Community leaders gather for ambition summit
POSITIVE CHANGE: Community leaders and partners at The Gathering
By Rick Lyon, Co-Editor
Local community leaders and partners came together for The Gathering – an event dedicated to discussing and progressing a shared vision for Hull.
At the heart of the conversation was the Community Plan, how partners throughout the city are already working on enacting its six ambitions and what happens next.
The Community Plan was launched in 2024 and is a set of six ambitions and three commitments which will shape the city for the next decade. It was created in partnership by Hull City Council, local organisations and people.
Before it was written, the council and its partners spoke to people in Hull about their future hopes for the city and themselves.
Many people also took part in a questionnaire, either online or on paper. The detail collected was used to form the Community Plan – with its three key themes – Our Lives, Our Streets, Our City.
The six ambitions it sets out are:
Safe and welcoming neighbourhoods
A healthier and fairer Hull
Reaching our potential
Economic growth that works for all
Responding to the climate and nature emergency
Our culture, our heritage, our city.
The three commitments are:
Engagement of all residents and communities
Strong, united leadership committed to improving outcomes
A focus on inclusion.
MAKING A DIFFERENCE: The Gathering brought people together as the next phase of the Community Plan
The Gathering was the beginning of the next phase of the plan. It was an opportunity for partners to talk about ways they are already working on enacting its six ambitions, and how to better collaborate going forward.
Councillor Mike Ross, leader of Hull City Council, said: “At the heart of the Community Plan is collaboration. That started with its foundation being conversation with organisations, communities and people across Hull. The ambitions and commitments made are all the outcome of what people told us they want for their lives, their streets and our city.
“The Community Plan is all about making the changes in the city that the public want to see. It sees the council working alongside many fantastic organisations in Hull as well as the local community to create the sort of Hull we all want to see, and so The Gathering was a fantastic opportunity to see what progress has been made and what more work needs to take place in the future.
“It has also helped strengthen existing partnerships, forge new ones, and highlight exciting future opportunities.”
Karen Okra, representing St Stephen’s Neighbourhood Centre, at the event, said: “I wanted to speak to people here and see how their work aligns to the Community Plan. You see across communities that people have similar concerns and issues and at the same time, a lot that can flourish.
“Strengthening communities means talking to people, meeting them where they’re at. It can’t be tokenistic. It’s about inclusivity and recognising we all want the same thing. People want Hull to be a place for them.
“We need to bring people together. It’s important to realise not everyone is at the forefront of what’s happening. It’s not about them coming to us, it’s about us going to them and hearing different voices”.
Lindsey Alvis, CEO and creative director of Artlink and 87 Gallery, said she valued the opportunity to bring a cross-section of people and sectors together to explore new opportunities to collaborate.
She added: “Artlink is an organisation deeply embedded in the community and we really value that. We work across all six ambitions [of the Community Plan] in different ways. Reaching our potential is a huge one for us. We want to invest in bringing brilliant artists to the city and engaging in young people and their futures, giving them pathways and helping them see opportunities in creative sectors.
ENGAGEMENT: Attendees at The Gathering
“In terms of happy and thriving neighbourhoods, we’re an art gallery on people’s doorsteps, in a vibrant and diverse community on Princes Avenue. It’s about seeing value in art and the role it can play and joy it can bring to community”.
Speaking about the value of the event, Phil Benson, of UK Black Tech said: “It’s important to understand how make our city better – bringing community voices together to do that is really important. I love Hull and want to see it prosper and do well.”
On how his organisation is working on the six ambitions of the plan, he said: “We’re engaging more with community innovation, solving community challenges and coming from a tech innovation group, it’s important to look at what tools and resources we can use to improve lives. How can we use tech to make people’s lives better?
“Hull’s got an amazing community and a network of businesses, organisations and charities. There’s always work to do, but we’ve got the right stakeholders here in the city to make that happen.
“In the future, [our priority is]; how can we make sure people are living healthier, happier lives , and how can we do that in a way that brings community cohesion together in practical meaningful ways. Hopefully we can be successful in doing that through this plan”.
Speaking about how her organisation, Hull Truck Theatre, is part of the Community Plan, Janthi Mills-Ward, said: “It’s thinking about what’s on at Hull Truck Theatre, what those stories are, and working with different communities to ensure their voices are heard. And making sure the programme is really varied; music, dance and spoken word, so we can appeal to all Hull’s communities.
And on what she hopes the plan delivers going forward, she said: “I hope it increases cohesiveness, because its important we think of the city as a whole. For example, something that came up a lot today was street lighting; if people don’t feel safe coming to Hull Truck Theatre, how can we speak to the right department and engage better across the city”.
You can read the Community Plan here: https://www.hull.gov.uk/strategies-policies-plans-performance/community-plan