EVALUATIONOFTHEENGLISHPENSREADERS&WRITERS PROGRAMME2012/13

DRMELITAARMITAGE JUNE2013

Image1:europolyglotworkshop,WappingJesuitRefugeeService(photo:GeorgeTorode)

MelitaArmitageLtd 07976066740  melita@melitaarmitage.com  www.melitaarmitage.com

TableofContents

TABLEOFCONTENTS
TableofContents................................................................................................................................................ i Listoffigures&Tables.......................................................................................................................................ii Listofimages.....................................................................................................................................................iii Headlines...........................................................................................................................................................1 Achievements................................................................................................................................................1 Opportunities................................................................................................................................................2 Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................3 Background....................................................................................................................................................3 Evaluationmethodology............................................................................................................................... 4 Projectsummaries.............................................................................................................................................5 2012/13ReadersandWritersProgramme....................................................................................................... 5 Reachofthe2012/13programme................................................................................................................ 5 Shapeoftheprogramme...............................................................................................................................6 Ratingtheworkshops....................................................................................................................................7 Impactofthelearningopportunities................................................................................................................ 8 Theworkshopenvironment.......................................................................................................................... 9 Learningoutcomes:skills,qualitiesandknowledge................................................................................... 11 Freedomtowrite,freedomtoread............................................................................................................. 18 Futureinterestsmeetingongoingaspirations.......................................................................................... 20 Investinginwriters..........................................................................................................................................21 Employmentofwriters................................................................................................................................21 training&developingpractice.................................................................................................................... 22 Developingrelationships.................................................................................................................................25 Projectpartners...........................................................................................................................................25 Beneficiariesaudiences&participants.................................................................................................... 27 Conclusion&Recommendations.................................................................................................................... 29 Conclusion...................................................................................................................................................29 Recommendations .......................................................................................................................................30 Appendix1:R&WPAims&Objectives............................................................................................................ 31 Appendix2:WritersworkingwithEnglishPENontheR&WP2012/13.........................................................32 Appendix3:ExamplesoftheHead,Heart&Feetexercise............................................................................. 35

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Listoffigures&Tables

ii

LISTOFFIGURES&TABLES
FIGURES
Figure1:Beneficiariesratingofthequalityoftheirworkshops(Base:46).....................................................7 Figure2:Howbeneficiariesfeltduringtheworkshops(Base:44) .................................................................... 9 Figure3:Wordleofwordschosenbybeneficiariestoshowhowtheyfeltatendofworkshops(Base:36)...9 Figure4:Howbeneficiariesfeltabouttheircreativeexperience(Base:43)..................................................10 Figure5:Wordleillustratingwhatprisonerslikedbest&leastaboutworkshops(Base:123)......................11 Figure6:Beneficiariesabilitytofullyengageintheirlearning(Base:39).....................................................12 Figure7:Impactofworkshopsonbeneficiaries............................................................................................. 12 Figure8:2011/12and2012/13beneficiaries'knowledgeasaresultoftheworkshops...............................13 Figure9:BeneficiariesknowledgeofEnglishPEN'sactivities(Base:36)........................................................14 Figure10:PartnersknowledgeofEnglishPEN'sactivities(Base:28)............................................................15 Figure11:ImprovementstoEnglishasaresultofworkshops(Base:40).......................................................15 Figure12:Futurelearninginterestsofbeneficiaries...................................................................................... 20 Figure13:Writer'sfeedbackonworkshopdelivery(Base:14) ....................................................................... 23 Figure14:Partnerfeedbackonimpactofevents(Base:26).......................................................................... 27

TABLES
Table1:R&WPprojects2012/13...................................................................................................................... 3 Table2:ReachoftheR&WP2012/13............................................................................................................... 5

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Listofimages

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LISTOFIMAGES
Image1:europolyglotworkshop,WappingJesuitRefugeeService(photo:GeorgeTorode)..........................1 Image2:europolyglotandSpeakforyourself!event(Photo:JackieDiStefano).............................................1 Image3:MakemyDayworkshopsatTricycleTheatre(Photo:GeorgeTorode).............................................2 Image4:europolyglotworkshopsatWappingJesuitRefugeeService(Photo:GeorgeTorode).....................6 Image5:europolyglotandSpeakforyourself!event(Photo:JackieDistefano).............................................8 Image6:BraveNewVoicesworkshopatMRCforum(Photo:GeorgeTorode).............................................16 Image7:BraveNewVoicesatMRCForum(Photo:GeorgeTorode) ..............................................................21 Image8:europolyglotandSpeakforyourself!event(Photo:JackieDiStefano)...........................................28

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Headlines

Image2:europolyglotandSpeakforyourself!event(Photo:JackieDiStefano)

HEADLINES
ACHIEVEMENTS
12projectsdeliveredwith50partnersand11fundingpartners. 242workshopsweredeliveredby50writers. Theprogrammereached3,412participantsand1,525audiences;atotalof4,937beneficiaries. 60youngpeoplethathadrecentlyarrivedintheUKlinkedtheirlearningontheprogrammetoaBronze ArtsAward. Theworkshopsinstilledfeelingsofconfidence,enjoymentandcreativityinbeneficiaries. Beneficiariesreportedtheacquisitionofskills,newknowledgeandqualitiessuchasselfdirected learning,understandingofthedifferentstagesofwriting,confidencelinkedtoreading,writing, listeningandspeakingEnglish. BeneficiariesandpartnersdemonstratedanappetitetolearnmoreaboutEnglishPENsactivities. Halfofthewritersthatwroteareportdocumentedhowtheprogrammehadhelpedtodeveloptheir practice. Majorityofpartnersaspirationsfortheprogrammeweremet. Celebrationeventswerestronglyendorsedbypartners.

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Headlines

OPPORTUNITIES
Respondtoanappetiteforongoinglearning,consolidatingwhatwaslearntattheworkshops. Linkwithpartnersaccreditationactivityinordertoaddstrategicvalueandfurthercement relationships. BroadenthepoolofwritersworkingwithEnglishPENthroughanopenselectionprocess.

Image3:MakemyDayworkshopsatTricycleTheatre(Photo:GeorgeTorode)

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Introduction

INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND
EnglishPEN'sReadersandWritersProgramme(R&WP)isthenamegivetotheorganisation'scommunity activity.Itspurposeis: TogivesociallyexcludedpeopleinEnglandthecapabilitytoenjoytheirrighttofreedomof expression. During2012/2013,theprogrammecomprised12projectseachinvolvingdifferenthostpartners,writers, beneficiariesandfundingpartners.Ithadthreestrands,eachwithaspecificfocus:Prisoners&Detainees, YoungPeople&OlderPeopleandRefugees&Soldiers. Thelistofprojectswasasfollows: Strand Prisoners&Detainees Projectname PENinprisons PoetryParnassusinDetention Young People & Older SpeakforYourself! People FaithinFreeSpeech PENinWigan Wishyouwerehere PENinMildmay Refugees&Soldiers europolyglot BraveNewVoices MakeMyDay! PENmentors WritingHeroes
Table1:R&WPprojects2012/13

Funder MonumentTrust SpeakingVolumes(ArtsCouncilEnglandaward) EsmeFairbairnFoundation MBReckittTrust OrwellPrize IslingtonCouncil EuropeanCommissionRepresentationinUK EuropeanCommissionRepresentationinUK CalousteGulbenkianFoundation JohnLyonsCharity EnglishPENcorefunds EnglishPENcorefunds

ThreeaimsunderpintheR&WP: Todeliverhighqualitylifelonglearningopportunitiestodisadvantagedgroupsofbeneficiaries, currentlyidentifiedasrefugees,asylumseekers,migrants,prisoners,detainees,youngoffenders, youngpeopleandolderpeoplefromdisadvantagedbackgrounds,inorderthattheycanexplore, developandmaintainandbeempoweredthroughtheirFreedomtoWrite,FreedomtoRead. TooffertrainingandprofessionaldevelopmentopportunitiestoEnglishPENsgreatestresource thewritersweworkwithandtoaccompany,encourageandsupportourwriters,andassociate freelancers,tobuildlonglastingrelationshipswithEnglishPENandourpartnerorganisations. ToencourageandmaintainaculturewhereEnglishPENscommunityprogrammeiscontinually improvingitsworkingpracticesaswellasitsrelationshipswithbeneficiaries,funders,partner organisationsandotherstakeholders.

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Introduction ThesearethenewaimsfortheprogrammethatwererefinedbytheHeadofProgrammesinJuly2012. Initially,17objectivesweredraftedtoaccompanytheseaimsandpartoftheearlyevaluationworkwasto helpbalancethebreadthofwhatcouldbecapturedthroughtheevaluationwithcapacityandresources. Consequently,the17objectiveswererationalizedtoeightobjectiveswhicharepresentedinAppendix1.

