Transforming Manchester's green spaces with Claire Biggs

Meet the Mancunian - 9.3 -Claire Biggs-Transcript

Intro

Hello, listeners. And welcome to Season 9 of the Meet the Mancunian podcast: social impact stories from Manchester. I'm your host, Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe, offering you a warm Mancunian welcome. This season is extra special as I'm collaborating with the Spirit of Manchester Awards, celebrating the city's voluntary and community sector.

Throughout the season, I'll be featuring interviews with award winners and nominees, shining a light on the incredible work happening across our city. Every Tuesday, I bring you the stories of Manchester's community champions, individuals working for a range of causes and making life better for the people of Manchester.

My hope is to inspire you to discover your own purpose, whether through volunteering or by getting involved in the social impact sector, while also celebrating good causes and spreading positivity. You can listen to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or my website at meetthemancunian.co.uk. Stay tuned for a season full of inspiring social impact stories.

Episode 3- Spotlight on Claire Biggs and SNUG

Passionate about nature? In the third episode of Season 9, we hear from Claire Biggs, Director, Sustainable Northmoor Urban Greening, or SNUG, and Spirit of Manchester Award nominee for Inspiring Campaign.

Thanks, Claire, for joining me today.

Community Engagement and Challenges

[00:01:28] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Tell us about how you found your passion for the community.

[00:01:31] Claire Biggs: I've always really been quite passionate about community. I love people. I have a faith and from that comes this desire to serve my community well and the people who live around me. And I just really have always wanted to be involved, getting to know people who live nearby and being involved in things that are going on.

So I think there's just always been that passion in me to do things that benefit the place that I live and the people who I live near.

[00:02:01] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That comes out loud and clear as we're talking.

And how did you get involved with Longsight Community Artspace and what does it do?

[00:02:09] Claire Biggs: We'd moved to the area, we'd been living in the area for a few years, myself, my family, my husband and two children, and we were just really looking for new things that were going on and we spotted this thing opening up round the corner from us. And so, we went along one day to see what they were doing and it was the art space and it was just launching as a new project in the local area.

And so, we started to go along to the workshops that they were running and the different events that they put on for community members and residents. And then we got involved with the board of trustees. And then as it's developed into a CIC, I became one of the directors of the place and it all went from there, really.

[00:02:59] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: And what does Longsight Community Artspace offer people in the local area?

[00:03:07] Claire Biggs: The team realised that this type of area that we live in, it's a little bit more of a deprived area. It's a very multicultural area. And this type of area isn't usually the kind of place that you would find an art gallery, or that you would find this kind of cultural outlet.

And really, we recognise that people in communities like ours were underrepresented in the arts and in culture. And we wanted to find a way to redress that balance, and to give people in this community access to art, access to creative practice, access to ways in which they could explore their own creativity and their own artistic skills.

So that's one of the things that we do. We provide free workshops in the local community to people of all ages and backgrounds and to come and have a go at various different types of arts. We also put on exhibitions and often they are from local artists who may never have the opportunity to exhibit in a large art gallery in the city centre but here they have an opportunity to show what they can do and to show their creativity and their brilliance.

And then the third thing that we do is to do with the urban greening projects. And the urban projects came out of an art project that we did called the Pear Project, and at the end of that project, we planted some pear trees in the local park and realised that there was a real desire from the local community to see their green spaces improved. And it's that project that we've been nominated to the Spirit of Manchester Awards for.

[00:04:56] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Oh, it sounds so interesting. I love that there's such a big range, the workshops, the showcasing local artists, and then the Urban Greening Program, which you don't always associate with arts, so very interesting.

 Have there been challenges on that journey?

[00:05:13] Claire Biggs: There's always challenges with all kinds of things, aren't there. And one of the challenges is often when you want to run things like this and particularly when you want to offer things free, a lot of the things that we do, we're very conscious that they benefit people's mental health and physical and mental wellbeing.

So a lot of what we do is based around improving things for people in terms of their own wellbeing, reducing social isolation and those kinds of things. But in order to be able to run those things and give people access to those things for free, we have to have funding from somewhere.

That is always the biggest challenge, I think, with any kind of community project is ensuring that you've got the income and the funding to be able to keep these things going.

[00:05:59] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I can imagine like you said, because your commitment of offering free and low-cost options to the community, you do need to get that funding and I hope that it's successful.

Impact and Achievements of Longsight Community Artspace

[00:06:10] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: What would you say has been the biggest impact that Longsight Community Artspace has made so far?

[00:06:17] Claire Biggs: There's numbers of impacts that the art space has had. We've raised the profile of the community and we're working together with lots of other community groups, which is a really good thing and very much needed, I think. But I think the thing that is most visible is definitely the SNUG project and Crowcroft Park Orchard Garden and it's that we've really been selected for the award for.

What we've done with that is we have seen an unused empty bowling green completely transformed into a really lovely orchard garden. We've had hundreds and hundreds of people from the community in the space planting, getting involved, planting fruit trees. It's just been a really amazing project to be part of and be involved with.

Harvesting the Fruits of Labour

[00:07:06] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Planting fruit trees sounds so rewarding because then there's always the joy after a point in time of collecting fruit.

[00:07:12] Claire Biggs: Absolutely. And we're just at that point now where some of the more mature fruit trees are actually fruiting for the first time. So in the next couple of months, we should be seeing a little bit of a harvest there, which is very exciting.

[00:07:25] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Very exciting. I have planted cherry trees this year, but I think there'll be a few years from, being

[00:07:32] Claire Biggs: a lot,

[00:07:32] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: it.

