Spirita stages play to combat anti-social behaviour
12 March 2008
In a unique move, Spirita, part of the Metropolitan Housing Partnership and itself one of the largest providers of housing and associated services in the Midlands, is backing the production of a play aimed at tackling anti-social behaviour.
The play is being produced in partnership with The Pint Size Theatre Company, a non-profit making partnership that writes and produces theatre productions aimed at community groups.
Spirita is working with both staff and residents to develop a play that will tackle some of the issues that affect both victims and perpetrators of anti-social behaviour (ASB) as well as touching on some of the myths surrounding ASB, including perpetration being exclusive to teenagers.
Funding has been made available by the Community Investment arm of Metropolitan Housing Partnership and the play, which has the working title of 'Hood', will be performed in both Nottingham and Derby during May to coincide with European Neighbours Day. The event will be open to residents, stake holders and selected partners. Pint Size is also seeking additional funding from the Art Council and other housing associations to extend the play's run.
Lesley Watson, Senior Community Involvement Officer for Spirita, explained how residents' experiences will be included. We will be holding a series of focus groups with residents and are talking to some of those who have first hand experience of ASB. The idea behind this is that residents will be able to discuss the issues and how they affect the quality of people's lives. These discussions will help to inform the play and ensure that the final production is a realistic as possible.
We all hope that the production will give residents the opportunity to learn from the experiences of others, and it is anticipated that the theme of the play will encourage people to think about how they can proactively tackle ASB at a local level.
This is one of a number of projects initiated by Spirita as part of its community investment programme. For more information on this, or other projects, please contact Lesley Watson on 0115 988 7100.