EVALUATIONMETHODOLOGY
In2012,anindependentevaluationwascommissionedtohelpEnglishPENunderstandthevalueofthe programmeforitsthreemainstakeholders:beneficiaries,writersandpartners.Asthisisthefirsttimethat EnglishPENhaveattemptedtouseasingleevaluationmethodologyforallitseducationprojects,there wereinevitablysometeethingproblems.Thiswasunsurprisinggiventhebreadthofpartners, beneficiariesaccesstotechnologyandthepossibilityofequalitiesmonitoringincertaincircumstances(for example,schoolsorprisons). TheReaders&WritersProgrammeworksincontextswhichlimitaccesstobeneficiaries(forexample, prisons)andwherelimitsfeelimportantgiventhepremiumtheprojectnecessarilyplacesontrustbetween writerandeachbeneficiarycohort.Consequently,therewasanagreedlimittohowmuchaccessthe evaluatorcouldhavewithbeneficiaries.Weagreed,therefore,thateitherthewritersorPENsHeadof Programmeswouldcirculatetheevaluationandmonitoringtools.Inaddition,thewriters,wehadhoped, wouldbesupportedtoimplementtheevaluationthroughthenewlyappointedwritermentors.However, itwasnotpossibleforthewritermentorstotakepartinthemanagementoftheevaluationthisyear. Unfortunately,noteverybeneficiarygroupreceivedtheevaluationandmonitoringtoolsandsothedata frombeneficiarieswasmuchlowerthanwehadhoped.Thisisakeylearningpointforthefirstyearof evaluationandweareworkingtodevelopprocessesthatwillsupportthewritersandtoreducethe demandsontheHeadofProgrammes.However,eachtypeofproject(prisoners&detainees,young people&olderpeople,refugees&soldiers)isrepresentedinthedatathatinformedthisreport. Theevidenceusedinthisreportincludes: Surveymonkeyquestionnairefor2012/13beneficiaries(46responses) Surveymonkeyquestionnaireforpastbeneficiariesfromonecoursein2011/12(11responses) EqualOpportunitiesmonitoringforms(77respondents:63beneficiaries&14writers) Surveymonkeyquestionnairefor2012/13partners(30responses) Feedbackformsfor2012/13prisonbeneficiaries(134responses) Writerreports(15writers) CorrespondencefromPhilipCowellandIreneGarrow

Inaddition,wetestedafurtherevaluationtoolaskingstudentstouseaHead(toexpresssomethinglearnt), Heart(toexpresssomethingfelt),Feet(toexpresssomethingtheywouldtakewiththem),ThoughtBubble (toexpresstheirideasofhowtoimprovetheworkshop).Originally,thiswastobeafacilitatedtoolthat wouldcapturethegroupsresponseinordertokeeptheanalysismanageable.Thisyear,however,itwas testedonasingleprojectandeverybeneficiarywasinvitedtocreateapicture. MelitaArmitage,June2013

Projectsummaries

PROJECTSUMMARIES PENINPRISONS
EnglishPENwasfundedby theMonumentTrustto programmeatleast15writer workshopsin10prisons acrossthecountry.

PENINWIGAN
EnglishPENpartneredthe OrwellPrizetorunadayof workshopsinWigan,nearto whereGeorgeOrwellstayed whenheresearchedhis famousbook.

BRAVENEWVOICES
EnglishPENwasfundedby theCalousteGulbenkian Foundationtocreateaproject thatcelebratedcreative translation,bringing translatorsintoPENs educationwork.

PENINDETENTION
EnglishPENranaweeklong projectwithSpeaking VolumesaspartofSouthbank CentresPoetryParnassus festival.Poetsranworkshops fordetaineesatColnbrook ImmigrationRemovalCentre.

WISHYOUWEREHERE!
EnglishPENpartnered IslingtonWord(fundedby IslingtonCouncil)torunfour workshopsinanIslington school.Theprojectlinked pupilswithyoungpeopleina schoolinSierraLeone.

MAKEMYDAY!
EnglishPENwasfundedby JohnLyonsCharitytowork with60recentlyarrivedyoung peoplefromWembley.The youngpeopleworkedwith writersontheircreative writing.Theprojectresulted inabookthatwaslaunchedat aneventatTricycleTheatre.

SPEAKFORYOURSELF
EnglishPENwasfundedby theEsmeFairbairn Foundationtotrain45,1621 yearoldsinfreespeechovera sixmonthperiod.The trainingculminatedinfree speechprojectscreatedby youngpeople

PENINMILDMAY
EnglishPEN,inpartnership withtheEuropean CommissionRepresentationin theUK,createdatwomonth residencyinacarehomefor olderpeoplewithdementia

PENMENTORS
EnglishPENpilotedanew programmeofactivityone tooneworkbringingtogether aPENwriterandaPEN beneficiaryforongoingone toonesupport.

EUROPOLYGLOT

FAITHINFREESPEECH
EnglishPENwasfundedby theMBReckittTrustto consultwithyoungpeopleon freespeechandfaithissues, leadinguptothecreationof learningresourcesthatwould helpmanymoreyoungpeople exploretheseissues. MelitaArmitage,June2013

EnglishPEN,inpartnership withtheEuropean CommissionRepresentationin theUK,createdasixmonth festivalthatcelebrated multilingualism,inclusivity andintergenerationalworkin theUK.

WRITINGHEROES
EnglishPENpilotednewwork withreturningandwounded soldiersinpartnershipwith HelpforHeroesatTedworth House,thepersonnel recoverycentre.

2012/13ReadersandWritersProgramme

2012/13READERSANDWRITERSPROGRAMME
REACHOFTHE2012/13PROGRAMME
NUMBEROFBENEFICIARIES
In2012/13EnglishPENaimedtoreach3,000beneficiaries.Thedefinitionofbeneficiariesisboth participantsandaudiences,althoughtheemphasisoftheprogrammeisverymuchonparticipants.The hopewasthatthe3,000wouldbereachedthroughequalnumbersofparticipantsfromthethreestrands oftheprogramme:Prisoners&Detainees,YoungPeople&OlderPeopleandRefugees&Soldiers. Theactualnumberofparticipantswas3,400,reachedthroughthedeliveryof242workshops.Additionally, therewereeventssuchasprovidingdictionariestoover1,000prisoners,circulating1,000copiesofanovel tobookgroupsandcreatingDVDstoextendthereachofprojectstoover240youngpeople.Theseand othereventsreachedaudiencesamountingtoanadditional1,500people. Intotal,EnglishPENsReaders&WritersProgramme(R&WP)reachedjustunder5,000beneficiaries. Thebreakdownofthe2012/13R&WPwasasfollows: Prisoners&Detainees YoungPeople&OlderPeople Refugees&Soldiers Total
Table2:ReachoftheR&WP2012/13

Workshops 30 98 114 242

Writers Participants Audiences Beneficiaries 26 17 19 501 1,075 560 1,777 3,412 1,065 340 120 1,525 2,140 900 1,897 4,937

Overall,theprogrammereachedwelloverits3,000targetforparticipantsin2012/13andwassuccessfulin attractingnewpartnershipsthatextendedthereachofprojects.(Althoughitwas100peopleshortofits 1,000targetofyoungpeopleandolderpeople.)

PROFILEOFBENEFICIARIES
Equalitiesdatawascollectedfrom62beneficiariesin2012/13suggestingthattheprocessofmonitoringis notyetembeddedintheprogramme.Inpart,therearesomedifficultiesincollectingequalitiesdata directlyfromparticipants,particularlyinsecuresettings DatawasonlycollectedfromyoungparticipantsandonlycollectedbytheHeadofProgrammes.Within thiscohortofyoungpeople: 26werefemaleand36weremale 1personidentifiedasdisabled(only40answeredthequestion)

Notethatsomewritersdeliveredmorethanoneprojectsothetotalhereislessthanthenumberofwritersineach

strand.

