Is the Future Rural?

Since launching in 2018 we’ve been working to change perceptions of the area to tackle the fact that the number of 16 – 35 year olds choosing to live and work here is 44% less than the national average. We’ve funded some really impactful projects and worked with a huge variety of people. Before we…

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Writer turned lockdown thoughts into shop-front poetry

Freelance Poet, Melissa Davies kicked off Watch This Space 2021 by creating a poem live from Kendal restaurant, Comida, as part of our joint project with Kendal Poetry Festival. People sent in their responses to the question “How do you feel when you step out of your front door?” during February and Melissa used the…

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Live More, Run More: Celebrating Fell Running in the Dales

A brand new website, Run the Dales, is shining a light on one of the most accessible and traditional sports of all – Fell Running – the original sport of the Yorkshire Dales.   Sponsored by the Yorkshire Dales National Park and us, Run the Dales and its accompanying photographic exhibition celebrates one of oldest…

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Our project, The FOLD donates activity packs for children over half-term

The disappointment of a third national lockdown, school closures and cancelled gatherings was challenged by the producers of The FOLD who, prior to the half-term holiday, donated 100 activity packs for primary school aged children to Skipton children’s charity, SELFA and Kendal Foodbank. The ‘Lets Create’ activity packs aimed to encourage creativity at home, particularly…

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Artists and young people join together to brighten up skate park

  Artists Charlie Kondras and Mr Ben returned to North Yorkshire to complete a mural at Bentham’s skatepark as part of The FOLD, a co-designed programme with young people from the area. Both artists attended Queen Elizabeth School in Kirkby Lonsdale and now work in Sheffield as professional artists across a range of disciplines as well as teaching…

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Dales based animation studio creates music video for Katy Perry

Katy Perry’s official video for song “Resilient” from her new album “Smile”, has just been released. The stop motion animation video was directed by USA based Aya Tanimura, commissioned by Hound Content production house, and created by Skipton based animator and Great Place Creative Champion, Virpi Kettu and her Kettu Studios collective of local and…

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Fresh Perspective for young people in the Dales

A team of young people from the Skipton area have joined forces to set up a Facebook Group encouraging young people to share their experiences and the opportunities they find in the area, following on from the recent Covid-19 lockdown. We originally set up the group, named Fresh Perspective, in 2019 and it is now…

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Life in Lockdown in the Lakes and Dales

Portrayal of young people in the media since the outbreak of COVID-19 has been varied, as has young people’s experiences across the UK. Research from Beetfreaks Youth Trends, who also conducted research for us in Year One, shows that 58% of young people have said Covid-19 has left them unsure about their futures. So what…

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Insta-Live Resources: The Recovery Process for Your Organisation

On 19 June we chatted to Strategy Consultant Lisa Jamieson on how we can feel confident and resilient moving forward as the Covid 19 pandemic continues. To watch it head it here. Lisa mentions a number of useful resources in the chat. These are: This Is The Time – distillation of views of freelancers across the…

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Work experience on our RIBA Housing Competition

Seth is currently in Sixth Form at Ermysteds Grammar School in Skipton and has been inspired by our Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) competition for flexible housing as he works towards his ambition of becoming an architect. Seth is completing an architectural work experience project with us, focusing on the competition, which aimed to…

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Useful Hashtags for the Lakes and Dales

While the Covid-19 crisis is still so unpredictable and people are urged to stay at home we have hit pause on our use of the hashtag #LiveMoreDoMore but this campaign will be back and better than ever in the future. In the meantime, here’s a handy list of hashtags you or your organisation can join…

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Great Place Lakes and Dales Update Tuesday 24 March 2020

During these unprecedented times and the continued uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak we have spent the past ten days closely following government and NHS advice and consulting with our funding partners and programme delivery team. Between us we have made the sad but inevitable decision to postpone all forthcoming off-line programme activity including Aerial;…

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Unplug in the Lakes and Dales

From sundown on 6 March to sundown on 7 March it is National Day of Unplugging. Okay, so we have stolen this day from America but we think it is a GREAT idea. After all, there is so much to enjoy here in the Lakes and Dales. As the day organisers explain, “we increasingly miss…

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