Who Are These Folk?
Woodcraft Folk Annual Review 2009-2010
ething special, as an Growing up in Woodcraft is som l and social education, tica poli organisation it gave me my indebted to the organisation something that I am forever proud to become was I ers. and my fantastic lead lop our long established deve and folk the of son rper chai tics, co-operation and poli and ping cam fusion between ge. 2009 saw us grow, chan al soci solidarity, friendship and ing programs. While we said starting projects and embedd Secretary, Kirsty Palmer eral Gen ious goodbye to our prev f Executive of the Chie erly we appointed Jon Nott, form g as a local member ing runn nd grou the hit who Green Party, with n bee had from north London. Kirsty us for three years, in which she the oversaw significant growth in y to acit cap ’s tion nisa orga ral cent ad we support groups. Looking ahe tegic aim to grow and with the stra have we k wor our ing plan guid embarked upon an ambitious nd ps and programme of support for grou the of ing and rebr districts and Woodcraft Folk. (Lloyd Russell-Moyle , Chair General Council)
e of the
to give a flavour of the In this brief overview we’ve tried ft Folk. If this is your dcra awesome diversity of the Woo urge you get involved I , Folk ft dcra Woo the first taste of yone every ething for e som s is ly real e and find out more – ther re in our movement. And if you’ d find already involved I hope you’ll to things that others are doing n in engage, amuse and inspire you . your journey through the Folk (Jon Nott, General Secretary)
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Elfins
n wn ow ow do dd nd up aan We have over 380 groups g rtin sta are s up the country and new gro le op pe g even more ing up all the time, givvin the Woodcraft the chance to experience Folk. htt Woodcraft was one igh gssig Manchester Long ts established in 2009, of the new districcts 9) and Pioneer starting with the Elfin (6pss.. (10-12) age group ng group nights focus on “Tuesday evening h fun and games – avoidlearning through rs as even the most ers ing outside speaakke like a boring youth-focused can be a bit of trips, including teacher! We also do a lot i g.” k tin bowling and ice ska though was our “The highlight of the year ire – we’ll first summer camp in Chesh the hill in our never forget rolling down ping back to sleeping bags and then jum our bags.” the top of the hill – still in
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Cudam Sleepovers
Cudh a seaso m Enviro n n Sout on a rea mental A hwar l ctivit l y po k Hack y ney a , Woking sitive not Centre e h e ll att nded a with m ,T endi All w ng “S ooting, C Elfins fr a busy 2 h o leepo 0 new o attend laph am, S m Bromle 09 e fr ver” e p y gam iends, cr d had a g v , e e lthor nts. af es re ne an with , a night t activitie at time d ta a w s badg “goody b alk, sing to take h king par t i e a n o too n r was on g” for ea g and la me, co-o in makin g c u ly oisy for h seen ve h and ev ghter all perative er y E im! ry br topp iefly l as ap fin. Bertie ed off pare ntly w the e we re
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Lockerbrook Outdoor Activity Centre is located in the stunning heart of the Peak District
t Gate om Heigh A note fr o-op, our onsibility C
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h the Treesp nines Working wit e south Pen d of centre in th e at iced woodlan pp co a Height G of ng ating ti he an s pl as e th r the biom fo completed el fu e ra id fo to prov rmission 1,000 trees planning pe d ed an in ls ga ne so al pa e solar system. We mplement th neutral centre. co to e in rb wind tu a carbon e our goal of help achiev
y busy year in 2009, Stanley Woodies had a ver h refugees, attending wit in aga g including campin weekend. But they tel hos Annual Gathering and a tion e to work on the renova still managed to find tim . of The Activity Den y lots of work, The Activit After a long campaign & se and lea the ed sign , nts gra Den received some big f on the building. A new roo eventually started work k done inside wor of lots and as istm finished for Chr k of the place. As you wal to transform the ambience ed icat ded a know it is through the building you g. children's and youth buildin
Activity Den
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In July uly the South East region on attended the Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival, the yearly pud l, th h ye ly ists of the commemoration by trade un unionists Dorchester Lab Labourers who were transported to ow nspo o Australia in the 1830s for daring to organise a o orga union of agricultural workers. The W Woodcraft presence at the event totalled 70 people organising craft activities and games. so took the opportunity to dis nst We also distribute Woodies Against sa the Nazis badges as pa part of our cam campaign against racist and fascist groups.
