Festival celebrates creative projects in Waltham Forest

Anyone that lives, works or studies in the borough can submit an idea that will be voted on, with the winning idea receiving funding.

Ideas can be anything from storytelling in an elderly care home, to a dance flashmob in the park – as long as it benefits the local community.

Every idea submitted will be read by the Community board, which includes representatives of local organisations. They will shortlist four local residents to pitch at The Ideas Kitchen dinner at Mirth, Marvel and Maud, in Hoe Street, Walthamstow.

Each person presenting at the dinner will have four minutes to share their idea and answer four questions from the audience. The audience will include friends, family and local people who will vote on the idea that they like the most.

Everyone attending the dinner will be asked for a £5 suggested donation which will give them the opportunity to vote and enjoy a hot meal made locally.

The project with the most votes gets £500 funding, plus all the money donated on the door, which will be doubled by Apex Arts. 

Last year projects funded included workshops at Walthamstow Garden Party delivered by local cartoonist Tim Reedy, Mrs H and Her Band, a participatory family band that performed at the Barbican in October 2016 and Chiel & Rodrigo, alumni of the Guildhall School who delivered a Community Didgeridoo making and playing workshop at X7eaven community centre.

The Ideas Kitchen started as a community project at the Barbican Centre in 2016. It was initially developed to find and support grassroots ideas in the community that can feed into the Walthamstow Garden Party in Lloyd Park, which showcases local music, dance, theatre and film. The project was developed alongside a community board of local organisations including BeBop Baby, Gnome House, The Mill and X7eaven Academy.

In its second year the project moves into a new phase - a new partnership with Apex Arts. This transition will see the Community Board of local organisations merging with the Apex Arts Board and collaborating with the Barbican to co-deliver The Ideas Kitchen.

In a practical sense, this means there will be more human resource and funding available to support even more local people to develop ideas that benefit the community.

The current board is Hannah Lamdin of Bebop Baby; Sophy Harper of Gnome House; Charlotte Major of The Mill; Sam Francis of X7eaven Academy; Roz Zalicks of Chingford Amateur Dramatic Society (CADOS) and Waltham Forest Arts Council; local poet Danny Herbert; and Sade Banks, a creative producer who has worked on projects for the Barbican across Waltham Forest.

This new model will ensure The Ideas Kitchen continues as a sustainable offer for the borough. The Barbican’s long term vision for working in Waltham Forest is to support the local creative sector and develop quality arts experiences which are accessible to all.

Sam Francis, CEO of X7eaven Academy and The Ideas Kitchen Community board member said: ‘X7eaven Academy is a grassroots organisation, it’s 24/7, and you get to a point where you need support.

"The Barbican injected some energy and helped us to see the light at the end of the tunnel. They have a brilliant team that has a real passion for their local communities and I feel like we’ve made connections for life."

The Ideas Kitchen is now open for submissions until Wednesday 31 May. Applications can be submitted at ideaskitchen.org/submit-an-idea/

For more information, email creative.learning@barbican.org.uk