Converge Newsletter - Issue 6 - In With The New

CONVERGE In With The New

ISSUE NUMBER 6

Representatives from Igen presenting cheque to Converge to extend our work with mentors, tutors and evaluation

MUSIC | DANCE |UNDERSTANDING HAPPINESS | THEATRE | ART | CREATIVE WRITING | HEALTHY BODY HEALTHY MIND | FILM | TEXTILES

INTRODUCTION

Autumn/Winter 16 Welcome to Issue 6. This issue is themed ‘In With The New’. There have been so many new additions to Converge and still so many to come. Whether that is new students, new tutors, new interns, new courses, new developments at other universities, new funding, new perspectives, new mentors, new blogs, new awards, new work or our new term. It’s bright and shiny, but still the Converge we know and love.

COLLABORATORS Chris Bartram, Ave Cuckston, Lucy Coleman, Eloise Ingham, Amber Gosden, Christina Stipetic, Jessica Robson, Tellisa Tillisch, Steph Pratt, Lesley Jenyns, Matt Harper, Nick Rowe, Paul Gowland, Simona Manni, Margaret Wilson and Converge Mentors.

Laurie Farnell teaching Drawing on Life 1

We want to be part of Converge!

The idea of Converge is being taken up in Leeds and Newcastle. In the spring there will be a courses in theatre at Northumbria University and Leeds University, Songwriting at Leeds College of Music, Electronic Music at Leeds Beckett University, and Sports Coaching at Leeds Trinity. The basic principles will stay the same: courses that are held in a university, treating people who attend as students, involving university students, and focusing on the subject - not on mental health problems.

Dreams can come true if you really want them Hi, I’m Ave Cuckston I have battled for many years with bipolar depression, but thankfully at this time in my life I feel I am now in control of my illness and also my life. I found out about Converge in November 2014 and started my first course in September 2015. I realised how much I’d missed study and interaction with people. Converge filled this void in March 2016; I took the plunge and applied for a BA in Creative Writing at York St John University and in August 2016 I got the news that I had got a place. Suddenly reality hit and beyond the euphoria I was filled with intimidation!

Fresher's Week came and at my first lecture I was confronted with a room full of 18 year olds, but this was not going to stop my dream.

I just wanted to tell you my story which will hopefully inspire some people to do the same as me.

My Journey is just beginning—wish me luck.

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COURSES

Lights! Camera! Action! each individual within the group.

And so began the new film course facilitated by professional film maker Simona Manni and Paul Gowland.

The title of the film was named ‘Stepping Through’ and can be viewed online on the Converge Youtube channel.

The pair facilitated a pilot course over the summer aimed at Converge mentors to test run a project. The result was bursting with enthusiasm, laughs and team work.

With the success of the pilot film, the course fired up again during this autumn, with the returning and new students.

Over the weeks the group watched a variety of different film clips and styles, learnt basic operations of the camera and agreed upon a project idea and the direction to steer it.

Over the several weeks the group once again watched and discussed a variety of film clips, imaginary storyboarding and learnt basic camera and audio operations. The latest project was decided and filming began following a script written by Paul Gowland and edited by Simona Manni.

The first film project idea was to portray the feelings of living with mental health and stepping through the doors for the first time at Converge. The style was to be symbolic and poetic with input from everyone in the group.

The current project is an ironic comedy piece based around the subject of technology upgrading, its constant demands, and the struggles that often come with it.

Each poem was devised by the group writing lines, words and phrases on to torn up strips of paper as to what mental health and Converge meant to them , and the emotions and feelings felt when arriving for the first time at the doors of Converge.

The project has been changeling in itself, but just as rewarding with many laughs and team work all along the way.

The current project is titled ‘UPGRADE’ and will be soon online on the Converge Youtube channel.

Jumbling all the words and lines up, each person constructed a poem out of the pile, and as a result created a unique poem which holds weight and input from

That’s a wrap!

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COURSES

New: Storytelling Course Storytelling for beginners, improvers and marauders Course starts Monday 27th Feb , 1:00 – 2:30, MB/004, for six Mondays.