[00:07:33] Claire Biggs: That's true, a lot of the trees that we've planted are still very young, but we were donated some quite mature trees and it's those ones we are seeing fruit on. But a lot of the younger trees it's going to be a few years yet before we see that there. We've planted 53 fruit trees in that space. Plus every, all of the fruit trees have beds around them and in those beds we're growing edible plants that look beautiful, but they're also useful and we can harvest them as well. So that's very exciting.

[00:08:07] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Indeed.

Community Spirit and Recognition

[00:08:07] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: What does being nominated to the Spirit of Manchester Award mean to you?

[00:08:12] Claire Biggs: It was a real surprise, actually. I genuinely had no idea that we'd been nominated. And when I found out, I was really very surprised and quite emotional. Because I think what we've seen with this project, we've just seen the community come together in such a fantastic way.

We've seen people of all ages, we've seen people from all different backgrounds involved in planting the trees and putting down footpaths and all kinds of stuff. And I've just loved being involved with it and it's just been a real kind of labour of love for me, heading up this project and seeing everybody get involved.

And I think really the first thing that I thought was, oh, who can I take to the awards ceremony? And thinking about some of the children who have been, really heavily involved and texting their mums going, can these kids come to the award ceremony? Just because I really want to share that with everybody who's been involved and there's been so many people who have played a part in that. And I think that's that's been just amazing, really.

[00:09:16] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I think it's lovely that you're planning to take the little children to the award ceremony. I'm sure that will be very special for them and hopefully influence them to keep staying involved with the community.

[00:09:27] Claire Biggs: We've seen so many of the children who have just been, got really passionate about it and they've done speeches at some of our events. And they've just been there every time we've had planting days and volunteer activities, and so it would, it just seems wrong to not involve them really, because they're so committed.

Advice for Community Projects

[00:09:46] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: What advice do you have for people looking to start a similar moment in their local community? If they want to embrace the green spaces and get the community involved? How should they do that?

[00:09:56] Claire Biggs: I think one of the things we found is it's just really important to build good relationships with other community groups. So, we work together with other community groups. We've had the Better We community group bringing in their Bangladeshi youth group, and they've been coming to Planting Days and planting things. And so we've worked together with a number of other, community groups, and that just helps people to get involved and feel ownership and to recognise that this doesn't just belong to one group in the community, it belongs to the whole community.

And I think as well, building good relationships with people in the council, and so you've got their support and their backing, and you know where to go when problems arise, that's a really important thing as well, I think, for these kinds of projects.

[00:10:47] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: We actually spoke to Better We, Tahera Khannam so very interesting.

[00:10:51] Claire Biggs: They're doing amazing stuff.

Signature Questions and Closing Remarks

[00:10:54] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: The next bit of the podcast is for signature questions I ask all my guests.

If you could choose a famous landmark in Manchester to represent you, which one would it be and why?

[00:11:06] Claire Biggs: I think, aha, the bridge across the road by the Etihad. And I think because one of the things that I'm passionate about and that we try to do as an organisation is building bridges and bringing people together.

[00:11:24] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I love that. That sounds really symbolic and you're all about building bridges and you've chosen a famous bridge. Which I haven't seen, so I think I need to make a little trip and have a look at that.

What's the most important life lesson you've learned so far?

[00:11:39] Claire Biggs: As a woman of faith, I think that having a purpose in life and knowing who I am, has been the biggest life lesson for me. And for me, that comes from my faith background. And that's a very, obviously a very personal lesson. But I think probably that's the biggest life lesson is that my purpose in life is bigger than me.

[00:12:01] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I like that very much and some years ago I also found my purpose and then now I want to have a purpose in everything I do, including in my podcast, which is all about showcasing amazing work in the Manchester community and helping to inspire other people as well.

How can people get in touch with you? Where can they find you online, and where can they find you in the local gardens?

[00:12:25] Claire Biggs: We have an Instagram page for long site community art space, which is long site CAS. We have a Facebook and Instagram for the Snug Project, which is the Instagram is Snug underscore MCR and the Facebook is Snug MCR. And you can find us in the Crowcroft Park Orchard Garden doing our Working Wednesdays every Wednesday between 10 a. m. and 2 p. m. And people are very welcome to come along and do a bit of volunteer gardening There's always jobs to be done.

[00:12:59] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I can imagine just keeping a garden going. There is a lot to be done, but that's a real pleasure as well.

[00:13:06] Claire Biggs: isn't it?

[00:13:07] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Thank you so much, Claire. It's been a pleasure to talk to you.

[00:13:11] Claire Biggs: Thank you very much for having me.

Outro

Thank you for listening to the Meet the Mancunian podcast social impact stories from Manchester. I hope today's episode has inspired you to reflect on your own purpose and how you can contribute to making positive change.

Next week on Tuesday, 12th November, we hear from Jan Iceton talking about supporting women with employability.

I'm truly grateful for this amazing community of listeners. Your stories inspire this podcast and I look forward to hearing more of them. If you'd like to share your story or connect, visit my website meetthemancunian.co.uk or find me on social media, @MeettheMancunian on Instagram and Facebook, @MancunianPod on Twitter, and @MeettheMancunianPodcast on YouTube.

Thank you again to my wonderful listeners. You inspire me. Together, we're a community dedicated to uplifting Manchester and supporting Mancunians. Remember, we can make an impact together. Thank you for tuning in and being a part of this incredible community.

Your involvement helps amplify the voices of those making a difference. Together, we can inspire even more positive change in Manchester and beyond. Remember, no act of kindness is too small, and by working together, we can truly make a meaningful impact.

Thank you for listening.