Constitutional Aims
The aim of the group is to make a positive contribution to the lives of individuals and local communities, using a range of creative and performing arts media: to improve skills, build confidence and self esteem and enable the empowerment of individuals and whole communities.  LifePlay Learning will be non-profit making and will not discriminate on grounds of race, class, sex, age, disability, political view or religion.

 Life Play Learning is an association of individuals committed to furthering the aims of the group.  Its purpose is to develop creative and performing arts teams.  It will have the responsibility of identifying and providing the necessary support and common resources for individual projects (such as: premises, fund-raising and publicity). 

 LifePlay has developed an extensive range of activities and been warmly received by groups and individuals during its first year of operation, often with the group being invited back, or booked for a future event.  We are now looking to consolidate our work and expand on the opportunities identified in the following ways.

Short-Term Objectives

• To obtain interim funding to maintain operations
  • for running costs of base, equipment, activities & staffing
  • supported by Plymouth Community Partnership
• To develop necessary systems to improve operational practices
• To produce a 3-year business and development strategy plan
  • supported by Co-active
• To complete a monitoring and evaluation process
  • supported by Guild of Community & Voluntary Services
• To rationalise mailing list

LPL’s Mid-Term Objectives
Through the production of a 3-year business plan & a full evaluation report LPL plans to obtain the necessary funding:

• To recruit a core team of paid staff to operate and develop the project
• To develop the recruitment, training and support of voluntary workers
• To further develop performance and training opportunities
• To obtain suitable premises

LPL’s Long-Term Objectives
We expect this to become clearer through the production of the business plan & evaluation report, but we believe that LifePlay Learning will develop into an established aspect of community-based, creative and expressive arts work in Plymouth in partnership with existing and future community, voluntary, commercial and statutory organisations and individuals.

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A Sample of LifePlay Learning’s Activities:

• After-school and lunch clubs at High Street Primary School, Stonehouse
• Performances and workshops in Plymouth at
  • Fetes, Community Fairs, and Exhibitions
  • School Assemblies and pre-school groups
  • Family Learning Weekend Event
• Customised events for specialist groups
  • parents groups
  • children with special learning needs
• A weekly group in Stonehouse
  • introducing puppetry and performance to families
• A weekly rehearsal night to develop a performing team
  • puppets & improvisational drama
• A scripted soundtrack of The Gruffalo recorded at the Music Education Zone
• A public performance of The Gruffalo children’s book
  • for Family Learning Weekend
• A one-off event for Stoke Damerell Community College
• A street theatre performance in Plymouth City Centre
  • for Christmas Late-night shoppers
• A series of after-school workshops for children
  • Halcyon Community Centre, North Prospect
  • A public performance at Halcyon by the children
• Work placements for students from
  • College of St Mark & St John
  • Plymouth College of Art & Design
• Theatre trips for volunteers and families to disseminate good practice
• A weekend trip for volunteers to Leicester University
  • Conference on Puppets & Masks
• Volunteer training in Plymouth on “Planning for Real”
  • Delivered by Neighbourhood Foundations Initiatives

 In addition LPL has  

• Set up its own website at www.lifeplaylearning.com
• Developed a vast range of networking and partnership opportunities with community and voluntary organisations
• Compiled a mailing list of approximately 250 contacts
• Circulated 3 newsletters

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The Future for LifePlay Learning

 The original LifePlay Learning Project Outline identified three strands of work opportunities: 

Ø      Community Development

Ø      Education and Training

Ø      Spirituality and Church 

 In the first six months we have tended to focus on the second of these areas, predominantly working with children and/or families.  However, this has been more due to previous networking, rather than a conscious choice.  We were overwhelmed by the amount of interest which was shown to LifePlay by groups, community centres and organisations from the outset of our operations and it has not always been possible to keep pace with all the opportunities which have been available.

 Our work has been almost universally well received with words like “innovative”, “professional”, “beyond our expectations” “a breath of fresh air” being used by the groups we have performed or worked with.  And we have seen individuals grow in confidence and self-esteem before our eyes.  It is now vital that much of that informal evaluation is formalised.

 Groups interested in our work include credit unions, lunch clubs, parents and carers of children with special learning needs, refugee organisations and churches, to mention but a few.  Our marketing has been limited, due to lack of time and money, and predominantly work has been obtained through personal networking and word-of-mouth recommendation.  Our informal research to date has shown that our appeal comes from the breadth of the background experiences we are able to draw on, our innovative use of creative arts and our willingness to custom-design our material and resources to fit the needs of the community or group we are working with.

 As part of the business planning process we have to decide on the best way for the project to be developed: a “performing company”, training organisation, community development project, freelance delivery service, or some other provision which we have yet to identify.  In addition we have to decide on a legal structure and status: community enterprise, workers’ cooperative, charity, company limited by guarantee, etc, etc.

The main challenges for LifePlay at this time are how to continue to recruit, train and perform at the same time as undertaking the operational and strategic planning for an evolution from our current, embryonic state into an innovative participator in the developing creative and performing arts field in the City of Plymouth.

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