Newsletter

21 Jan 2010

Socrates weekend, 15-17th Jan, at Burton Manor College, Wirral,  attended by 36 adults including 8 from the Blue Mugge pub, Leek;  2 from The Lazy Trout,  Meerbrook,  North Staffs and at least  12 from Philosophy in Pubs (PiPs) in Liverpool. 
The Key-note Lecture on Socrates and Darwin was given by David Sedley, Professor of Ancient Philosophy, Cambridge who engaged with the central arguments from Socrates onwards about Creationism.   Darwin’s crucial role and impact on these arguments was stressed.    Fellow member of Melvyn Bragg’s In our Time team,  Angie Hobbs – now Senior Fellow in the Public Understanding of Philosophy -  followed through with two dazzling, inspirational, sessions on big public philosophical contemporary issues.

Discussion groups led by PiPs facilitators and a Sat. evening TV film session ensured that every session continued engagement with Socrates – the method and the arguments..   This successful weekend was organised by Derek Tatton, supported by RWF – TF financially,  and tutors were David Bates, Paul Doran but primarily Rob Lewis who provided extensive notes for participants. 

The strengths of this residential will be built upon, leading to other similar (WEA, maybe) Days and Residentials. 

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Concurrently, a weekend course at the Wedgwood Memorial College, Barlaston, recruited recruited 17 Esperantists to discuss, in Esperanto,  big themes based on notes from the Mugge and Trout pubs  such as Citizenship,  Buddhism, Confidence, and Thatcherism. 
This was the 5th Drondo  (Esperanto for Diskut-rondo, or discussion circle),  led this time by Tim Owen, and it was subsidized by RWF – TF to widen participation,  which it did.
Rave reviews have been received demonstrating that the pub notes > residential and beyond can work and offer a model for future development.

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Raymond Williams Foundation
Newsletter
Number 3
December 09

1.    Our first year, operating as the enlarged RWF, ends with 10 projects which we have supported financially:

    1. Farm2Grow (taster day, launching activities and courses involving socially and educationally disadvantaged)
    2. Annual WEA Raymond Williams W/end on Key Words at Barlaston
    3. BRASS (helping asylum seekers and refugees in Bolton)
    4. Art theory and practice  WEA residential at WMC, Barlaston
    5. Cuba Day in Berwick-upon-Tweed – lecture and discussion sessions
    6. Esperanto Drondo  (discussion circle on big themes) w/end at Barlaston
    7. NORSACA (Afro-Caribbean Association) Day at Barlaston
    8. Cambridge Womens’ Resource Centre, for educational courses
    9. Issues in Politics, WEA course in Stoke-on-Trent – keeping fees low.
    10. Oldham Refugees  educational support.

‘Ball-park’ estimate of number of students/learners benefitting directly from RWF grants for the above:    210.
Estimate of the number of voluntary activists working to facilitate the above, including the RWF trustees approving the projects:   38.

Report back indicates that our relatively modest grants (£hundreds but not £thousands, for each project) have made a significant contribution to success.
We have had warmly appreciative e-mails and letters including a Christmas card from the Cambridge Womens’ Resource Centre.
This is encouraging because it has all been achieved well within our annual budget (spending only from our investment income) so we may be able to do more, and even better, in 2010.

Trustees have approved support for several other projects, in principle.

2.     Membership has grown steadily through the year.  We have done better than expected in gaining Life Members.   Annual membership is renewable in January each year but, of course, we welcome new members throughout the year.
Many known to be sympathetic to RWF and strongly to Raymond’s Long Revolution have not yet joined.   We can, maybe, work on that in the coming year but no pressure is needed because we’re doing well with a viable and growing membership.

3.    Our web-site continues to expand and improve, kept up-to-date at least monthly by web-master Bob Foster.    The links and number of visitors have increased, especially in recent months.

4.    The programme leaflet for the 2010 week-end at Barlaston had been produced by late November this year, earlier than in recent times.  The programme can be seen on our web-site and all who enrolled for this annual week-end in recent years should have received copy by e-mail or post.   If you would like copy/ies please contact me.   We are on course again to fill the College.

5.    Our successful application for funding from the Government’s Learning Revolution –Transformation Fund (LR –TF) has given a dramatic boost to the Foundation, raising our profile nationally.   The detail on this can be found on the RWF web-site.   The aim has been ambitious, linking pub circles in North Staffs and Liverpool to other informal groups (café philosophique, sci-bars, U3A philosophy and politics courses) to professionally taught, RWF funded  WEA courses,  day and residential schools at adult residential colleges.  
A striking success to date has been the Socrates residential week-end next January 2010, for which the lecturers and tutors include two of the country’ most distinguished academic philosophers (both discussed Socrates with Melvyn Bragg in the BBC ‘In our Time’ series).   The w/end was fully booked just three weeks after the promotion date, including good numbers from the pub circles (20 or so).
The planned experience-sharing and training week-end at Barlaston in February
will bring together  a good range of participants from ‘informal learning’ circles and groups.    That will help boost the project generally, given the WEA’s recently announced aim ‘to create models of informal adult learning which are defined and controlled by adult learners themselves…’.    We are in the vanguard in this sphere and will seek to consolidate the work, as above, in partnership with the WEA.      

6.     The latest news on the future of the Wedgwood Memorial College is that the review conducted by the City of Stoke-on-Trent will be presented with recommendation – based on plans and costs for total refurbishment, but also including the option of closure – for consultation in March.    Carol Smith, the temporary Principal, is taking early retirement from the end of March. Meanwhile, RWF has made positive proposals to Carol offering further financial support for residential and day courses in 2010.

7.     Partnerships are crucial for RWF and over the last twelve months direct links and co-operative work has been achieved with over 14 organisations.

8.     The successes summarised in this Newsletter offer eloquent testimony that Dudley Pretty’s intentions embodied through his exceptional bequest are being honoured.   Further fund-raising to strengthen voluntary networks will be on the agenda in coming months.  An RWF legacy form is still being drafted - it is clear that legacies (more modest maybe than Dudley’s) could, for the foreseeable future, be a most helpful way to underpin the Foundation and its work.
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With best wishes for the Yuletide season and for 2010,

Derek Tatton,
RWF Administrator

derektatton@btinternet.com         Phone:   01538 370067
visit:   www.raymondwilliiamsfoundation.org.uk   and  www.oddc.org.uk