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Edventure Strategic Planning November 2013

Influential in the direction of Edventure

How shall we develop edventure: Frome as a sustainable and replicable social enterprise over the next 3 years?

VISION:   What do we see in place 3 years from now?

  • An inspiring demonstration of positive impact 
    • A BBC Documentary about ‘the way of edventure’
    • Case Study :  Leader in innovative methods
    • A strong visible portfolio of case studies
    • Landlords Inspired by use of space
    • We can demonstrate the impact of edventure using an effective evaluation tool
    • Statue of Johannes with kaboodles of money and a knighthood
    • An array of success stories
  • Meaningful livelihoods make thriving Frome
    • The capacity built by edventure stays within Frome
    • Young people are staying and setting up responsible business
    • Network of offshoot enterprises
    • ‘One planet’ edventure
    • Frome is a hotbed for social enterprise
    • Frome is a better place because of edventure
  • Edventure is embedded, valued & influential in Frome
    • Established and valued service provider in Frome
    • Active, visible, respected group in Frome
    • Advocates for edventure from a cross-section of Frome
    • University of facilitation practice
    • Linked into & valued by FCLP
    • Diverse purposeful & fun youth culture
  • Edventure is recognised as local, inclusive, diverse & accessible
    • Bringing people together and creating opportunities
    • We are holding a celebration for people involved with edventure (0-120 years)
    • Have case studies of working with all the communities of Frome
  • A well-resourced and sustainable business
    • Well-resourced and thriving hub
    • Strong supportive admin team
    • 3-year core funding
    • £100k in reserves and a full team of staff
    • A thriving Welshmill community space
    • Edventure is sponsored by Lord Sugar
  • Seeds are taking root
    • An apprentice has started another edventure
    • A strong replicable brand
    • Edventure umbrella body
    • Clear vision & identity
  • A magnet for young people
    • Every young person in Frome knows edventure can help
    • A raft of young people
    • There is a waiting list

CONTRADICTIONS: What is blocking us from moving towards our vision?

  • We have limited capacity to meet access requirements
    • Restrictions on use of space
    • Not inclusive – physical access, special needs
  • We tend to overstretch ourselves
    • Doing too much at once
    • Concern & energy spread too wide
    • Short-term activity compromises long-term vision
  • Tension between being driven by demand vs. mission
    • People don’t necessarily want/ seek diversity
    • Limited packages limit accessibility
    • We are not yet creating enough opportunities to unite people who are different
    • We are not responding to demand of young people of Frome
  • Suspicion of the new & different deters people from engaging
    • Not able to communicate effectively
    • People are threatened because they don’t understand
    • Perception of exclusivity (hippy, alternative, middle class)
    • Actively not valued or trusted by agencies
    • Not enough advocates with influence
    • Giving impression of being too alternative
    • Being new/ threatening in an established community of service providers
  • Unclear outcomes deter engagement
    • Outcomes for edventure are unclear
    • Difficult to communicate vision convincingly
    • Misunderstanding of expectation by & of apprentices
    • Difficulty of accessing long-term funding
    • Unknown entity to young people (risk, justify on CV)
    • We do not yet know our niche
    • Not able to communicate edventure effectively
  • We are start-up pioneers
    • We are believing our own assumptions
    • No tried & tested business model
    • Experience, time, track record – build before collapse
    • Unknown entity to other bodies (new, different)
    • Edventure hasn’t flowered (yet)
  • We have yet to find a way to measure impact
    • Not able to communicate effectively
    • Learning, income, social impact – tension
    • How to measure impact?
    • Difficulty measuring reach & impact
  • Our background is not business
    • Financial vulnerability
    • Business expertise needed
    • Misunderstanding of business needs
Time limitations – spread ourselves too thin

STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS: What practical actions will deal with our underlying contradictions and move us toward our vision?

Creatively Pioneering and Demonstrating Social Impact

  • Experiment
    • Trial new support packages, record & evaluate
  • Evidence
    • Document learning as part of pioneering approach
    • Seek input on creative tools to measure impact
    • Build simple measurement into day to day procedure
    • Strong social media coverage
    • Use ‘Good Analyst’ framework to define & measure impact
    • Create an impact portfolio
    • Find out how others (similar) measure impact, e.g.: for funding
    • Participants tell edventure’s story through their own experiences

Nurturing Supportive, Beneficial Networks and Partnerships

  • Connect
    • Join Frome community learning network
    • Meet & talk to more local community groups
    • Going out to meet people & build relationships in community (i.e.: join a group)
  • Partner
    • Partner with existing business learning places
    • Link with established partner, i.e.: Princes Trust, UnLtd
  • Be supported
    • Seek similar examples to edventure
    • Seek business support relationship
    • Guidance from pioneering start-up for now & future
    • Scheduled time for business planning with mentors
    • Seek support from other pioneering organisations
    • Seek out business expertise

Delivering Clear and Focussed Outcomes

  • Relax
    • Creative use of the truth to fundraise
  • Clarify
    • Design a partnership contract
    • Clarify on needs requirements for apprentices
    • Clear guidelines about services regularly updated & improved
    • Write clear rules of engagement for users
    • For each vision create a detailed account of what it would look like
    • Understand and acknowledge access restrictions
    • Agree our capacity to support individual needs
  • Focus
    • Narrow frame of intent
    • Decide on criteria for taking on new projects
    • Do less but better: prioritise, be patient