THRiVE hosted a conference for thought leaders, practitioners, policy makers, academics interested in place-based change.

THRiVE and their Learning Partner Stranmillis University College at Learning Events held in 2023 were asked to share their learning on key themes – collective impact, voice and influence, implementation,  evidence and learning and collaborative investment. Throughout the conference we invited delegates to consider how individuals, organisations and systems can better collaborate in order to improve the lives and outcomes of children, young people and their wider communities. The conference explored place-based collaboration, drawing on three key themes (place, people, and processes).

PLACE Throughout the conference, the idea that ‘Place Matters’ will be central.  It is proposed that place-based change in communities entrenched in complex and intergenerational inequality (social, educational, health etc.) is made possible by harnessing the collective impact of all agencies (statutory and non) and stakeholders (including children, young people, parents) via equitable collaborative infrastructures.

PEOPLE Building on the concept of PLACE, it is imperative that the PEOPLE within the place are central to the change processes.  The conference pointed to the importance of bottom-up community driven and co-designed agendas, with the voice and influence of young people (and community stakeholders more broadly) central to place-based change agendas.  The conference unpacked HOW to achieve this, with a focus on the relational aspects of this work, the importance of considering power dynamics, trust, competition, and the necessity for challenging mindsets and ‘silo’ mentalities.

PROCESS Finally, within and around both PLACE and PEOPLE are the processes and wider systems that facilitate and inhibit impact and change.  For example, strategies and policies (e.g., NI Children’s Services Co-operation Act 2015) and administrative/governance systems, finance systems and funding models that underpin statutory and non-statutory service provision.  Additionally, within the processes, the conference will point to the necessity for impact and implementation infrastructures, that is, the space, data and evidence to learn about HOW processes are implemented, as well as WHAT DIFFERENCE they have made.

Day One: The conference opened with two local young people talking about the issues that matter to young people in this area and how important it is to listen and act on the young peoples perspectives on decisions that directly affect their lives.

Chris Quinn, the NI Children’s Commissioner spoke of the Children’s Services Co-operation Act NI 2015 which mandates collaboration across government and the pooling of resources to improve outcomes for children and young people. Chris welcomed the participation of local young people and stressed the importance of engaging with them within the context of the rights of the child (UNCRC).

Delegates heard from Claire Humphrey, Dr Karen Orr and Prof Noel Purdy who introduced the key themes and shared their learning from THRiVE. Prof Purdy presented on the alignment of place-based collaboration with policy, including Fair Start.

Whitehouse PS choir inspired us with songs about working together and reminded delegates, with bright beaming singing and smiles, that ‘When we work together, we get things done’

Professor Allison Metz shared her expertise on Implementation science and practice, explaining to delegates the importance of not only thinking about interventions (what we do) but also implementation (how we do it). She spoke of the importance of advancing equity by paying attention to power balances and ensuring the lived experience of people in communities is central. The evidence clearly demonstrates the importance of taking time to foster trusted relationships in effective collaborations.

Day Two : The conference was opened on the second day by two local Parent Champions Mary Dripps and Lorna Allison who told of a recent parent survey the Parent Champions group carried out highlighting key areas of concern to parents and the types of supports they need. They explained what Parent Champions do, how they work together for the good of children and families in the area and the importance of parents voice in THRiVE.

We were delighted to be joined by Junior Ministers Pam Cameron and Aisling Reilly. They met with three P5 pupils involved in the BOOST programme (an educational intervention funded by THRiVE) and other THRiVE partners. They both spoke to the conference about the importance of collaborating and the work ongoing within the Executive on children’s issues.

Justice Minister Naomi Long praised the three girls from Abbotts Cross PS, who spoke to her of their aspirations for the future and the value of the BOOST programme for their literacy and numeracy. Minister Long made the links between the young adults involved with the criminal justice system and their early childhood experiences and stressed the importance of early intervention.

Other Ministers – Paul Givan, Education; Mike Nesbitt, Health; and Gordon Lyons, Communities, via video shared their support for the place-based collaboration model and the need for government and other sectors to work together.

Jo Blundell from Place Matters presented online about the support for place-based work their organisation offers. They told of the place-based change movement globally and gave examples from the Tamarak Institute in Canada of the impact of this approach in reducing poverty. Jo shared from their experience the importance of funding for place and system level activity and learning.

Finance Minister Caoimhe Archibold shared via video the Department of Finance support for cross-departmental programmes and encouraged the development of bids within the existing legislative framework. She expressed her interest in learning more about the outworkings of this conference.

Dorrinnia Carville, NI Comptroller General, talked of the recent NI Audit Office report on the creation of an NI Anti-Poverty Strategy and re-iterated the need for a comprehensive cross- governmental approach to addressing the impact of poverty on children’s outcomes, as well as the need for efficient use of the stretched NI budget in collaborative ways.

Hugh Nelson Co-Chair THRiVE led a panel discussion with Collaborative Investors from THRiVE – representatives from the Education Authority, The Executive Office, Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council, and the Executive Programme on Criminality and Organised Crime shared their experience of pooling budgets and the permissions and governance required to make this effective.

The conference got on the move to hear from other place-based collaborations – list them and heard of the recently formed Co-ordinating Organisations Network which recognises the importance of the backbone support needed for collective impact. Delegates had a café conversation with two different collaborations and learnt about important principles to make collaborations effective.

Dr Karen Orr and Claire Humphrey called the conference to a close with the Conference Calls to Action – asking for visibility of place-based approaches in the Programme for Government, equitable engagement of those who live and work in communities and investment in the systems needed for place-based change – funding, impact and implementation.

Useful links for further reading on the issues discussed at the THRiVE Collaborating for Impact Conference below

THRiVE Conference Deck – Day One 4th June 2024

THRiVE Conference Deck- Day Two 5th June

Place Matters | Place-based change

Liberating Structures – Introduction

The CES Guide to Implementation | Implementation (effectiveservices.org)

Implementation Science and Practice

Policy Alignment Prof N. Purdy

The Role of Implementation Practice in Advancing Equity – Prof Metz

THRiVECollab4Impact- learning partnership

THRiVE Conference – Conference Call to Action slide