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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
27 November 2019
Updated: 23 October 2020
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Blog by Annie Edwards, Project Manager at Young Women's Worker
I’ve been asked to write a blog about my experience on the Clore Social Emerging Leader: Women and Girls Sector Programme – my limit is 700 words, but I’m not sure I can write the word “AMAZING!” 700 times over, so I’ll try and break down my experience a little more for you.
I originally applied for the programme because a colleague from a partner organisation to mine encouraged me to go for it, and I couldn’t think of a reason not to. I’ve always been passionate about women and girls’ rights and ensuring equal opportunities. This has been a common thread for me in my work and studies; at university I studied Theology and had a deep interest in feminist theology and the place women can and should have within faith communities and traditions. I’ve been working for my current organisation, Canaan Project, for three and a half years – we offer girls-only provision in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, collaborating with schools and community partners because we want to see young women flourish.
"I was sitting in a room with the upcoming female leaders of our sector – and I was considered to be one of them."
I looked at the application form and was pretty confident that I wouldn’t be accepted onto the programme. I was hopeful that I would be, as any opportunity to develop (and be pampered in the process!) is something I always enjoy. It remained a genuine surprise, however, when I was accepted onto the programme – mostly because of the calibre of the other women who had also been accepted. I’m a big believer in Imposter Syndrome, and on the first residential (we were spoilt with two residentials – the food and the venue were simply amazing. Nothing like a bit of TLC to make you feel like a leader!) we were introduced to each other and our work and I was just amazed. I was sitting in a room with the upcoming female leaders of our sector – and I was considered to be one of them.
The best thing about the programme was the consistent underlying determination of the Clore Social team to ensure that we left the residentials, the coaching sessions, the secondments and the online learning sessions believing that we were brilliant and we still are today.
Clore Social created a safe space for me to be honest and open about where I fell short in my leadership style, and celebrated with me when I felt I’d made a change or grown in those areas.
"My biggest challenge as a leader has always been my confidence, and Clore Social helped me to find bucket-loads – mostly within myself."
My biggest challenge as a leader has always been my confidence, and Clore Social helped me to find bucket-loads – mostly within myself. My ongoing relationship with Imposter Syndrome was challenged when other women in the group shared that they felt the same – I wasn’t the only one after all! – and that together we could support one another out of that head-space because it turns out it was never true really.
One of my favourite things about Clore was the coaching sessions. I’ve always been a much better talker than a listener, but I’ve not always been brilliant at listening to myself. Coaching helped me to do this so much better, and it’s enabled me to become a better leader because I can communicate my limits, my strengths and my still-celebrated areas of weakness much better. Honesty and integrity are so important to me as a leader, and Clore Social has taught me that a part of that process is to learn to be honest with yourself.
Life doesn’t stop when you become a leader – if anything, it can sometimes make life a bit trickier for a while. But thankfully, I’m still in touch with my wonderful co-Clorers and we continue to support and challenge each other to keep leading the way that only we can.
"Clore Social is more than just a course; it’s a community and safe space to get to know others, and yourself, and love both much better."
Clore Social is more than just a course; it’s a community and safe space to get to know others, and yourself, and love both much better. If you’re not sure whether to apply, or you don’t have a colleague pushing you to do so – then let me: GO FOR IT, GIRL!
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
24 May 2019
Updated: 23 October 2020
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Dionne Charlotte, 2018 Emerging Leader fellow relays her experience on the programme.
At the start of the programme, I was unsure how to take the next steps in my career. I wanted to explore where I could make a true impact in a sector that I am very passionate about. The content of the programme really helped me to discover my leadership strengths, preferences and identify where these would be best placed in the sector to create sustainable change.
Our Improvisation session was challenging, however it gave me permission to have those difficult conversations and take the risks that my “normal self” would probably hesitate to do. Having permission to be a different version of myself in moments of conflict and frustration has allowed me to reach positive decisions in the workplace with others. I now take a step back and ask myself “who do I need to be in this situation to get the outcome I am looking for?”