This course is open to anyone interested in stories: telling, reading or writing stories.

There is a ‘ladder’ of stories, reaching from personal experience all the way up to the myths and legends of world cultures.* Making up stories and telling them to others is open to us all - unlike Jack climbing the beanstalk, there is no ban on climbing up and down this ladder to steal the giant’s riches.

Perhaps you would like to nourish your theatre practice or creative writing using the abundant heritage of the oral storytelling tradition, or perhaps you would like to find your unique voice as a storyteller for its own sake. Tutor Cath Heinemeyer will introduce you to story repertoire, teach storytelling skills and help you develop compelling individual and group performances. We will use creative writing to explore what the stories mean to us, and how they relate to our lives.

There will be an opportunity to perform (or have your work performed if you prefer) at the University arts festival in the spring.

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COURSES

1/2/6 In 2015 an ensemble project started as a means to give developed Converge musicians a possibility of creating their own music and in their own way.

As a result a 6 piece was formed and named themselves ‘The Callouts’.

Meeting once a week and writing their own material they performed several times at the Create Festivals and end of term sharing performances. They were also joined on a blues number by Lucy Colman who provided vocals to give structure and another layer to the song.

by another band.

The name ‘1/2/6’ came about as a result of an inside joke with one of their guitarist’s, Allen Lockyer who would forever be counting in the start of songs as “1,2,6” instead of ‘1,2,3’.

1/2/6 were asked to play a set at Matt Harper– Hardcastle’s, ‘Brave the Shave’ charity event on the 25th November 2016 at St John University student union bar. Though still performing on campus, it would be the first time that 1/2/6 could state they had a ‘gig’ and perform a 40 minute set including new material which had only been heard exclusively

by Converge Leeds song writing facilitators on the 10th of November 2016 during their visit to St John’s.

In early 2016, 2 of the members left Converge and as a result left the ensemble group. A replacement was needed to fill the gap and was soon met after an audition.

1/2/6 is planning on recording an EP with local Composer/Producer Matt Dawson (HMS Studios York).

Now a 5 piece the ensemble decided to start from scratch, call themselves a band and begin writing fresh new material.

3 new tracks were soon written, ‘Retrograde’, ‘Transcend’ and ‘Got me a Dream’, and were performed at Create Festival ‘16.

The band is:Allen Lockyer – Jamie Newton – Si Moores – Paul Wort –

Gaining more momentum they continued writing more and more material and worked all through summer to bring all the new ideas to life. They also decided to set up social media pages as a means to archive the work and to connect with anybody who was interested in the material they were doing.

They also decided to change their name to ‘1/2/6’ as they discovered ‘The Callouts’ name had been taken

Paul Gowland -

(Rhythm Guitar, Vocals) (Spanish Acoustic Guitar) (Electric Guitar) (Piano, Melodeon, Electric sound effects, Vocals) (Cajon, Percussion, Acoustic Guitar, Piano, Vocals)

You can follow 1/2/6 across their social media pages: Facebook and Twitter - @1/2/6band Instagram and Youtube – 126band & 126 Band* 5

COURSES

Discovery Hub Update The Discovery Hub have been very pleased to welcome new team member Paul Botting this year. Paul comes with a wealth of experience in running courses in horticulture across the local community.

Converge / Discover – Green Spaces: Poppleton Community Railway Nursery: (www.poppletonrailwaynursery.co.uk) Supported volunteering opportunities are available at Poppleton Community Railway Nursery with the aim of learning the basics of working in a nursery. Poppleton Community Railway Nursery is a social and therapeutic nursery that hosts a range of volunteers from across the community.

All volunteers will have the opportunity to learn skills in: propagation, seed sowing, making compost, selling and marketing plants as well as seasonal craft skills.

The Discovery Hub now offer the following courses in partnership with St Nicks Fields ecotherapy project, Poppleton Community Railway Nursery and Bustardthorpe allotments.

