ChangeMakers

ChangeMakers empowers people to engage with power-holders. It is modelled on adult education and community empowerment work undertaken in Latin America and elsewhere following on from the work of Paulo Friere, as well as wide approaches to community education, empowerment and organising.

The overall objective of the project is to develop the capacity and skills of the members of socially and economically disadvantaged communities across England. The aim is for them to be better able to identify, and help meet, their needs; and to participate more fully in local regeneration processes, in the development of effective local and national urban policy, and society in general.

Successful "schools of participation" in Manchester and Stockton have now led to the development of a longer-term programme called Changemakers. Funding has now been confirmed which will allow us to establish Changemakers organisations in Stockton, Bradford and Manchester.

Changemakers will allow local people to address issues not being tackled in other ways. These organisations will be large, diverse, disciplined, and led by ordinary local people who have been trained in community leadership. Changemakers represents an attempt to set direct, participatory forms of democratic activity alongside representative ones. The programme is responding to widespread apathy and cynicism about politics and citizen engagement. It is a way of enabling the poorest and most marginalised communities to have a voice at the table of power by claiming their own political spaces.

The Changemakers project in Manchester is already active, running training courses and identifying issues to campaign on. You can follow their progress on the Changemakers blog.

The Changemakers project in Stockton is growing out of our existing Thrive project.

To find out more about Changemakers, contact Mark Waters.