Wednesday 13^th March 2013 – Exploring the town and back in the office

Over a quickly-succeeding second cup of tea, Kerry explained the basics of how I go about registering as self employed, what this entails, and completing an invoice – this seems a lot less scary now! We then went for a walk into sunny Heywood, stopping to visit the Phoenix Centre, the Library, Recovery Republic and an Art & Soul session. It was nice to get to visit these places and groups that I've heard about and know I will be working with over the course of the traineeship, and it was useful to chat with Kerry on the way about some of the challenges arts companies face regarding funding.

Back in the office, I organised Community First questionnaires into a collective response from different wards, regarding their thoughts on the wards and where they think funding should be prioritised. It was good to gain an insight into the area through the eyes of residents, and I visited the Community First websites to learn more.

Key learning points of today were the challenges in securing funding for community arts projects; the Hopwood Recreation Ground needs draining; and I need to up my tea-drinking game!