We recently opened bookings for the 2019 People’s Powerhouse Convention in Sunderland, the Convention is happening at The Beacon on the 19 November. I am very excited about the plans we have for the day and I am looking forward to sharing more detail over the next few months.

This year’s Convention titled This is the North is a celebration of the North; the new, the bold, the innovative and the creative. We all know the North is a wonderful place to live and work, and we want to give people the opportunity to share, collaborate, challenge and learn.

To book your place click here - https://peoplespowerhouse.org.uk/2019/register

We want to see as many people as possible at the Convention to make it a true celebration of the North. If the price of a ticket is prohibitive please get in touch for a free discount code.

There are a number of different ways to get involved on the day and also on the run up to the Convention, which are explained in this blog. Join in and help us create a Convention which represents the diversity of the North in all its glory!  You are the North!

Your offer to take part

Our aim is to showcase inspiring work, ideas and real action in the North.  This is for all sections of the community including local people, voluntary, community, the public sector, civic leaders and businesses – small and large.

We are looking for 2 types of contributions on the day. You choose:

Firstly, you might decide to talk from a soapbox for 7 minutes about something you are doing, something you want to challenge, or an idea you need support with.  Just give it a go!

Secondly, you might decide you/with colleagues would like to run a more in-depth, hour-long interactive session in our break-out rooms, breakout rooms can hold between 25 – 70 people.  We would prefer these to be more discussion-based and less ‘chalk and talk’

Your contribution can be:

• Something you are doing, which is already working brilliantly, and more people need to know about it
• A new and untested idea or ‘hunch’, a theory or provocation
• Good practice you can share for others to learn from
• Something you’ve done that others can replicate or with help, which could be scaled to have more impact in Northern communities
• An idea you are trialling

To submit your idea and for more information click here https://peoplespowerhouse.org.uk/2019/eoi

Apply for up to £500 to hold a local This is the North event

New for 2019 in partnership with Power to Change we want to support you to tell your story, to highlight the work of organisations across the North who already are the People’s Powerhouse. 

This is the North will include local events, hosted by locally based organisations across the North, all building a diverse, inclusive, prosperous North.  We hope it is an opportunity for you to share how you are making a difference.  The theme can be anything linked to our Charter.

We know that some groups may need financial support to take part.  We have a small pot of money you can apply for (up to £500) to help make your event a success.

You may already have an event planned already which promotes one or more of the foundations in the Charter – tell us about it, we’ll promote it as part of the #PeoplesPowerhouse #ThisIsTheNorth series of events.

To register your event or to apply for funding click here https://peoplespowerhouse.org.uk/2019/local-events

Over the coming months we will be announcing more detail about the day, and I am excited about receiving your submissions for group sessions, lightening talks and local events.

If you have any questions or would like to have a chat about how you can be involved please drop me an email – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Thanks for reading!