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2012/13ReadersandWritersProgramme Therewerenowhitebeneficiaries;all62selectedeithermultipleidentitiesoraBAMEgroup:12 peopleMixed/multipleethnicgroups,21peopleAsian/AsianBritish,11peopleBlack/Black British,18peopleOtherethnicgroup. SHAPEOFTHEPROGRAMME Therangeoflearningopportunitieswasinpartinformedbythediversenatureofthebeneficiaries. Learningopportunitiesneededtomeettheneedsofeachgroup,whetherthatadaptationneededto addresslanguage,literacyordementia.Thestyleofworkshopswasinformal,withveryfewsessions

accredited(theexceptionbeingwhereworkshopscouldbeintegratedtoanexistinglearningmoduleatthe hostpartnersorganisation).EnglishPENbriefseverywriterbeforetheirworkshopsinameetingwiththe HeadofProgrammesorProgrammeOfficertogiveanoverviewofEnglishPENsmission,theR&WPand thebeneficiarygroup.Withintheworkshops,theemphasisisplacedonthehereandnow,ratherthanon thepast.Duringtheseinductionmeetings,itisstressedthatthewritersarenotcounselorsandthatthey needtobeveryclearabouttheboundariesoftheirrole:theyaretheretofocusonwriting,usingobjectsor othernoncontentiousstimulitohelpsteerdiscussionstothehereandnow.Additionaladviceisgivento writersthatgointoprisonsandothersecuresettingsandatwopagedocumentcontainingguidelineson behaviour,whattowearandhowtoworkwithoffendersisalsogiventowriters.Thewritersthentailora workshoptosuitthegroupandenvironmentandtheyarewelcometodiscusstheirplanswithPENstaff.

Image4:europolyglotworkshopsatWappingJesuitRefugeeService(Photo:GeorgeTorode)

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2012/13ReadersandWritersProgramme During2012/13,EnglishPENpilotedanewtierofsupportcommissioningthreewriterstobecomementors forotherwritersontheprogramme.Intotal,48writerstookpartintheprogrammein2012/13andwere drawnfromavarietyofdisciplines,including:novelists,poets,journalist,philosophers,academicsand politicalwriters.Inthemajorityofinstances,thewritersdeliveredasingleworkshoporseriesof workshops.Tenwritersdeliveredtwoorthreeworkshopsorseriesofworkshops.

RATINGTHEWORKSHOPS
Beneficiarieswereaskedtoratethestyleanddeliveryoftheworkshopsintheirfeedbacksurveys.The feedbackwasallpositivewithfewdisagreements(fewerthanthreeagainsteachstatement). Thebeneficiarieswereaskedtoindicatetheiragreementwithsevenstatementsandhadtheoptionof tickingStronglyagree,Agree,DisagreeandStronglydisagree. Inthefollowingfigure,theseratingsweregivenanumericvalueandtheaverageispresentedhere. Stronglyagreewasgivenanumericvalueof4andStronglydisagreeanumericvalueof1.
Therewasenoughsupportforme Languagewasn'taprobleminourworkshop Tutorgotthepitchjustright(nottooeasy,nottoohard) Ifeltsafelearninginthisenvironment Theworkshopswereinteresting Ourtutorwasexcellent Ienjoyedtheworkshops
1 2 3

3.5 3.5 3.5 3.6 3.6 3.7 3.6

4

Strongly disagree
Figure1:Beneficiariesratingofthequalityoftheirworkshops(Base:46)

Disagree

Agree

Strongly agree

Theseratingswerecorroboratedbythepartnersintheirsurveys,withallratingsbetween3.5and3.6. Commentsfromparticipantsincluded: Itwasanexcellentopportunitytomeetwonderfulpeopleandbeabletoexpressmyself.Itwasa windowofhope. (Beneficiarysurveyresponse) ThisprogrammeofEnglishPENwasvery,veryusefulforme.Ireallyenjoyedthe10weeksandI wouldliketorequestthisprogrammeshouldbecontinued. (Beneficiarysurveyresponse) Wherecriticismsweremade,theywereabouttheamountoffoodprovidedduringtheworkshop(this personfeltthatconstanteatingwasdistracting)andonebeneficiarydidnotratethewritersinthemiddle oftheirseriesofworkshops. MelitaArmitage,June2013

Impactofthelearningopportunities

IMPACTOFTHELEARNINGOPPORTUNITIES
Thepurposeofthelearningopportunitieswas: Toprovidebeneficiarieswiththemeanstoexploretheircreativeselfexpressionandfreespeech inasafeenvironmentandtodevelopspecificskills,knowledgeandqualitieslinkedtothevisionfor theprogramme. ThisobjectiveexpressesthreeimportantthemestheHeadofProgrammeswishedtoseeresultfromthe programme:acquisitionofskills,knowledgeandqualities.Thesethemeswerebrokendownintoaseries ofindicatorsthatincluded: Skills:engagedlearning(selfdirectedlearning,criticalskills),languageacquisition,activelistening andcoconstruction. Knowledge:stagesofwriting,literaryforms,roleofEnglishPENand(forlongerseriesof workshops)learninglinkedtohumanrightsandfreespeechlegislation. Qualities:confidencelinkedtoreading,writing,listeningandspeaking,heightenedsenseof empathy,understandingofwritingasanactofempowerment. Afurtheraspirationfortheprogrammewasthatitwouldenablebeneficiariestoaccredittheirlearning.

Image5:europolyglotandSpeakforyourself!event(Photo:JackieDistefano)

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Impactofthelearningopportunities

THEWORKSHOPENVIRONMENT
Establishingasafeenvironmenttolearnwasfundamentaltothesuccessofeachlearningopportunity. Beneficiarieswereaskedtotickaseriesofwordsthattheyfeltexpressedhowtheyfeltduringtheir workshops.ThemajorityselectedthewordsWelcome,SupportedandRespected:
40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

36 26 23 27 30

32

Figure2:Howbeneficiariesfeltduringtheworkshops(Base:44)

Inaseparatequestion,beneficiarieswereaskedtochoosetheirownthreewordstoexpresshowtheyfelt attheendoftheirworkshoporseriesofworkshops.Thefollowingwordleillustratestheirchoiceofwords. Themorefrequentawordwasusedthelargerthesizeofthefont.Asisveryclearfromthefollowing figure,thewordsconfidentandhappyweremostoftenusedbythebeneficiariestodescribetheir feelingsattheendoftheworkshops.

Figure3:Wordleofwordschosenbybeneficiariestoshowhowtheyfeltatendofworkshops(Base:36)

Bothoftheprecedingfiguresillustratethatwithinthissampleofbeneficiaries,theR&WPexperiencewasa positiveonefortheparticipants. Thewritersalsopickeduponthispositivityintheirreports,oftenquotingindividualbeneficiaries responsestotheirteaching.Forexample:

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Impactofthelearningopportunities Reallyenjoyedthelesson.IvelearntIcandoanythingifIputmymindtoitandthatsdownto you.Danni (Fromawritersreport) Inaseriesofworkshopswitholderpeoplewithdementia,thewriterreportedhowtheworkshopsenabled participantstofindtheirvoice,againquotinganindividualsresponse: Inparticularonepersongraspsmyfunctionandbothoneononeandingroupspeaksaboutwhat herinternalexperienceissayingIvegottogetitout,peopledontunderstand,thinkIm stupid. (Fromawritersreport) ThislastquotationillustratesthevalueoftheR&WPasameanstoencourageselfexpression. Turningtocreativity,beneficiarieswerealsoaskedtochoosethewordsthatbestexpressedtheircreative

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experienceontheworkshops.Again,withinthesampleofrespondents,themajorityofwordschosenwere positive.Stimulated,MotivatedandInspiredweremostfrequentlyselected:
35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

31 27 22 18

29 20 15 14 7 2 1 2

Figure4:Howbeneficiariesfeltabouttheircreativeexperience(Base:43)

The600prisonbeneficiarieswerenotgiventhenewevaluationformsin2012/13.Instead,theyweregiven formsthatEnglishPENhasusedinthepastandaround125werecompleted.Thequestionsincludeda ratingscalethatfocusedonenjoyment(ofthebook,workshopandrecommendationtootherprisoners), usefulnessforreadingandwritingandhowmemorabletheeventwasinprisonlife,towhichresponses werelargelypositive.Theopenquestionattheendaskedprisonerstodocumentthebestandworstthing abouttheworkshops. Inmanyinstancesthefeedbackfromprisonerswasthattheyhadfoundtheworkshopsenjoyable(24 prisoners),stimulatingorinteresting(22prisoners),orthattheyhadidentifiedwiththewriter(19 MelitaArmitage,June2013

Impactofthelearningopportunities prisoners).Forsomeprisonersinparticular,itwasinspiringtohearthatthewriterhadexperienced difficulty,gotintotroubleandthenturnedtheirlifearound.Otherfeedbackincludedenjoyingthewriters facilitationorreadingtheirbook,havingspacetoreflect,discussandlistentoothers,developingtheir literaryskillsandhavingspacetowrite. Thefollowingwordleillustratesthefrequencyofwordstheprisonersusedtodescribetheirlikesand dislikes.