Converge / Discover – Creative Writing in partnership with St Nicks Fields, York. (www.stnicks.org.uk) : The Discovery Hub are working in partnership with St Nicks Fields in York to provide a regular creative writing course as part of St Nicks Fields eco-therapy programme. The aim of the course is to use creative writing exercises to connect to nature and to get the most out of green spaces.

All courses are delivered by creative writing MA students from York St John University.

Allotment Skills course: Bustardthorpe allotments (near the Knavesmire racecourse in York) – Learn the basics of running an allotment by participating in the re-vamp and running of a community allotment on a busy allotment site.

Full support is available to anyone who has attended the course to progress to an independent allotment of their own.

Get Gardening – this course runs on a Thursday afternoon at St Nicks fields and aims to get people into gardening starting with the large garden at St Nicks fields. The course runs throughout the year and new members are welcome at any time.

To enter on to a Discovery Course or to find out more details regarding dates / time and venue please email: discoveryhub@yorksj.ac.uk or contact: 01904 876070.

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PEOPLE

Margaret Wilson: Textiles Hello my name is Margaret and I recently ran a 6 week felt making course at Converge. The course involved getting students to make flat pieces of felt and also small bowls using the wet felting technique. We used good quality merino wool tops in beautiful colours which give a soft and smooth finish.

After getting the basics right the students worked on individual pieces of their own design and colour then we made a number of flat squares to form a larger piece for Converge.

We had enough felt to make a banner and with the small pieces of felt left over a multi-coloured cushion. See photos and the items will be on display at the Converge exhibition in December 2016. A huge thank you to all the Converge members who contributed to making the felt:Steph, Catherine and Mum, Lorna, Amber, Bekhi, Wendy, Victoria, Tellisa and Lucy.

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PEOPLE

Welcome to our Graduate Interns Welcome to Tellisa:

Welcome to Jessica:

“I have recently joined Converge as a Graduate Intern. Before joining, I studied business management with HR here at YSJ and hope to explore business more in the future. Whilst at university I was involved with a couple of student mentor schemes and one of the bands where I played flute.

“I’m Jessica, I’m a theatre maker and facilitator. I have recently graduated from York St John University with a Theatre BA (Hons) and I am now studying an MA Applied Theatre here. I am very happy to say that I am one of the new Converge Graduate Interns. This is my third year working with Converge. I started working with the Converge Intro to Theatre and Working towards performance course on a voluntary basis as part of my placement on the module Theatre in Social Context in my second year of university and never left! I didn’t want to leave because the work that Converge does I felt really passionate about.

It’s a pleasure to be a part of such a friendly and vibrant team at Converge. As part of my role I will be supporting courses and events that Converge offers. Aside from my work at Converge, I work with women in the criminal justice system creating shows around the women’s stories whose voices wouldn’t usually be heard.”

After hearing about the wonderful work that Converge does to help and assist not just people in the local area but also YSJ students, I really wanted to be a part of the team and I am now getting the opportunity to be involved in several courses and support many of the students.”

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PEOPLE

Learning Support Worker My name is Lesley Jenyns and I have recently completed a degree at York St John University. My role with Converge is to offer Converge students practical 1:1 general support across a wide range of areas such as: 

Finding your way around campus and becoming more comfortable in the university environment



Exploring what York St John has to offer you as a Converge student



Getting to know places like the Library and Information Learning Services



Using the Library to look for resources that interest you (perhaps to do with your course)



Using and managing E-mail



Using Word and other Microsoft Office programs



Time management and organisational skills



Planning ahead

If there is an area where you would like support please contact Hilary Bailey, Converge Administrator, to book a 1:1 session.

Tel: 01904 876902 Mob: 07764 337116

If I can’t answer your question, I will do my best to find someone who can!

I look forward to meeting you.

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PEOPLE

Update from Mentors Being Part of the Team The mentors have been busy this term supporting new students and helping out with enrolment, attending staff meetings, providing phone support to non-attenders, and representing Converge at local NHS events. In addition to this they have found the time to recruit new mentors! At the end of the summer the mentors did a presentation about the role and what they have achieved. As a result 4 Converge students decided to become mentors.

