The Northern Collaboration Conference

A New Manchester Alphabet: an exercise in collaboration

Thursday 15 September 2016

A New Manchester Alphabet

How did the project come about?

What were the aims of the project?• Increasing student engagement• Enhancing the student experience• Employability• Raising the profile of Special

Collections internally and externally

What resources did we have?• Staff time• Staff knowledge and experience• Limited budget• Access to Design Studio and

Reprographics

What was the timescale?

How did we deliver the project?- Divide into manageable chunks- Fit in with existing timetable- Make best use of everyone’s skills and

knowledge- Flexibility

November 2013Begin

research

April – July 2014Planning

November 2014

Brief students

February 2015

Deadline for poems

July 2015Deadline

for illustration

s

October 2015

Sign off artwork

December 2015

Book Launch

Launch event at Manchester Art Gallery

Marketing

Distribution

Social Media OnlineOutlets in the city

Extending the project - Department of History

Collection on history pin

Extending the project D/Evolving Manchester launch event

Extending the project – Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT) at Manchester Met

CELT created a film about the collaborative process of producing A New Manchester Alphabet on the Good Practice Exchange section of their website:http://www.celt.mmu.ac.uk/good_practice/gpentry.php?id=87

Historic England Manchester Schools Alphabet

- How did the project come about?- Who was involved?- How did we plan and manage the project?- Timescale and delivery

Historic England Manchester Schools AlphabetCPD session with primary school teachers

Historic EnglandManchester Schools Alphabet exhibition and Celebratory Event at the People’s History Museum

“We used old and modern maps of our area. We saw how it changed and we looked for things that had been there a long time. We looked for things to match the different letters of the alphabet. Then in pairs we worked on our poems and our artwork. It was fun and interesting and we learnt a lot of stuff.”

Year 6 pupil, Ladybarn Primary School “There has been a fantastic energy and buzz from the children throughout the project. They loved having ownership of a letter and it all being their own work; many of them did extra work at home.” Kate Donnellon, Heritage Schools Lead Teacher, Ladybarn Primary School “I liked finding out about our area. It was fun to do the research and then use it to write our poems. We have to be very creative.”

Year 4 pupil, St Richard’s Primary School “I had to find out about the Aces and Belle Vue. It was really interesting so I did some extra research. I live really near there so it was fun to find out more about what it was like in the past and today.” Year 4 pupil, St Richard’s Primary School “The children have found it really interesting to find out all about their area - what was there in the past, what is still there today and what has now been built instead. I’m definitely going to repeat the activities again next year because it’s a great way to do a local history study. It encourages the children to do independent research and to find out about their area in the past but it also develops their literacy skills and is a chance for them to do some art. It ticks all my boxes and they’ve loved it!! Anna Martins, Year 4 Teacher, St Richard’s Primary School

Manchester Histories FestivalDrop-in family event at Manchester Central Library and Celebratory Day at Manchester Town Hall

Manchester Children’s Book Festival

CPD event for teachers

EuroScience Open ForumScience in the City FestivalCity of Science Walking Tours

What did we learn?

• Working collaboratively- what went well?- what would we do

differently?

Legacy• Ongoing interest in the project from

external organisations

Exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery featuring original A Manchester Alphabet drawings

King Street Festival

Profile

Reputation

Engagement

Confidence Legacy

Any Questions?

Louise ClennellEducation and Outreach OfficerMMU Special Collectionsl.clennell@mmu.ac.uk

@MMUSpecial#newmcralphabet