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Figure5:Wordleillustratingwhatprisonerslikedbest&leastaboutworkshops(Base:123)

LEARNINGOUTCOMES:SKILLS,QUALITIESANDKNOWLEDGE
SKILLS
Asdescribedabove,anaspirationfortheR&WPwasthatbeneficiarieswouldacquireanddeveloptheir skillsasaresultoftakingpartintheworkshops.Inordertofindouthowfartheyfeltthattheirabilityto workindependentlyandtheircriticalskillshaddevelopedduringtheirworkshops,beneficiariesweregiven aseriesofstatementstoconsider. Asinpreviousquestions,theywereinvitedtoagreeordisagreewiththesestatements.Theirresponses werethengivenanumericvaluewhereStronglyagreewasgivenanumericvalueof4andStrongly disagreeanumericvalueof1.Theaverageratingsforeachstatementispresentedinthefollowing figure:

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Impactofthelearningopportunities

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...takeworkawaytoworkonalone ...trysomethingnew ...hearothers'ideasandopinions ...presentmyideasandopinions ...askthetutorquestions ...sharemyworkwithotherpeople ...takepartingroupactivities ...supportandencouragepeoplein 1 2 3

3.4 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.3 4

Strongly disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly agree

Figure6:Beneficiariesabilitytofullyengageintheirlearning(Base:39)

Inafurtherquestion,beneficiarieswereaskedtoindicatetheirlevelofagreementwithfourother statements.Thistimethepurposeofthequestionwastotesttheimpactoftheworkshopsontheirability toapplytheirlearningandworkindependently.Asimilarscaleofagreementwasusedcomparedtoother questions. Additionally,thequestionwasposedtotwoothergroups:pastbeneficiariesoftheR&WPandproject partners.Thepastbeneficiarieswerederivedfromaprojectrunduring2011/12thatwasfundedbythe LondonDevelopmentAgency.The2012/13projectpartnerswereaskedtocommentontheirimpressions ofthebeneficiariesthattheybroughttotheR&Wprogramme.

projectpartners Dealwithsetbacksinwriting Findpeopletohelpdevelop theirwriting Expressthemselvesbetterto others Useskillsdevelopedatthe workshops
1 2 3

2011/12beneficiaries

2012/13beneficiaries 3.2 3.3 3.2 2.9 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.5 3.4 3.3 3.4 3.4
4

Strongly disagree
Figure7:Impactofworkshopsonbeneficiaries

Disagree

Agree

Strongly agree

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Impactofthelearningopportunities Whatisinterestingabouttheprecedingfigureisthesimilaritybetweentheaverageratingsforeachof

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thethreegroups.Thebiggestdiscrepancywasinthestatementaboutwhetherbeneficiarieshadfound peopletohelpdeveloptheirwriting.However,itisdifficulttodrawanyfirmconclusionsaboutwhy thismayhavebeenthecase,forexample,itcouldbethattheleadwritersdidntincludeprogression adviceorinformationaboutliteratureorganisationsaspartoftheirteaching. Itwillbeusefultoseehowthe2012/13ratethisquestionnextyeartoassesswhetherEnglishPENhas aroleinconnectingbeneficiariestowritersandwritersorganisationsthatcansupportbeneficiariesin thefuture.

KNOWLEDGE
Boththecurrentcohortofbeneficiariesandpastbeneficiarieswereaskedtoratetheiragreementwith statementslinkedtotheknowledgethattheyhadacquiredasaresultoftheworkshops.Specificallythey weregivensevenstatementslinkedtodifferentstagesofwritingandliteraryforms. Asimilarscaleofagreementwasusedtotheotherquestionsinthesurveyandtheaverageratingsare presentedinthefollowingtable. Theresponsestothisquestionshowmoremarkeddifferencesbetweenthetwocohortsofbeneficiaries comparedtootherquestions,suggestingthatthecontentoftheworkshopsintheR&WPhavechanged quitesignificantlybetweenthetwoyears.
2011/12beneficiaries ...howtopublishmywork ...editingmywork ...howtorevisemywork ...differentwriters ...differenttypesofwriting ...astyleofwriting(for ...developingmyideas 1 Strongly 2 Disagree 3 Agree 2012/13beneficiaries 2.8 3.2 3.1 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.4 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.8 3.7 4 Strongly

Figure8:2011/12and2012/13beneficiaries'knowledgeasaresultoftheworkshops

ThefigureshowsclearlythattheemphasisfortheR&WPworkshopsisonthefirststagesofwritingas opposedtothelaterstages(revision,editingandpublishing). MelitaArmitage,June2013

Impactofthelearningopportunities Alongsideknowledgelinkedtoliteraryandcreativity,theR&WPseekstodevelopbeneficiariesknowledge

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ofhumanrightsandfreespeech.Someprojects,suchasSpeakforYourself!andFaithinFreeSpeechhada directfocusonfreespeech,whereasothershadmoreofafocusonselfexpressionandfindingavoice. Atthestartoftheevaluation,EnglishPENwasinterestedinunderstandinghowinformationaboutitswork wasbeingsharedwithbeneficiariesandwhethertherewasworktobedonetobriefwritersmorefullyor developaresourcepack. EachofEnglishPENsactivitieswerepresentedtothebeneficiariesintheirsurveyandtheywereaskedto commentiftheyalreadyknewaboutthem,hadlearntaboutthemduringtheworkshoporiftheywould liketofindoutmore.

...Amagazine ...Heldeventstoshowcasewritersandwriting ...Presentedprizestowritersofextraordinarybooks ...Runcreativewritingandreadingworkshops ...Promotedtranslatedfiction ...LedcampaignsintheUK ...Providedmoralsupportforpersecutedwriters acrosstheworld ...Campaignedforthereleaseofimprisonedwriters

0

4 5 6 8 9 9 9 9 5

15 13 15 21 13 15 10 13 10 15 20 25

16 18 15 8 14 11 14 13 30 35

Iknewaboutthisalready

Ilearntaboutthisattheworkshops

I'dliketofindoutmore

Figure9:BeneficiariesknowledgeofEnglishPEN'sactivities(Base:36)

Whilethenumberofrespondentsrepresentedintheprecedingfigureisonlyasnapshotofthetotal beneficiaries,itsuggeststhatthereisscopeforEnglishPENtothinkabouttherolewritersshouldplayin informingbeneficiariesabouttheorganisationsactivities.Thisisparticularlyimportantgiventhatan aspirationoftheR&WPisthatbeneficiarieswilltransitionfromparticipantstomembersandthenonto otherroles(suchasvolunteersorcommitteemembers).TheHeadofProgrammeswasnotawareofany ofthe2012/13beneficiariestransitioningtomembersaftertakingpartintheprojects. Projectpartners,bycontrast,weremoreawareofEnglishPENsworkbeforetheR&WP2012/13than beneficiaries.However,therewasstillinterestfromanumberoftheminfindingoutmoreaboutsome elementsofEnglishPENswork,particularlythemagazine,prizesandcampaigning.

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Impactofthelearningopportunities

15

...Amagazine ...Heldeventstoshowcasewritersandwriting ...Presentedprizestowritersofextraordinarybooks ...Runcreativewritingandreadingworkshops ...Promotedtranslatedfiction ...LedcampaignsintheUK ...Providedmoralsupportforpersecutedwriters ...Campaignedforthereleaseofimprisonedwriters

0

6 18 15

10 4 4 8 7 9 7 6 3 15 20 1 3 4 6 25 30 3 4

19 16 17 18 20 5 10

Iknewaboutthisalready

Ilearntaboutthisthroughtheworkshops

I'dliketofindoutmore

Figure10:PartnersknowledgeofEnglishPEN'sactivities(Base:28)

QUALITIES
ImprovingEnglishwasidentifiedbytheHeadofProgrammesasimportantaspectoftheR&WP.Asone writercommented: Fromthemanyconversationsthatwehavehad,itsmyimpressionthatmostoftheparticipants arereallyambitiousaboutwhattheywanttodointhefuture.Ithinkthattheyknowthatlearning tospeak,listento,readandwriteEnglishwillgoaverylongwayintohelpingthemachievetheir aimsandempowerthemtomoveforwardinlife. (Fromawritersreport) Beneficiarieswereaskedtoratetheiragreementwithfourstatementslinkedtowhethertheyfelttheir reading,speaking,writingandunderstandingofEnglishhadimprovedasaresultoftheprogramme. Theiraverageratingagainsteachstatementispresentedinthefollowingfigure:

...readEnglishbetter ...speakEnglishbetter ...understandspoken ...writebetterEnglish

