Our Work
HCT co-lab application is now open!
Develop skills to navigate complexity and collaboration
Most of the challenges we face require a cross sector co-creative approach but our systems within Gloucestershire allow little time to get to know and understand each other. Underpinned by the idea that change needs everybody, the Collaboratory will be a space to:
Strengthen our structures of togetherness, come together and work outside silos
Seek peer to peer support and learn together
Broaden our field of vision to come up with radically new ideas
Develop the muscle of collaboration and deliberation
Pay attention and recognise the impact our identities and positions have on our individual and collective experience
Bring time and hope
The deadline for applications is midnight on
Friday 19th April 2024
Polarities - dealing with ‘both/and’ scenarios in an ‘either/or’ world
“The nature of paradox, turning things on their head, flipping ideas upside-down – and knowing how to reconcile and ride the tension of opposites – is at the heart of leadership and indeed life.” Sir Paul Callaghan, Physicist
On 20th March 2024 we invited a group of VCSE, statutory sector and independent colleagues to a ‘polarities’ workshop led by the Kings Fund’s Toby Lindsay.
“Isn’t the world polarised enough already?” - well, quite! We were curious to see how this framing might help us navigate the paradoxes that occur in our collaborative work together. Together we tried out the theory and practice and we walked and talked a ‘real-world’ example. We noticed that the conversation shaped a better understanding of what’s happening beneath the surface where there is tension, disagreement, frustration, ‘too fast’, ‘too slow’, push and pull. We thought that this may be an interesting micro-skill to support empathy mapping, conflict resolution or to strengthen existing inter-sector partnerships.
You can access the resources from the workshop below and contact us if you are interested in finding out more.
Structures of our togetherness
On 29th June 2023 we convened a conversation about the strength of our connections in Gloucestershire. We asked whether we have the ‘structures of togetherness’ it would take to achieve social justice and fairer health in our county.
There was learning, connection, hope and inspiration.
But people felt “radical change is needed”, “parts of the system need to increase tolerance for discomfort”, and “we need to talk, learn, share, be brave!”
Click on the buttons below to access materials and reports from the event and join us on Twitter to share ideas and practice that keep us connected.
VCSE Strategic Planning Event
Following the successful Gloucestershire VCS Alliance VCSE Planning Day on the 7th October 2022, The Healthy Communities Together Stewardship Group hosted a VCSE event to continue the conversation about how we create the conditions for greater trust between VCSE, Health and Local Government to deliver better outcomes and fairer health for people in Gloucestershire.
“How Do We Feed Children & Keep Families Connected During the Holidays”
On 25th April 2022 we brought together people who wanted to explore ‘how we can feed children and connect families across Gloucestershire”.
Just under 100 people turned up for imaginative conversations, new connections and ideas for action.
Read the report using the button below to find out what happened. Join or continue the conversation on Facebook.
