At NewRiver REIT’s Prospect Shopping Centre in Hull, the Workman onsite team has driven a range of social value programmes over the past year, which have included collaboration with schools, local charities, and families.
Here are some examples of what’s been achieved through their efforts:
Creating community events for local families
Following six weeks of workshops teaching the local community how to make parade masks and characters, the onsite centre management team organised a Summer Parade in collaboration with local charity the Plant a Tree Today Foundation. The event involved local artists, dance groups, fire eaters, viola, double bass and guitar players, balloon artists and lots of families. The parade started in the Prospect Centre, then spilled out on to streets around the scheme.
Over 800 visitors were involved in the workshops, then over 200 people followed the parade, which drew a lot of interest on a Saturday lunch time. The parade was photographed, filmed, and caught the interest of the local radio station.
Two local mental health community centres and an adult education group came along to the event, which inspired positive feedback from families attending the workshop sessions and parade, and the occupiers also took part.
The Workman team’s total spend for the event was £200 towards materials, with everything else covered by donations from occupiers and families involved. This event created a positive response from the public and local businesses, with significant social media impact. The centre is now seen as a place to go to for workshops, art, events and more.
Later in the year, the centre held children’s Halloween workshops creating lanterns in collaboration with Prospect Gallery Artists. These events brought lots of families into the centre during school holidays. They bought creative craft supplies from occupiers including B&M and Wilko for projects they were working on with the artists.
These projects give back to the community, for children from all backgrounds and for parents who want something local to do during the school holidays – without a prohibitive price tag.
Reaching out to community schools
The Workman onsite team at Prospect Shopping Centre worked with the local Parkstone Primary School to design flags for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in May 2022. The centre management team then returned to the school after judging the designs to advise on a winner from each age group and present prizes.
A local radio station attended on the presentation day to interview the winning children, and the local newspaper also showcased the work, which was exhibited in the shopping centre for people to view in the Prospect Gallery. This brought in many of the children and families involved, creating close ties with the local community and a halo effect for the centre.