tio off “I travelled down to the wave with a whole collection raft urers DFs and nd adults - a woodcrafters: Elfins, Pioneers, Venturers, great mix of age groups all getting on rea really well. There are ss few more liberating feelings than being amongst a huge mass of positive people trying to say something and make a difference. Being with my Bradford Woodcraft friends made it re enj enjoy njj d ex all the more enjoyable and exciting. Some of the Venturers were ere interviewed intervie intervie erviewed wed ed d fo ffor a rradio i program, seeing young Woodies having ha aving a say y at a h huge, nat ve huge, national demonstration was lovely. Woodcraft has alway a given nm always me an outlet to talk aboutt important issues freely e y with other ther h young people and adults, whilst trying to do th hing i lve the lv things to solve problems young people have to tthink about today. T e The wave is a great e example wh he I and other of an event wher where dcrafters were g an n to Woodcrafters given the chance y about clim i ge e and have our say climate change generally just have a real really nice tr trip out””
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(Katyy White, Bradford Brad ord District))
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Woodchips are the newest (and youngest) Woodcraft age group, catering for the under-sixes, providing a first introduction to the principles of co-ooperative play and learning through fun which extend through all Woodcraft age groups. Like all Woodcraft Folk groups, Woodchip groups vary widely in their ways of working, but many are organised as parents co-operatives.
As Woodcraft Folk we are proud of our co-operative heritage and continued role in the co-operative movement. We work closely with many other parts of the co-operative movement, with the Co-op Group and local co-op societies providing funding for many Woodcraft districts and the Co-operative College providing training for General Council (our board of Trustees).
collaborate consensus co-exist contribute construct coordinate conserve comence come cooperate
2009 also saw the launch of CoCamp - the international camp of co-operation. CoCamp, which will be hosted by Woodcraft Folk in August 2011, is being organised by a board elected by a co-op of all those who plan to attend the camp.
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25TH JULY-2ND AUGUST 2009
LlyN TeGid, Bala
The last week in July saw Woodcraft Groups from all over Britain descend upon a field at the edge of a lake in Bala, North Wales for Celtic Camp. Torrential rain wasnĂt enough to stop us enjoying workshops on the Celts and traditional Welsh stories and a Ceilidh. Amazingly, the whole event, including sound systems, disco lights and occasionally hair straighteners, was powered by solar energy, and our own wind turbine. Not to mention the bicycle-powered smoothie-maker. As ever, the folks in the MEST-UP tent did their thing, offering support and advice to those in need of it.
'THE BEST THINGS AT CAMP WERE BEING AWAY WITH MY BEST FRIENDS FOR MORE THAN A WEEK, SEEING PEOPLE I HADN'T SEEN IN AGES, MAKING NEW FRIENDS, THE SOLAR SHOWERS AND SHARING THE TEEPEE' ROBBIE, NEWCASTLE MADE NEW FRIENDS AND I'VE
'I NEVER FELT SO HAPPY, I'D RATHER BE IN THE RAVE TENT THAN OUT CLUBBING' RACHEL, DF
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Cambridge to Peru
One of this year's IFM-SEI camps was held in Peru, near the famous, ancient city of Cuzco. The theme was children's rights and child slavery and we spent the week learning and educating others on issues in our respective countries. We finished the week with a debate in Cuzco and a march through the city in support of the rights of children all over the world. There was a great sense of community during our two week stay and we all left great friends.
QUEER EASTER
We’ve been involved in the largest LGBT young socialist meeting in Europe for over 10 years. The theme was Identity. Can we ever know our true identity? How much does society create it for us?
Our members discussed and presented through mediums ranging from gender challenging drama, to 'how gay is too gay?' stop motion animation to research on how 'out' the participants were. Mixing the values and principles of Woodcraft Folk with those of the LGBT community means provides a vital link between converging communities.
INterNatIoNal African Youth Activists Network - Senegal
Two members from Brighton attended the launch of a network to bring our partners the Senegal Pioneers with other organisations to start tackling HIV/AIDS in Africa. Almost half of new HIV infections occur among young people age 15 to 24.This is a preventable virus and yet for prevention to be a reality, young people must have access to adequate health services and quality education IFM-SEI (International Falcon Movement and Socialist Education Intentional) is our international organisation. In 2009 we strengthened our work globally. In particular took part in the IFM-SEI network ‘All Together’ tacking discrimination and inclusion.