1 2 3

3.3 3.1 3.3 3.4 4

Strongly disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

Figure11:ImprovementstoEnglishasaresultofworkshops(Base:40)

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Impactofthelearningopportunities Theimpactoftheworkshopsonsomebeneficiariesisprofoundandgoesbeyondthesefourareasof languageattainment.Onewritercapturedthiswiderimpactinthefollowingquote:

16

[Oneperson]grewinconfidencemostinSpeaking.Hewassopleasedwhenhewasabletoreadin frontofagroupofstrangersandtheyunderstoodhim!Hewalkedandtalkeddifferentlyafter that,participatedmoreinsubsequentcoursehewason.Hegrewbeforemyeyes. (Fromawritersreport)

Image6:BraveNewVoicesworkshopatMRCforum(Photo:GeorgeTorode)

AfurtherqualitythatitishopedthattheR&WPwilldevelopinbeneficiariesisthesenseoftheirsand otherswritingasanactofempowerment.Figure6(above)givessomeexamplesofhowstrongly beneficiariesagreedthattheirvoiceshadbeenheardinthegroupandhowtheyhadbeenabletohearthe voicesoftheirpeers.Indeed,onewriterwasimpressedbythesupportthattheyobservedbetween participantsinaprison: [Theprisoners]werenoticeablysupportiveofeachotherswork.Theguardsandhelpersonthe daycommentedonhowsupportivetheoffenderswereofeachotherbytheendofthesessions andonesaid,Iveneverseenthemthatquietandallworking. (Fromawritersreport)

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Impactofthelearningopportunities However,asonewriterattests,themessageofwritingasanactofempowermentisnotalwaysthefocus ofteachingintheR&WPworkshops:

17

I think they understood the concept in a subconscious way. Although, every single one of them recognised that they had been on a positive journey that each one had grown in confidence in a different way. This ranged from writing a single sentence independently to speaking in front of a 100 strong audience. Every single one of them recognises that writing is power, it is only now that some of them are beginning to believe that they have this power in their hands. (Fromawritersreport) Thischangeofemphasisforeachprojectisbothanassetintermsofpartnershipdevelopmentanda challengeintermsofevidencingthevalueoftheprogrammeinrelationtowritingasanactof empowerment.Atthemoment,fromtheevidencecollectedthroughtheevaluation,itseemsthatthe emphasisontheempowermentmessageisverymuchinthehandsofeachindividualwriterandtheir judgmentofhowreadilyagroupofbeneficiariesmightbeabletohearit. AllpartnersandbeneficiarieswereaskedtocommentonwhattheexpressionFreedomtoread,freedom towritemeanttothemandsomeofthesecommentsarecapturedoverleaf.

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Freedomtowrite,freedomtoread

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FREEDOMTOWRITE,FREEDOMTOREAD

Freedomwithwordsisaninternal'allowing'that goesbeyondenvironmentandoftenallows peoplewhoaccesssuchafreedomtoalso transcendtheirenvironment,evenifforashort time.Thebarrierstothisinprisonarenotheld behindbarsbutaretiedupineducationaland emotionalinjuries.Weneedtohelppeople stretchpastthememoriesofthosescarsinorder tofreethemfromtherestrictionsanddiscover theirownfreedomwithwords. (R&WPpartner)

Havingavoice.Beingheard.Providing accesstothetoolsandskillsneededto expressyourself.Overcomingbarriers. (R&WPpartner)

Tome, theexpressionisabout removingpotentialbarriersthatmay standintheway.Inspiring,enablingand equippingindividualstoexpress themselvesandbenefitfromthe expressionofothers. (R&WPpartner)

Theabilitytowritewhatyouwantandreadwhat youwant,whereyouwantandwhenyouwant withoutbeingpersecutedorharmedoreven judged.FREEDOM!!!! (R&WPbeneficiary) Freedomofexpressionisafundamental humanright.Itisaverypowerfultool. Freedomtowriteandreadgivespeople theopportunitytotella'differentstory'. Italsoallowsustodiscussandchallenge Oftenasylumseekershaveexperiencedand experienceintheireverydaylifehugerestrictions totheirfreedom[.]...Readingandwritingisa uniquespaceforthemtodream,thinkandfeel aliveandfree. (R&WPpartner) informationandopinions.Itallows peopletobreatheandthrive(andbe heard). (R&WPpartner)

Releasingyourselffromanyassumed stateofI'mnotsmartenoughorgood Itisabasicright,nothingintheworldcanavoid thisright. (R&WPbeneficiary) enoughandjustreadinganddoing exactlyasyourmindwants. (R&WPbeneficiary)

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Freedomtowrite,freedomtoread

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ACCREDITATION
AlthoughoneoftheobjectivesfortheR&WPwastoofferbeneficiariestheopportunitytoaccredittheir learning,inrealitytheofferwastocontributetotheexistingaccreditationactivitiesofpartners.The MakemyDay!projectwhichworkedwith60recentlyarrivedyoungpeoplenowlivinginWembley,aims tocontributetoeachyoungpersonsBronzeArtsAward. Thereareotheropportunitiestolinktoparticipantsaccreditedlearningthroughotherroutes.Asone partnercommented,theR&WPcouldhavemorestrategicimpactforthemiftheprogrammeweretolink totheirstudentsexistinglearningmodules: CouldbelinkedtoourESOLprogrammeorEntryPathwaysprogrammewithoutmuchmorework sothatstudentscouldcompletesomeoftheirPersonalandSocialDevelopmentunitsatthesame time. (Partnersurveyresponse) OtheraccreditationroutesthatEnglishPENcouldexplorewithitspartnerscouldbeASDAN,CoPEand othercertificatesofhighereducation.Inthepreevaluationresearch,itwassuggestedthattherecouldbe somemileageinlinkingbothlibrariansandeducationteamswithinsecuresettingsinordertoembedthe strategicvalueoftheR&WPandexpandthereachoftheprogramme. Further,inpreviousyears,EnglishPENhasprovidedparticipantswithitsowncertificate.Whilenota formalpieceofaccreditation,thiscertificatehasbeenvaluedbyparticipantsbecauseitisanEnglish documentandbecauseEnglishPENisheldinhighregardbyparticipants. Runningcountertothevalueplacedonaccreditationbysomepartnersandparticipants,istheargument thattheprogrammeisalsoanopportunityforpeoplethatarenotinterestedinaccreditationtoexplore theircreativityandhumanrightsissue.Asonewritercommented: Givenmyprimaryengagementinacademicteaching,ithasbeenhearteningandempoweringto engagewithlaterlifelearnerswhoarelessdirectedtowardsmeasurableachievement,andmore towardsselfimprovementandtowardsnurturinggroupdynamics. (Fromawritersreport). AtthisjunctureEnglishPENhasanopportunitytolookmorecloselyatbuildingrelationshipswith educationteamswithinitspartnerorganisations,particularlyinsecuresettings.Moreover,ifthe2013/14 15/16programmewishestoworkwithothergroupsofdisadvantagedyoungpeople,suchas,for example,homelessyoungpeople,2thenqualificationsliketheASDANcouldmakeapartnershipwith EnglishPENmoreattractive.
2

Anexampleofacharitythatseeseducationasfundamentaltoenablingyoungpeopletotransitiontoindependent

livingistheFoyerFederation.http://foyer.net/whatwedo/projectsinitiatives/

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Freedomtowrite,freedomtoread

20

FUTUREINTERESTSMEETINGONGOINGASPIRATIONS
MuchofthefeedbackfromthebeneficiariesoftheR&WPwasthattheywantedmorecourses,longer coursesorfollowupcourses.Whenaskedhowtheprogrammecouldbeimprovedinthefuture,the responsesincluded: Therearealwayschancestoimproveanddevelopmorebetterbyholdingthisprogrammetwicea weekregularly. (Beneficiarysurveyresponse) Theywerebeautifullyarrangedanddone.Ihopetoseethemregularlyscheduled. (Beneficiarysurveyresponse) IfthecoursescontinueIameagertobeagoodstudent. (Beneficiarysurveyresponse) WhileitmaynotbepartofthevisionfortheR&WPtoprovideongoingworkshopsforexisting beneficiaries,thereiscertainlyscopeforsignpostingthemtootherlearningopportunities,readinggroups ortoprovideresourcessothatgroupsandindividualscankeepworkingaftertheworkshops. Whenaskedabouttheelementsofwritingthatbeneficiarieswouldbeinterestedtolearnaboutinthe future,theresponseswereasfollows:
Publishingmywork Editingmywork Revisingmywork Differentwriters Writingstyles(techniques) Developingmyideas 0 5 10 2012/13beneficiaries
Figure12:Futurelearninginterestsofbeneficiaries

26 25 22 17 27 27 6 4 5

9 9 35 40

15 20 25 30 2011/12beneficiaries

Withinthecurrentandpastcohortofbeneficiaries(again,pleasenotethesizeofthesample)therewas someconsensusonwhichstageofwritingtheywouldmostliketoworkoninthefuture.Mostofthe beneficiariesseemedinterestedtoconsolidatethelearningtheyhadexperiencedattheR&WPworkshops: developingideasandlearningwritingtechniques. Thereisalsoanindicationthatbeneficiarieswereinterestedinthelaterstagesofwritinganditappears thereisanappetiteforpublishingwork.

