Contents
- 10 years ago: How MEaP (Making Education a Priority) got started
- Developing a Black-Led Pedagogy
- Taking our educational provision online
- 10 Years of MEaP as a Consortium
- GIFT: Twenty years “moving out of the box” – Two Decades of Transformative Faith-Based Community Service
- Highway Hope: 10 years of Empowering Communities
- Nurturing Foundations: Five Years celebration
- 10 years / A Decade of Educational Transformation, A Future of Progress
10 years ago: How MEaP (Making Education a Priority) got started
Making Education a Priority (MEaP) is the legacy of a lively conference with the community that we hosted in 2013. Themes around Culture, Identity, Community and Governance emerged from all of the excellent contributions to the conference. Themes, firmly rooted in Education, began to define a pathway towards Social Justice in a practical way, for our communities. In our workshops, we explored the models of Free Schools, Co-operative Schools, Studio Schools, Supplementary Schools and Arts-led Special Schools. We also had workshops about thinking of Alternative Education as Protest, which gave us an insight into what “Critical Pedagogy” could actually look like on the ground, in our communities.
Developing a Black-Led Pedagogy
In our early days, we worked in collaboration with Manchester Metropolitan University to develop a PG Cert in Teaching and Learning for supplementary school teachers. In those days, we were also researching the essential qualities of a Black-led pedagogy and its contribution to tackling social inequalities in BAME communities.
Since then, as MEaP Academy Twilight School, we developed our own pedagogy based on Ubuntu, An African Philosophy of Education, that we have been able to embed across the mainstream curricula that we deliver.
In parallel, we have continued to train our own teachers using the QTLS professional formation route, where Ubuntu underpins their professional practice.
We are also very proud of MaCTRI, our training, research and apprenticeships centre. MaCTRI allows us to continue to research the connections between our Ubuntu pedagogy and social justice more closely, as we see these links continuing to embed themselves in our delivery.
Taking our educational provision online
Finally, we are very proud of our blended learning platform, which we have been developing over the years that allows us to deliver our classes both online (all year round) and face-to-face for our Easter intensives. This flexible format has allowed us to teach year 10 and year 11 pupils from our partners’ supplementary schools, who teach up to year 9. It continues to be a great pleasure for our MEaP Academy Twilight School to occupy a central position as an essential year 10/11 extension of our partners’ supplementary provision.
10 Years of MEaP as a Consortium
MEaP is also 10 years strong with the input from our consortium partnership made of Grace Incorporation Faith Trust (GIFT) Highway Hope and Nurturing Foundations. The individual 2023 anniversary celebrations of each of our partners is a celebration for us because of how valuable their work has also been for their own organisations and for MEaP. Each member of our consortium is celebrating their own anniversary this year!
GIFT: Twenty years “moving out of the box” – Two Decades of Transformative Faith-Based Community Service
In November 2003, Grace Incorporation Faith Trust (GIFT) took root with a vision propelled by the belief that the local church held the potential to catalyze substantial change within the community. Two decades later, GIFT stands tall, celebrating twenty years of unwavering dedication in providing comprehensive educational and training services to diverse sections of society.
With a firm commitment to serving individuals (particularly young people) and families, particularly those facing financial constraints, GIFT has been a beacon of professional guidance and support. Our initiatives, spanning from Mentoring, Supplementary School Services, Family Mediation, to Personal Development Training, emanate from our central hub at Brow House in Manchester. These initiatives are designed with one central goal: to empower our communities, enabling them to unlock their full potential in education, employment, and training.
As we mark this significant milestone, GIFT reaffirms its unwavering commitment to fostering transformative change. Our journey over the past two decades has been a testament to the power of faith-driven advocacy and service. Through our tireless efforts, we continue to make an indelible impact on the lives of those we serve, igniting a ripple effect of positive change within our communities.
GIFT celebrates twenty years of promoting social inclusion by providing a set of visualisations that clarifies the enormous impact they’ve had in “moving young people in their community out of the box” and giving them opportunities they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to have. Join us in celebrating twenty years of faith-driven advocacy and a legacy dedicated to empowering communities and fostering a brighter, more inclusive future for all. #GIFTAnniversary #CommunityEmpowerment #FaithDrivenService
Highway Hope: 10 years of Empowering Communities
Nestled at 1 Matthew Lane, Manchester, UK, Highway Hope proudly commemorates a decade of unwavering dedication to the vibrant communities of Levenshulme, Longsight, and Gorton. As we celebrate this milestone, it’s with immense pride that we announce our recent expansion to Stockport in Manchester, broadening our reach to further serve and uplift the communities in this area.
Highway Hope stands as a cornerstone in driving community-centric educational and social initiatives, fostering transformative projects, enterprises, and events. Our commitment lies in the transformation, empowerment, and upliftment of lives across generations and economic backgrounds. Through a dynamic range of programs including our coding club, engaging chippie nights, a Beauty school, supplementary schools, invigorating dance and exercise classes, a community shop, and a food bank (among many others), we touch the lives of over 300 residents each month.
Our core initiatives are firmly rooted in advancing our commitment to;
Transform Lives, Cultivate Healthy Lifestyles, Promote Social Inclusion, Strengthen Communities (Highway Hope)
The impact of their work is tangible, evident in the sustainable social enterprise initiatives and robust community engagement programs we’ve fostered. Highway Hope’s unwavering dedication to empowering local individuals and nurturing communities has led to real, positive change.
As MEaP proudly acknowledges the anniversary celebration of Highway Hope, it signifies a sustained commitment to grassroots-driven action and serves as a testament to our ongoing pledge to foster impactful, community-driven change. Join us in celebrating this incredible journey! #HighwayHopeAnniversary #CommunityImpact #EmpowermentJourney
Nurturing Foundations: Five Years celebration
Nurturing Foundations celebrates five years of developing young people and building communities starting in Harpurhey and since then expanding to the whole of North Manchester. The impressive amount of work that our director, Mrs Jumoke Quadri, and the organisation she founded and heads have done in that little amount of time has been constantly recognised with multiple awards and accreditations for both the organisation and its trailblazing founder. We celebrated the latest of these awards this very year as Mrs Jumoke Quadri was shortlisted, then went on to win the Parent Support Champion Award at the FutureEd Awards 2023.
Nurturing Foundations aspires to create a future where Greater Manchester’s youth, especially, embody the aspirations, resilience, and skills necessary to excel and confidently contribute to society. Jumoke strongly advocates for supporting families, in particular parents, in order to lay a strong foundation for young people’s growth.
10 years / A Decade of Educational Transformation, A Future of Progress
As MEaP commemorates its milestone anniversary, the collective achievements of its consortium partners exemplify the transformative power of education and collaborative efforts. With a decade of groundbreaking initiatives behind them and a future brimming with possibilities, MEaP and its partners remain steadfast in their commitment to redefining education and shaping a more sustainable and equitable world for all. Together, they continue to pave the way for a future where education is not just a priority but a catalyst for positive societal change within the supplementary school/education and youth work charity sector in the UK.