance and launch Get-Together across London. This is planned for 2010, so watch this space. In the meantime, watch this great film made of the pilot:



For more information on Get-Together, view the case study. Also, read this article here written by Jonathan Freedland.

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Trying to Be Responsible and Cutting-Edge, Too

First posted at 13:58GMT on 27/12/09 by Amelia Sanders

LONDON — Let’s look back at what design was like a decade ago. If I’d mentioned the “S word” you’d have thought it meant “style,” not “sustainability.”

See the full article here

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Seven ways to protect public services

First posted at 11:30GMT on 16/12/09 by Amelia Sanders

Seven ways to protect public services
There are alternatives to Ryanair-style public services cut back to a basic low-cost offering, says Charles Leadbeater.

See the full article here

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Madeleine Bunting writes about Participle in today’s Guardian

First posted at 12:41GMT on 28/06/10 by Cherie Fullerton

See the full article here

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/27/new-model-welfare-state

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Get Together design work on show at the National Design Triennial: Why Design Now? New York

First posted at 16:15GMT on 15/06/10 by Cherie Fullerton

Why Design Now? Designers around the world are answering this question by creating products, prototypes, buildings, landscapes, messages, and more that address social and environmental challenges. How can we power the world with clean energy? How can we move people and products safely and efficiently? How can we shelter communities in sustainable environments? How can we close the loop of materials extraction and disposal? How can we enable people around the globe to generate and share wealth? How can we improve the quality of life for all people through health-care innovations? How can we communicate ideas effectively and creatively? How can we discover beauty and wisdom in simple forms that use minimal resources? Collectively, designers are seeking to enhance human health, prosperity, and comfort while diminishing the conflicts between people and the global ecosystems we inhabit.

Participle's Get Together work is now showing as part of this exhibition at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York.

See the full article here

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Putting the Social Back Into Services

First posted at 15:08GMT on 15/05/10 by Amelia Sanders

Is there an alternative to the seemingly inevitable cuts to public services? Hilary Cottam of Participle poses the question.
See the full article here

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The Circle family is growing…

First posted at 16:36GMT on 27/04/10 by Amelia Sanders

Hammersmith & Fulham Council and Participle are working together to develop H&F Circle, building on the success of Southwark Circle. H&F Circle is looking for two inspiring and committed individuals to help us launch and grow this innovative social enterprise. Download the job description for Head of Operations here and the job description for Head of Membership Development here.

Candidates should send a CV and cover letter to by 12 noon on 28 July 2010.

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