The Social Justice Fund has been instrumental in the development of the first successful ESRC New Investigator bid at Newcastle University. "Conflict, Intimacy, and Military Wives: A Lively Geopolitics" has received an award of £300,000 and is part of the Women Warriors project. The project is a collaboration between Dr Alice Cree and Workie Ticket Theatre Company.

The project uses issue-based theatre workshops. These workshops shed light on the profoundly gendered and asymmetrical experiences of war and post-military life. They seek to empower and give a voice to a group of women who are often socially isolated and overlooked.

Women Warriors was the initial Social Justice Fund project. It highlights the difficulty women face when reintegrating back into civilian life.

“We are committed to strengthening our local communities by challenging the perceptions and prejudice that these women face, both during and after military service,” Dr Cree explains.

The project ran from January to October 2019. We worked with female veterans to develop short plays. Contributors to the project performed these plays in community and university settings. The full-scale theatre production explored the challenges of living and coping with mental health difficulties through the eyes of women veterans.

We also produced a short documentary about the process and methodology of this work. We showcased the documentary at research events in the University.

Dr Cree went on to say: “What has been striking is how fearless these women are. Fearless for walking into a group of strangers and embracing silliness and playfulness with nothing but candidness and compassion. For telling their stories in spite of worries that they will be judged or ‘look stupid’. For coming back, week after week, even as the process gets difficult. This is such an important project, and is already making a huge difference to the women involved. The stories of women veterans are powerful and need to be heard.”

“Women Warriors advances key social justice issues by empowering female veterans to use their voice. It provides a much-needed platform for them to tell their stories.”

The Girl-Kind Screen Takeover project is providing opportunities for girls to engage with cinema and film-making.

The Girl-Kind project works with groups of girls aged 11 to 16 from schools across the North East. It creates a space for girls to explore their own selves, relationships and contemporary representations of girlhood.

The main Girl-Kind programme is held every year. It involves a series of workshops, leading up to a special celebration event on 11 October, which is the UN International Day of the Girl.

Two extra workshops and events will focus on providing opportunities for girls to engage with cinema and film-making. These are funded by the Newcastle Social Justice Fund.

Challenging male dominance in cinema, film and TV productions

Young women are a significant ‘known absent’ audience. Independent cinema and professional film and TV productions continue to be heavily dominated by men.

We are working with Tyneside Cinema, Tyne & Wear Archives and Museums ‘Women of Tyneside’ project and Young Women’s Film Academy to address this.

The Screen Takeover

In May 2019, a one-off 'Screen Takeover' for 'Girl-Kinders' involved a workshop in the Tyneside pop-up space. The workshop was followed by a special Tyneside Cinema screening of a girl-centric movie.

The workshop and film explored questions of comfortable and uncomfortable spaces. Why do some places – perhaps including independent cinemas – feel uncomfortable and exclusionary while others feel comfortable and inclusive? And what can we do about this?

A group of 12 girls will also take part in a ‘film-in-a-day’ workshop. They will develop and shoot a short film that reflects an aspect of their shared lived experiences. This offers girls a chance to experience film-making and become familiar with film equipment.

They can go on to develop their skills at The Young Women’s Film Academy. This charity offers free, continuous, film-making sessions for young women who would not normally be able to access this provision.

“These projects represent a collective endeavour to begin to address issues of gender inequality in relation to film production and participation.”

• Girl-Kind North East was co-founded by the University’s Dr Sarah Winkler-Reid, Lecturer in Social Anthropology in the School of Geography, Politics and Sociology at Newcastle University and Dr Sarah Ralph, Senior Lecturer in Media and Cultural Studies at Northumbria University

Resident-led play street sessions can reduce loneliness and lead to greater community cohesion. But residents need more support to set up and maintain these sessions.

People living on streets where children regularly play out said they know their neighbours better as a result. They said that their street feels friendlier and safer.

Playing Out: a national movement

Playing Out is the national, parent-led movement aimed at restoring children’s freedom to play out near their home. Newcastle University has collaborated with the movement on research into neighbour-organised playing out sessions. We found that these sessions were a way for children of different ages and from different schools to meet and play with each other.

The report (PDF) is particularly timely. The current coronavirus pandemic brings home the importance of micro-local support networks. It has shown the necessity to look out for elderly, isolated or vulnerable neighbours. Playing Out is joining Eden Communities in calling for a Community Action Response to the crisis. The focus is on caring for and connecting with those around us. We can do this virtually, by phone, or by having conversations and running errands with safe physical space. We need to find new ways to help each other.

Making new connections

Adults said that playing out gave them the chance to make new connections with neighbours of all ages. This was regardless of whether they had children. These friendships often extended beyond playing out sessions. Many developed into an exchange of help between neighbours and other support. Residents also said that they say hello to their neighbours and stop to chat to them more often as a result of the connections they have made.

Providing support

The research also highlighted that much of the work in organising playing out sessions falls to small groups of neighbours. Local authorities should recognise and value the contribution of this resident-led, grassroots movement. It can tackle loneliness and disconnection in communities. The movement is calling for more support for residents to establish and maintain playing out on their streets.

Alison Stenning, Professor of Social and Economic Geography, said: “Playing out is not just about play and not just for children. It promotes an increase in neighbourliness, a sense of belonging, and safer, friendlier streets.

“This research has shown that resident-led temporary play streets can play a role in helping to reduce loneliness. There are many other social and community benefits. Thus, there is a strong case for more support from government and local authorities. Such support should ensure that playing out is something that everyone in any community can take part in.”

Tackling loneliness

Loneliness is a growing social issue. The public health impacts are equivalent to smoking and obesity. In recent years, a number of national campaigns have tried to make more connections between people in their everyday lives.

The government published a strategy on loneliness in 2018. It suggested physical activity, community sharing and befriending can help tackle loneliness. These are integral to playing out.

The Playing Out movement uses temporary road closures in residential areas to allow children to play and neighbours to meet. Closures usually last two to three hours. Playing out sessions take place weekly, fortnightly or monthly. In most cases, residents set up the closures using ‘Road Closed’ signs and secure them with volunteer stewards from the street.

Our research also identified the need for more support to get a broader range of residents taking part in the sessions. For example, street organisers could include activities such as litter picking or book swaps. This would give neighbours, especially those without children, a greater incentive to join in.

Developing stronger, more connected communities

Local authorities and community groups need to provide more support to enable residents to start and sustain regular playing out sessions. This includes both practical, hands-on support and financial resources. An increased level of support is particularly needed in less connected communities.

Alice Ferguson is the Co-Director of the national Playing Out organisation. She said: “We have seen for ourselves how the ‘playing out' model brings people together. It leads to friendships between neighbours of all ages and backgrounds. It is fantastic to now have academic research clearly showing that this is a key outcome of resident-led play streets.

“Stronger, more connected communities where people know and trust their neighbours are important in so many ways, particularly for children. Alongside a happy family life, children need that sense of belonging to a wider community where they have friends they can call on to play with and adults they can call on for help.”

Read the report, Tackling loneliness through playing out, on Playing Out's website.

Contact Playing Out for further information on organising or supporting play streets in your area.

• Alison Stenning is Professor of Social and Economic Geography at Newcastle University.