Through Thick and Thin
How an infrastructure for relationships could unlock the collective action we need to accelerate progress towards a world designed for and around relationships
Lots of people in lots of different spaces are doing amazing work around building better relationships, but the connections between these nodes are often weak or non-existent. Drawing on conversations with over 100 people in late 2020 and early 2021, we (led by Iona Lawrence) explore the challenges we share in prioritising relationships in the places that we live and work and the work that needs to be done to address those needs.
Our shared and uniting goal is to build a world that is designed for and around relationships: a world where relationships are the first mile, not the extra one.
Building a Relationship Collective: Our Proposal
Building on the insights unearthed in Through Thick and Thin, we submitted an expression of interest to the Bringing People Together Fund at the National Lottery Community Fund to bring to life the idea of an infrastructure for relationships. Drawing inspiration from Joe Mills and friends in the democracy centre, we decided to publish the proposal in the open so everyone can see what we’re hoping to do and more easily explore ways to collaborate.
In short, the expression of interest we submitted is for a two year project to design, test and build the necessary infrastructure to support shared learning and collaboration in the field of relationships and relationship-centred practice in the coming decades.
We are delighted to say that our application was successful and, as of Autumn 2022, we are focused on developing the infrastructure for a thriving field of relationship-centred practice. Find out more about our plans for the next two years below.
The Art of the Covenant
In brief In this blog, Nick Sinclair and David Robinson explore the concept of a 'social covenant' discussed in Danny Kruger's recent report, 'Levelling Up Our Communities', arguing it must be formed around values, trust, morality and relationships. Nick works...
Observatory Sighting #10: The Changing Weather
In our tenth Sighting we reflect on the 'changing weather' and ask how we can stem the tide and nurture more warmth, connection and positivity. Over the course of March to May, we reported on a number of positive shifts towards greater trust, collaboration and...
Changing for good
In brief In this blog, originally written for and published by Nesta, David asks the question:What can we do to keep the community spirit that was amplified by lockdown alive and make 2020 the year we changed for good? Some of us have suffered loss in recent months....
Relationships: An idea to organise around?
In brief In this - our second blog exploring the field of relationships - Iona Lawrence and Immy Robinson ask for your help in finding something we can all gather around. You can read the first blog, which lays out what we're up to, here. A few weeks ago we wrote...
Share your #SpiritOfLockdown
In brief The Relationships Project and Local Area Coordination Network have teamed up to surface, share and celebrate stories of lockdown from all across the country. How have your relationships changed through Covid? What’s the Spirit you want to bottle to guide your...
Developing the Framework: An update
In brief In July, we published 'Developing the Framework'; an extended blog written by Tony Clements which lays out 10 ways in which local authorities can help community engagement to thrive. In this follow up blog, Tony reflects on the subsequent discussion we hosted...
Including the network perspective in a relationship-centred practice
In brief In this Joining the Dots blog, founder of the Reliants Project Erica Young argues for the importance of including a network perspective in relationship-centred thinking and practice. Citing some of the leading researchers in the field, she outlines how...
A Relationships Field?
In brief In this blog, Iona Lawrence and Immy Robinson ask whether taking a field-building approach could be valuable to the ‘field of relationships’ and ask for your ideas and partnership as we set out on this inquiry. If you're someone who puts relationships at the...
Caring for those who care for parents
In brief In this Observatory Sighting, Shift's Innovation Director Tayo Medupin explores the potential of a more people-powered future, and highlights the underinvestment in individuals stepping up and stepping in to help others in their community. We'll be...
Supporting community businesses to become Relationships Makers
In brief We’ve partnered with Power to Change to support a cohort of community businesses to reflect on the power and potential of relationships and develop strategies for building successful businesses based on strong relationships. In this blog, we lay out our...