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NDCS @DF Camp
National Deaf Child N ren’s Society and Sense both b brought young memb ers t the epic DF Camp to 2 2009. It was a first for tthe DF Movement th and w s a huge success. wa Hayley f m NDCS said “Th fro e camp was fantastic, everythin g was really well organised and all my concerns were soon put to rest upon arrival” The mo vement learnt a huge ammo unt about including young de af people and we hope to build on the experience in the fut ure!
E THE ZIt N World is a
- Woodcraf ry. Now with o distant mem Fs have launched ybody pD el h ’s E on that an E TR d publicati te n ri p n w their o E ZINE ute to: TH l. can contrib & beautifu edgy, bold poetry. e & ar se es ro in p -Z of design, s beyond. ce n ie o rp so Maste t rers & ntu en ve v , s, s F D l ent to al Se
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ZNA.
Zombies for a Nuclear Apocolypse
Brothers, sisters, ghouls and corpses, For too long we have been waiting, w craving a new dawn for c our peoples, a dawn of o tthe dead. N Now is the time for the u undead to spring into llife, to burst from our s soily graves and call, g groan, in unison ''Apocalypse, NOW!' U Up and ATOM, Zombies ffor a Nuclear A Apocalypse! The DF Campagin this y year was No Nuclear Future which spawned the anti-campaigning group ZNA. Hundereds of DF Zombies took to the streets to demand a nuclear apocolypse in Bradford, Sellafield and Aldermaston. ZNA launched their own website and hit the front page of The Telegraph & Argus
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Open space at Annual Gathering 2009 saw us develop, with the support of the Cooperative Fund, new ways of decision making at our Annual Gathering. Using open space and interactive forms the event discussed just under half the motions in smaller groups. This allowed people who have never spoken before at the conference to have their views heard. Woodcraft Folk Participation Plan Around 100 Pioneers, Venturers, DFs and adult helpers shared their views on democracy and decision-making at Woodcraft Folk, through TREE activities at Southwest camp in August. This was one of many local and regional events where Woodcraft Folk members contributed to the development of TREEs Youth Participation Plan a plan to make sure young people can have their say in everything that happens at Woodcraft Folk from group night activities to Annual Gathering discussions. Young people on Council We remain proud that over half of General Council (our Trustee Board) are young people under 25 and that they take on leading roles such as Chairperson. Elections at our Annual Gathering ensure that the full range of members are represented at Council's bi-monthly meetings, making it an exciting inter-generational forum at the heart of the movement.
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Lloyd
Ben Carly
Karl
Phin
Democracy Woodcraft Style
K’Dawg
Kit
dd odd J Joosshh Dood
Sarah
Jack
Magico
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Folk Finances We estimate that around 12,000 children & young people took part in Woodcraft Folk activities in 2009.
income
expenditure
We raised approximately £102.50 per child and spent approximately £107.50 per child (the difference was funded from our reserves).
Grants for regions and groups Grants for specific projects Income from Centres & Camps Membership Fees Fundraising Co-Operative Group
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Core Educational & Development Work Specific Projects: a) TREE - enhancing youg people’s experience of Woodcraft Folk b) Playout c) The Power Pod d) Other Projects
Regional & Group Activity Expenditure on Centres & Camps Governance Fundraising
Each block represents about £2.50 per child.
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Our full accounts are available from our website woodcraft.org.uk
Woodcraft Folk is a member of: IFM-SEI BYC Co-operatives UK NCVYS NCVO We gratefully receive financial support from: Big Lottery Co-operative Group Scottish Co-operative DFID DCFS Scottish Government Cashback for Communities Volunteering in Wales Fund – Welsh Council for Voluntary Action Welsh Assembly Government Youth Delivery Fund GwirVol (16-25) - WCVA DEFRA NESTA
We are proud to work in partnership with: Co-operative College Sense NCDS NYA Practical Participation De Montfort University
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www.woodcraft.org.uk 020 7703 4173 info @woodcraft.org.uk Woodcraft Folk Unit 9 83 Crampton Street London SE7 3BQ
if you need this document in an alternative formate or plain text then please contact us on the address above
This booklet was designed by members of The District Fellows Movement www.spanthatworld.com
Woodcraft Folk is a registered charity in England & Wales (1073665) and in Scotland (SC039791)