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Investinginwriters

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INVESTINGINWRITERS
EnglishPENisveryclearthatitsgreatestresourceisthewritersthatitworkswithandiscommittedto accompany,encourageandsupportitswriters.IntheR&WPobjectives,therewasatargetofatleast40 writersfromdiversebackgrounds.Inaddition,theHeadofProgrammeshopedtoattractnewwritersto EnglishPEN.

Image7:BraveNewVoicesatMRCForum(Photo:GeorgeTorode)

EMPLOYMENTOFWRITERS
RECRUITMENT&SELECTION
TherecruitmentofwriterstotheR&WPin2012/13tendedtobethroughrecommendation,eitherthrough thecontactsoftheProgrammesteamorthroughamemberoftheteamsexperienceofawritersteaching. Theprogrammedoesnotcurrentlyopenlyrecruitwriters. In2012/13,48writerswereemployedbyEnglishPENtodelivertheirR&WPworkshopsandinaddition, boththeHeadofProgrammesandProgrammesOfficeralsodeliveredworkshops. Ofthe15writersthatcompletedareportattheendoftheirworkshoporseriesofworkshops,eightsaid thattheyhadexistingrelationshipswithEnglishPENandsixsaidthatthiswasthefirsttimetheyhad workedwithEnglishPEN.Twopeopledidnotrespond.Thisgivesasuggestionthatthepoolofwritersthat

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Investinginwriters EnglishPENisexpanding,butgiventhedearthofreportsfromwritersitisnotpossibletogiveamore accuratenumber. Foronewriter,theattractionofworkingwithEnglishPENisclear: EnglishPENhasbeenoneofmybiggestsourcesofsupportandvalidation,andIwouldntbethe writerIamwithoutthem. (Fromawritersreport) Anumberofwritersdocumentedtheirappreciationofthesupporttheyhadreceivedfromtheteamat EnglishPEN.

22

PROFILEOFWRITERS
Therewerealso15equalitiesformscollectedfromwritersin2012/13.Thediversityofthisgroupwasas follows: Age9peopleaged2534,4peopleaged3544and2peopleaged5564 Gender12peoplefemaleand3peoplemale Disabled1personidentifiedasdisabled Ethnicbackground6peopleWhite,1personMixed/multipleethnicgroups,2peopleAsian/Asian British,5peopleBlack/BlackBritish,1personotherethnic. ThemixofethnicitiesdoessuggestthatEnglishPENisworkingwithadiversegroupofwriters.However, thegenderbalanceappearsfromthissampletobeskewedtowardswomenandonly1personidentifiedas disabled. TRAINING&DEVELOPINGPRACTICE

INDUCTION
Asdiscussedabove,theinductionofwriterswasonaonetoonebasiswithamemberoftheProgrammes teamatEnglishPEN.
TRAINING

Althoughthereisanobjectivetoprovidetwodaystrainingforeachwriter,inrealitytheonlywritersthat hadformaltrainingwerethethreementors.ThesementorshavebeentrainedtodeliverBronzeandSilver ArtsAwards. Intheirreports,writerswereaskedtoindicatetheiragreementwithsixstatementslinkedtothe operationalmanagementandsupporttheyreceivedfromEnglishPEN.Theirresponsesshowthatinthe vastmajorityofinstancestherewasstrongagreementillustratingthattheinformationprovidedtowriters

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Investinginwriters wassufficientforthemtoplantheirworkshops.
Itwasclearhowtheworkshop(s)would operateatthevenue IfeltsupportedbyEnglishPENduringcourse ItwaseasytocommunicatewithEnglishPEN IdevelopedtheworkshopwithEnglishPEN Iknewwhatwasexpectedofmeasa teacher/facilitator IunderstandthepurposeoftheR&W programme
0 6 11 6 5 4 10 1 15 10 13 12 5 1 1 1 1 3 1

23

StronglyAgree
Figure13:Writer'sfeedbackonworkshopdelivery(Base:14)

Agree

Disagree

Stronglydisagree

Interestingly,therewasntastrongagreementlinkedtothepurposeoftheR&WP,suggestingthatthere mightbescopetoorienteachprojectinthebroadercontextoftheprogramme. Onewriter,however,feltthatthegroupofbeneficiariesthattheyworkedwithwasverydifferentfromthe onediscussedwiththem.InsteadofworkingwithyoungpeoplecapableofworkinginEnglishandtheir mothertongue,thewriterfoundaverydifferentgroup,severalofwhomcouldnotwriteinEnglish. Thefactofmybeingapoetandtranslatorsometimesfeltirrelevantdespitemementioningit severaltimes,IthinkmostoftheclassstillfinishedthecoursewiththeimpressionIwasanEnglish teacher!Andindeed,IspentalotoftimeontheinternetlookingforexercisestoteachEnglishasa foreignlanguage. (Fromawritersreport) Samewriterreflected: AlthoughitisgreatthatPENputsrealwritersintocommunities,itcanbequitedifficultsometimes aswearenotnecessarilytrainedtodealwithsuchsituations,andIwonderwhethertheMRCF mighthaveprovidedmoreguidanceonthisbeforeIbegan. (Fromawritersreport) Insomecontexts,creatingagroupfortheprojectcanbemoreofanumbersexercisethanaselection process.Individualsselfselectandhaveanexpectationthatthewriterwillbeabletosupportthem.While thefeedbackfromthesampleofbeneficiariessuggeststhatlanguagewasnotabarriertoparticipation,itis clearfromthiswritersreportthatitwasandthatthegroupdidntjustrequiredifferentiatedteaching,they requiredanewteachingplan. Thiswriterscommentcorroboratesthefinding(seebelow)thatsomepartnerswouldbenefitfromadvice onforminggroupsfortheproject. MelitaArmitage,June2013

24

DEVELOPINGPRACTICE
WriterswerealsoaskedtocommentintheirreportsonwhethertheyfeltthattheirworkwithEnglishPEN hadhelpedthemtodeveloptheirpractice.Eightwritersmadespecificreferencetoelementsoftheir practicethattheyhadextendedasaresultoftheprogramme.Skillsreferencedincluded:adjusting teachingfordifferentgroups,developingnewskillsinmentoringandtransitioningfromformaltoinformal teachingsettings. Commentsincluded: Ihaveneverworkedbeforewithagroupofpeoplewhohaveallhadtraumaticexperiencesin theirlife.ItmeantthatIhadtobeconsciousofwhatcertainexercisesmighttrigger,ensurethat thewritingenvironmentwasasafeandsupportiveone.Theexperiencehasmadememore sensitivetotheunspokenissuesmyparticipantsmight[have]andhasmadememorecurious abouttheissueofwritingandwellbeing. (Fromawritersreport) Teachingat[prison]waschallenging,fascinatingandinformative.Ittaughtmehowtobeamore sensitive,courageousandflexibleteaching:listeningtowhatstudentswant,encouragingthose whowerelessforthcoming,engagingthosewhowerelessonboardandcreatinganenvironment. (Fromawritersreport) Ifoundthemajorityofthementobeconfidentintheiruseoflanguageandtheirunderstandingof texts. Indeed, some salient points were made about my own work that I had never previously considered. (Fromawritersreport) Thesecommentsattesttothepotentialfortheteachingexperiencetoaddtotheprofessional developmentofwriters. Finally,itwasclearfromthepartnerssurveythattheprogrammecreatednewconnectionswith professionalwriters.13partnerssaidthattheyhadmadetheseconnections,againillustratingthatthe programmeisdevelopingwritersopportunitiesfornewmarkets.