Our mentors are this academic year are: Adam Bell, Brian Borthwick, Laurie Farnell, Lorna Welsh, Pat Miller, Paul Gowland , Paul Mountain, Polly Gibson and Wayne Hurton.

If you are interested in becoming a mentor it is not too late. We are recruiting throughout the year due to the growing popularity of Converge.

The mentors are doing a presentation in the new year where you can find out more. This presentation is also open to everyone who wants to find out about the mentoring scheme.

New Role for Steph

Igen Trust funding Due to the great work of the mentors we have been awarded funding from the Igen Trust who have supported Converge previously. We would like to know your views on how the scheme could develop in the future. Please get in touch with a mentor, myself or Steph Pratt, s.pratt@yorksj.ac.uk.

Dr Steph Pratt Support and Development Worker

Looking forward to working with you in the new year and hope you enjoyed this one!

I am delighted to be able to contribute further to Converge in my new role as Support and Development Worker. I will be supporting people with lived experience of mental illness to make transitions into the roles of Mentor, Tutor and/or Researcher. It is fantastic that Converge offers such opportunities for people to discover, rediscover and further develop their skills in teaching, research and supporting others. I look forward to working creatively with individuals to best support them.

Lucy Coleman, Converge Support and Progression Worker Email: l.coleman@yorksj.ac.uk Tel: 07415 709035

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PEOPLE

Perspectives from Student Buddies I feel as though I have gained so much from being a student buddy. I have learnt new ways of teaching theatre and making it accessible to different needs and abilities, allowing me to be able to adapt to different situations. This has been an invaluable part of my time with Converge. I have gained a good working relationship with both staff and students, and find myself genuinely looking forward to the theatre classes each week; to make new work and see what new ideas are brought to the space. I have learnt the importance of creating an inclusive and welcoming environment so that everyone feels able to share their ideas and contribute. Being able to join in with the group each week has become a highlight for me, and each week I leave the session feeling refreshed and amazed at all of the creative material we have managed to create in a two hour class.

Amber Gosden: Converge has helped me to build my confidence and social skills, learn a new creative process and meet new people through the enjoyment of individual and collaborative projects. Week by week I have become a "part of something" in a relaxed and sociable environment, where we have all enjoyed spending time making things, for ourselves and as a group. As an art student, I spend a lot of my time "making things" for my degree, however Converge provide the opportunities to spend time doing something for yourself - even if that means making time for yourself! Converge support people through in areas of the community. This is valuable to all involved because we can participate, organise and have voices in the courses. Converge has such a diverse range of courses and I've heard great feedback about many of them through my peers on the Textiles course. There really is something for everyone and hopefully I'll get round to trying another course soon!

I found myself becoming very passionate about Converge and it’s staff and students very quickly, and this passion has encouraged me to follow my own goals to become a theatre facilitator in the future working with different areas of the community. Personally, I challenge anyone to start working with Converge and not fall in love with it and want to carry on!!

Eloise Ingham: I have been a Student Buddy at Converge since March working specifically on the theatre courses as a theatre student here at the university, and at risk of sounding over dramatic (which does happen quite frequently), I have loved every minute of it and can’t imagine not being a part of Converge.

Becoming a student buddy is one of the best things I have done throughout my three years at university without a doubt, and I would encourage others to do the same, as Converge has taught me so much and given me a new lease of love for theatre!

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PEOPLE

Farewell to Nigel “We said goodbye to Nigel Sampson this morning at York Cemetery. He was 82 years old. Nigel was a founder member of Communitas choir. He was there at the first rehearsal in 2009 - as I recall, one of just 8 singers. Subsequently, Nigel probably attended more rehearsals than any other Communitas member.

He sang everything, whatever style or genre - 'Wonderwall', 'Price Tag', 'Rule the World', 'Proud Mary' with enthusiasm and joy. This morning at his funeral, I accompanied Lucy Coleman, who sang beautifully another of Nigel's favourites, 'Lean on Me'.