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Developingrelationships

25

DEVELOPINGRELATIONSHIPS
PROJECTPARTNERS
Whenaskedwhattheyhopedthattheprojectwoulddeliver,the30respondentstothePartnerSurvey describedavarietyofaspirations,rangingfrom: Acreativewritingexperiencetoenhancecommunication,writingandcreativeskills(12partners) Increasingparticipantsselfefficacy(describedasconfidence,selfexpression,selfbelief)(8 partners) Aroutetomeetingwriterstoinspireparticipants(particularlytheprisonpartners)(6partners) Engaginghardtoreachgroups(5partners)

Otherreasonscitedincludedconnectingtheworkshopstoexistingschemesofwork,providingnew connectionsandexperiencesforparticipants,enhancingthepartnershipwithEnglishPENandbroadening horizons. Of30partnersthatresponded,28feltthattheirhopesfortheprojecthadbeenmet,onewasntsureand onepartnersaidtheirhopeshadnotbeenmet.Thereasongivenforthehopenotbeingmetwasthe partnerfeltthatalthoughthecreativewritingaspectoftheprojecthadachieveditsgoals,thefreespeech elementwasnotgivensufficienttime.Commentsincluded: Anunexpectedbenefitprovedtobetheenthusiasmandenhancedfeelingsofworththatspread fromtheparticipantsontheprogrammetootherscomingtothecentre;itturnedouttobe contagious. (Partnersurveyresponse) Writers'visitshaveservedtoboostinterestinthelibraryandreading.Wehavebeenabletouse theseeventsaslaunchpadsformoresustainedinhousereadershipdevelopment. (Partnersurveyresponse) Poetryespeciallywiththosewithdementiamadeusappreciatethatmuchofwhatissaidcan makesenseifweonlyallowextratimetolisten. (Partnersurveyresponse) Whenaskedhowtheprogrammecouldbeimprovedinthefuture,manypartnerssimplyendorsedthe ReadersandWritersprogramme: Idon'tthinkanythingdifferentneedstohappen.Justcontinuetodeliverthehighstandardof visitorsintocustodialsettings! (Partnersurveyresponse) However,thereweresomesuggestionsthatcouldinformhowtheprogrammedevelopsinthefuture.For thoseinformaleducationsettings,therewererequeststhattheworkshopsbemorestructuredormore explicitabouttheaimsofthesession.Thispointwasmadebyfourpartners:

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Developingrelationships Projectmanagertohavemorepresenceontheprojectalwaysdifficultwithalargeworkload. MoreforwardplanningintermsofbookingArtsAwardsetc. (Partnersurveyresponse) Maketheobjectivesoftheprojectclearsothatthereisnoambiguityastowheretheprogramme isleadingtheparticipants. (Partnersurveyresponse) Otherssimplyrequestedmoresessions,eitheroveralongerperiodoftimeorsothattheycouldreach morepeople(4partners). Onepartnerreflectedthattheycouldhaveformedagroupdifferently.Thisparticulargroupwasalso mentionedbythewriterthatledthesessionasagroupthattooktimetogelandthatwasveryfluidin termsofitsmembership.BecauseofthehighlevelsoftrustthataretypicallyrequiredintheReadersand Writersworkshops,inpartbecauseofthebackgroundsofparticipantsandinpartbecauseoftheirlife experiences,continuityhasbeenidentifiedasimportant(seealsothepreevaluationresearchpaper). Alongsimilarlinesawritercommentedthataconstantlychanginggroupwasdifficulttomanageandmade fosteringasenseoftrustachallenge: buildinganenvironmentoftrustinthisgroupwasharderasthegroupwassodisrupted.Every weektherewouldbeanewperson,otherswouldturnupinthemiddleofasessionandneededtobe filledin,manycouldn'tmakeafewweeksandsothegroupwasconstantlychanging.Thismeantthat thegrouplackedthekindofstabilityneededtofeelcomfortabletoopenup. (Fromawritersreport) Ashortguidancenote,orpreprojectmeetingcouldincludereferencetotheprosandconsofloosely formedgroupstohelpprojectpartnerstodecidehowandiftheywillselectparticipantsorleave membershipofgroupsentirelyopen. Tacklingtraumawasanotherissuethatwasraisedbyoneofthepartners.Thispersonwasconcernedthat writerswerenotnecessarilybeingcoachedpriortotheworkshopsonhowtodealwithbeneficiaries sufferingfromPostTraumaticStressDisorder.Whilewritersareadvisednottodelveintobeneficiaries traumaticpasts,focusingverymuchonthepresent,inmanyofthewritersfeedbackreportsitisobvious thatpastexperienceisreferencedintheworkshops.Thiswasnotedbythepartners,asthiscomment illustrates: Ilearnednewthingsaboutourstudentsandtheirbackground,e.g.thatoneofthemhadtravelled fortwomonthsfromAfghanistan,onfoot,byboat,lorryetcandmostlyinthedark,hidinginthe forests.Innormalclassroomenvironmenttheyfeelit'stoodistressingtotalkaboutandthinkit's irrelevant. (Partnersurveyresponse) Theremaybesomemileageindevelopinganinductionsessionfornewwritersthatincludesasectionon riskandsafety.

26

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Developingrelationships

27

BENEFICIARIESAUDIENCES&PARTICIPANTS
Projectpartnerswereaskedtoratetheiragreementswithfourstatementsabouttheimpactofeventsthat werelinkedtotheR&WPprojectsthattheyhadhosted.Thevalueoftheseeventswasstronglyendorsed bythosethatrespondedtothequestionascanbeseeninthefollowingfigure:

...enabledourorganisationto shareintheirsuccess ...enabledfriendsandfamilyto celebratetheirwork ...werewellorganisedand managed ...offeredapositiveexperience forourbeneficiaries

1 2 3

3.6 3.5 3.6 3.8 4

Strongly disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

Figure14:Partnerfeedbackonimpactofevents(Base:26)

Theimpactwentfurtherthancelebrationinsomeinstances,asonepartnercommented: AtoursharingeventoneoftheattendeesfromachurchinTamworth,wantedoneofthebooksso thathecouldgetallthewritersfromourgrouptosigntheirwork.Hewasverymovedbythe storiesandtoldusithadcompletelychangedhisviewofasylumseekers. (Partnersurveyresponse) Otherpartnersalsocommentedonthevalueoftheeventstotheconfidenceofparticipants: Oneofthemosthardtoreachprisonerswhostrugglestointeractandwithreadingandwriting, wroteareviewaboutanauthorvisitwhichrevealedhehadbeenmassivelyinspired.Theprisoner beganwritingregularlyaboutthingsheenjoyssuchasfootballandbegantointeractmoreand morewithothersandeventuallytookpartinastagedperformance.Allinspiredbythe programme. (Partnersurveyresponse)

Seeingindividualsthatwerescaredtoentertheroomforfearofbeingaskedtowritenotonlypick upapenandparticipatebut,whentheirtimewasup,continuescribblingawaywasfantastic. Witnessingthosewho'dbeenreluctantatfirsttoreadouttheirwork,developtheconfidence throughoutthesessiontoreadbytheendwasfantastic. (Partnersurveyresponse)

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Developingrelationships

28

These quotationsexemplifythe potentialoftheR&WPto positivelyimpactonthelivesof the beneficiaries andonthosethatareinvitedtocelebrationevents.

Image8:europolyglotandSpeakforyourself!event(Photo:JackieDiStefano)

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Conclusion&Recommendations

29

CONCLUSION&RECOMMENDATIONS
CONCLUSION
TheReadersandWritersProgramme2012/13exceededthemajorityofitstargets,reachingjustunder 5,000beneficiariesduringtheyear.Thereisclearevidencethattheskills,knowledgeandqualitiesof beneficiarieswereenhancedbytheprogramme.Moreover,beneficiarieshaveenjoyedworkingwith professionalwritersandhaveinthemajorityofinstancesappreciatedthedesignanddeliveryofthe workshops.Therewasalsoanindicationthatbeneficiarieswouldwelcomesupportandresourcesto consolidatetheirlearning,somerequestingmoreregularandongoingworkshops.Thislastpointisan importantoneforEnglishPENtoconsiderwhenthinkingaboutthenextphaseoftheR&WP:towhat extentshouldtheProgrammesfocusbeonreachingnewbeneficiariesandtowhatextentdoesithavea responsibilitytosupportitsexistingbeneficiaries? Theprofessionalwritershavealsoshownthattheyhavebenefittedfromtakingpartintheprojects,citing theexperienceaspositive,withoverhalfofthosethatwroteafinalreportidentifyingareasoftheir practicethathaddevelopedasaresultoftheirinvolvement.Thereweresomepointsraisedthatwillhelp informthefutureshapeoftheproject,includingcreatingguidanceon:forminggroupsofbeneficiaries, differentiatinglearning(particularlywherelanguageisabarrier)andworkingwithvictimsoftrauma.There isalsoscopetodevelopresourcessothatwriterscanshareinformationaboutEnglishPENsotherareasof workandbetterconnectbeneficiariestotheorganisation. Projectpartnersreportedthattheiraspirationsfortheprogrammehadbeenmetandprovidedsomeuseful suggestionslinkedtohowEnglishPENmightconnectwiththeirstrategicobjectives.Inparticular,points wereraisedbytwotypesoforganisation(refugeecharitiesandsecuresettings)linkedtoaccreditation. ThisimpliesthatpartnerscanseetheacademicvalueoftheR&WPworkshopsandthepotentialforthe workshopstodeliverinterdepartmentalobjectives.Partnersalsodocumentedthefactthatwriters deliveringinmoreformaleducationenvironments,particularlyschools,neededtobemoretransparent abouttheobjectivesoftheworkshopsinordertofitbetterwithcurricula.Finally,therewasstrong endorsementforthecelebrationeventsandpublicationsthatresultedfrombeneficiariescreative endeavours.Partnerswelcomedtheseeventsasawayofshowcasingtheirwork,butalsorecognizedthe importanceforbeneficiariesandaudiences. TheevaluationthisyearhasfocusedondevelopingamethodologythatwillworkforEnglishPENandwhile therehavebeensomesuccessesintheprocessesdevised,therolewriterswillplayintheevaluationstill needstobedeveloped.Moreover,theevaluationwasintroducedatatimeofconsiderablechangeat EnglishPEN,bothintermsofleadershipandstructurewithintheProgrammesportfolio.Thatsaidthere wasplentyofevidencecollectedbytheProgrammesteamandthisevidenceprovidesabaselineforfuture evaluationsoftheprogramme. Muchofthefeedbackfortheevaluationhasbeenextremelypositiveandtherearemanyexampleswhere individualshavebeenemotionallytouchedbytheprojects.Thebespokeapproachtoeachpartnershipis animportantcontributoryfactortothesuccessoftheprogrammeandisatestamenttothetimeand energyinvestedbytheProgrammesteam. MelitaArmitage,June2013

Conclusion&Recommendations

30

RECOMMENDATIONS
RECOMMENDATION1
Developabriefingnoteforpartnerorganisationsonhowtoformgroupstotakepartintheproject.

RECOMMENDATION2
Reviewwriterinductionprocessestolookspecificallyatmanagingriskandsafety(especiallyin circumstanceswherewholegroupshaveanexperienceoftrauma)anddifferentiatinglearningwhere languageisabarrier.

RECOMMENDATION3
ConsiderthepartwritersshouldplayinprovidinginformationaboutEnglishPENtobeneficiariesand whethertodeveloparesourcefortheirinductionpackorforworkshops.

RECOMMENDATION4
ReintroducethePENcertificateforallparticipantsandlookatopportunitiestodovetailaccreditationwith thelearningprogrammeswithinpartnerorganisations.

RECOMMENDATION5
ConsiderintroducinganopenselectionprocessforwriterstojointheR&WPinordertofurtherdiversify thepoolofwriters.

RECOMMENDATION6
LookathowEnglishPENcansupporttheongoingwritinginterestsofitsbeneficiaries,including signpostingtoothergroupsandprovidingongoingresourcestosupportindividualsandgroupsthatwish toselfmoderate.

RECOMMENDATION7
Reviewtheevaluationprocessinordertoclarifytheroleofwritersindistributingmonitoringand evaluationtoolsandtoensurethatprisonevaluationtoolsfitswiththenewevaluationstrategy.

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Appendix1:R&WPAims&Objectives

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APPENDIX1:R&WPAIMS&OBJECTIVES
Aim1:Todeliverhighqualitylifelonglearningopportunitiestodisadvantagedgroupsofbeneficiaries, currentlyidentifiedasrefugees,asylumseekers,migrants,prisoners,detainees,youngoffendersand youngpeoplefromdisadvantagedbackgrounds,inorderthattheycanexplore,developandmaintain andbeempoweredthroughtheirFreedomtoWrite,FreedomtoRead. Objective1:Toreach3,000beneficiaries(1,000fromNewCommunities,1,000fromprisonsand 1,000youngpeople)ineachofthethreeyearsoftheprogrammethroughamixtureofinformal lifelonglearningformats Objective2:Throughavarietyoflearningopportunities,providebeneficiarieswiththemeansto exploretheircreativeselfexpressionandfreespeechinasafeenvironmentandtodevelopspecific skills,knowledgeandqualitieslinkedtothevisionfortheprogramme Objective3:Toofferbeneficiariestheopportunitytoaccreditanddemonstratetheirlearningand tosupportthosethatwishtoprogressontothenextstageoftheircreativedevelopment Objective4:TobringbeneficiariesintotheheartofwhatEnglishPENdoesthroughstrategic volunteeringroles,membershipandattendanceandparticipationinEnglishPENevents Aim2:TooffertrainingandprofessionaldevelopmentopportunitiestoEnglishPENsgreatestresource thewritersweworkwithandtoaccompany,encourageandsupportourwriters,andassociate freelancers,tobuildlonglastingrelationshipswithEnglishPENandourpartnerorganisations. Objective5:Toworkwithatleast70writers,freelanceprojectmanagersandvolunteers(ofwhich atleast40arewriters)fromdiversebackgroundsinordertoincreasethepoolofregularwriters thatEnglishPENhastrainedtodate Objective6:Toprovideaminimumoftwodaystraining&resourcesforeachwritertoequipthem todeliverhighqualitylearningopportunitiesforprojectbeneficiaries Aim3:ToencourageandmaintainaculturewhereEnglishPENseducationprogrammeiscontinually improvingitsworkingpracticesaswellasitsrelationshipswithbeneficiaries,funders,partner organisationsandotherstakeholders. Objective7:TomeetfundraisingtargetsdetailedintheEnglishPENbusinessplan201215 Objective8:Fosterauthenticrelationshipswithbeneficiaries,funders,partnerorganisations, writers,projectmanagersandvolunteersandaudiencesinordertoextendthereachofthe programme.

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Appendix2:WritersworkingwithEnglishPENontheR&WP2012/13

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APPENDIX2:WRITERSWORKINGWITHENGLISHPENONTHER&WP2012/13
euorpolyglot Poetry Parnassusin Detention FaithinFree Speech BraveNew Voices Wishyou werehere Speakfor Yourself! Makemy day! PENin Mildmay Writers PENin Prisons PEN Mentors Writing Heroes X PENin Wigan X X

AbdullahiBotan AlexWheatle AvaesMohammad BewketuSyoum BhartiTailor Bidisha ClarePollard CleoSoazandry CourttiaNewland DzifaBenson EvlynnSharp FaizaGuene FathiehSaudi FemiMartin GeorgieDonati GerryRyan IanMarchant IreneGarrow(PEN) JasonArchie JohnHegley JohnSiddique MelitaArmitage,June2013

X X X X X X X

X X X

X X X X

X X X

Appendix2:WritersworkingwithEnglishPENontheR&WP2012/13 euorpolyglot Poetry Parnassusin Detention Writers PENin Prisons

33

FaithinFree Speech

BraveNew Voices

Wishyou werehere

Speakfor Yourself!

Makemy day!

PENin Mildmay

PEN Mentors

JohnathanGreen KarenMcCarthyWoolf KayoChingonyi KosalKhiev MaeveClarke MalikaBooker MarkVernon MavisCheek MiriamHalahmy MojisolaAdebayo NiallGriffiths NiiAyikweiParkes OlumidePopoola PhilipCowell(PEN) RussLitten SaradhaSoobrayen SarahArdizzone ShazeaQuraishi ShereeMack SimonKernick SimonMole SophieMayer SusanaGiner MelitaArmitage,June2013

X X X X X X X X

X X X X X X

X X X

X X

X X X X

X X

X X

Writing Heroes X X X

PENin Wigan

Appendix2:WritersworkingwithEnglishPENontheR&WP2012/13 euorpolyglot Poetry Parnassusin Detention Writers PENin Prisons

34

FaithinFree Speech

BraveNew Voices

Wishyou werehere

Speakfor Yourself!

Makemy day!

PENin Mildmay

PEN Mentors

SusannahHoward TehminaKazi ValRutt VirginiaAharieva WarsanShire ZoeLambert

X X

MelitaArmitage,June2013

Writing Heroes X

PENin Wigan

Appendix3:ExamplesoftheHead,Heart&Feetexercise

35

APPENDIX3:EXAMPLESOFTHEHEAD,HEART&FEETEXERCISE
THINGSYOULEARNT

THINGSYOUFELT

THINGSYOUWILLTAKEAWAYWITHYOU

MelitaArmitage,June2013