I was always cheered to see Nigel singing with such passion and commitment. He was a lovely man, and we will all miss him. “ Chris Bartram

CONNECT WITH CONVERGE

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/converge.york/

Twitter: @convergeyork

Youtube: Converge York

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NEWS

Soundscape of Remembrance About ‘Soundscape of Remembrance’ Members of Converge, working with community musicians Matt Dawson and Chris Bartram, were commissioned

by York Archaeological Trust, with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, to devise a new soundscape as part of the ‘Landscapes of Remembrance’ project (see link below to listen to the soundscape).

Our soundscape was created over several months. The final piece combines recordings of ambient sounds, instruments, singing, found objects, words and poems, which were devised, created and performed by the Converge members. Our starting point was a visit to two key sites, the North Eastern Railway War Memorial on Station Rise, and the York City War Memorial in the gardens by the River Ouse. We noted the different ‘feel’ of these two monuments and this contrast provided one impetus for our exploration of how people remember and reflect on war and peace within landscape. Other recordings included York Railway station (the scene of so many departures and returns in war time), the Japanese Peace Garden at York St John University, and the ‘Peace Bell’ at Holy Trinity Church, Goodramgate. Other sounds include lists of names taken from the war memorials, readings of letters to and from home during the First World War, plus poetry, sounds and music, including a new song with lyrics and music by Paul Gowland.

Converge members contributing to the soundscape:

Chris Tandy, Ian Knights, Jon Burke, Paul Gowland, Polly Gibson, Si Moores, Steph Pratt, Anne-Marie Armstrong and Allen Lockyer

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NEWS

York Culture Awards Converge were named as a finalist in the first ever York Culture Awards 2016. We were in the category of Equality and Diversity, alongside York Shakespeare Project, City Screen, Sue Lister and Accessible Arts and Media who very deservedly won on the night.

We were nominated for how the model of Converge breaks down the stigma of mental health and the barriers associated with it by opening up opportunities to those with lived experiences of mental ill health to work with university tutors and students on campus.

We are so proud to have been nominated for this and Nick Rowe, Paul Gowland, Matt Harper and Jessica Robson who went along to the ceremony had a great night, networking with representatives from all the other brilliant organisations from across the city.

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NEWS

The Shave was Braved On Friday 25th November Matt Harper (Converge Theatre Tutor and Support and Progression Worker) shaved his hair in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support and in remembrance of his mam, Lorraine Harper who passed away in October. The night was supported by Andy Pollin’s head shave (from Once Seen Theatre Company) and performances from Laurie Farnell, Esther Griffiths, Jamie Towey and resident band 1/2/6. Thanks to all who came to support on the night and all those who donated, including Simona Manni for her filming and Karen Goodman for her shaving skills!

A special big thanks goes to Hilary Bailey and Paul Gowland for their brilliant event organising skills and to the Students Union for the use of their room. It was a huge success, a really fun night and in total Matt raised...

ÂŁ1,902!

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NEWS

January Re-enrolment We hope that you have enjoyed the Autumn/Winter term with Converge. If you are planning on returning in January, whether on the same course or a different one, you still must re-enrol.

Re-enrolment dates are: Tuesday 10th January and Wednesday 11th January 2017 Put the dates in your diary and we will be in touch soon!

Creative Writing Blog This term Creative Writing have been working hard on producing a blog to showcase their brilliant work, and now it has gone live!

Check out their work at https://convergeyorkcw.wordpress.com

Tutor Assistant Programme Starting in January we will be rolling out a new progression programme which will assist in developing current students’ skills to take on more responsibility for the delivery of courses and eventually become Tutor Assistants. This will be a 1 year training opportunity, including seminars, workshops and planning meetings.

If you are interested please contact Matt Harper on m.harper@yorksj.ac.uk or 07572112404

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Contact us at m.harper@yorksj.ac.uk or 07572 112 404

Web: yorksj.ac.uk/converge Tel: 01904 876902 Email: converge@yorksj.ac.uk