"I now take a step back and ask myself 'who do I need to be in this situation to get the outcome I am looking for?"
Learning more about other people’s preferences and ways of working has enabled me to become more effective in influencing people to create change and impact where they are. Being able to reflect on where and when I am best placed to lead has been valuable in reaching collaborative goals. I thought the Action Learning Set feature of the programme was beneficial as it allowed me to step into the shoes of another leaders world, hear their most challenging issues, explore their perspective with them and contribute with my group to how they may navigate these challenges. These were valuable lessons that may have taken me years to learn on my own.
The skills required of social leaders are continuously evolving, the world we live in is becoming rapidly complex and interdependent. Therefore, the complexity of social issues we see requires a collaborative approach from a range of disciplines to deliver sustainable solutions. We need to be leaders that are able to navigate and thrive in these environments.
"We need to be leaders that are able to navigate and thrive in these environments."
As a result of the Emerging Leader Programme, I have a greater awareness of self and more confidence to lead in my current context. I have learnt that leadership development is not just about having an idea or a fantasy about how you can change the world, but rather, our focus should be on having tangible evidence of our leadership strengths via the self-discovery process and truthfully asking yourself the question “why would I be the best person to serve in that role?”
For those just starting on their leadership journey, I would encourage them to be open, honest and at times vulnerable about where they are at. The most powerful tool you have is learning how to observe yourself and others. Understanding these insights will help your personal development and give you an ability to know what is required to succeed in your own context. Be confident about the direction you want to go, be inquisitive and keep the conversations going. There is always something to learn in every moment and the Clore Emerging Leaders Programme gives a brilliant template on how to develop yourself as a Social Leader.
Dionne Charlotte is a Project Manager at the Single Homeless Prevention Service. She is a 2018 Clore Social Emerging Leader fellow for the programme run in collaboration with the Centre for Homelessness Impact.
Recruitment is now open for the Emerging Leader Programme running from September 2019 to March 2020. The programme includes 24 places for leaders who are keen to become more effective in their roles. Find out more below.
Photo by Jen Holland Photography.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
08 March 2018
Updated: 23 October 2020
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Today is International Women’s Day. A day to celebrate women. A day to reflect on women’s lives, in our communities, our society, our country and across the world. A day to review how far we have come in achieving equality between women and men, and to consider how much further we have to go.
I spent 2016 as a Gender Specialist Fellow, supported by Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, on Clore Social Leadership’s Fellowship Programme. Having worked for twenty years in and around the UK women’s sector, it was an enormous gift to be able to step back and examine the sector with fresh eyes. I have used the year to reflect on women’s position in the UK, how the social sector represents and champions women, where the funding is, where the leadership is, what it looks like and how it is addressing the challenges for gender equality today and in the future.
During the year, a series of unexpected, seismic, often catastrophic events unfolded in the UK and across the world which, taken together, made 2016 a very bad year for women. From an American Presidential Election mired in misogyny to the fetishizing of motherhood in a Conservative leadership contest to the brutal murder by a man of a female MP, to a referendum result which will see the UK leave the EU and potentially jeopardise women’s employment rights to the endless silencing of women on social media who dared to opine on culture, economics, politics or sport. All these events combined show that, in the UK, women are not considered equal to men; that gender equality is not embedded in the way that many had hoped; that a general agreement that gender equality is “a good thing”, is not widely or deeply held in our society, and currently the UK’s women’s sector is too constrained to effectively address this problem.
In my piece, I set out what lessons individuals, organisations, institutions and funders need to urgently learn of last year if there is to be any hope of rebuilding an agreement on gender equality in the UK. I argue that the funders have a vital role in enabling the women’s social sector to contribute to long term thinking about gender equality rather than constantly having to meet short term targets; that there needs to be a greater pooling of knowledge and expertise within the sector to influence and shape broad public policy issues which affect women’s lives alongside the specific areas often categorised as ‘women’s issues’; and that the women’s sector itself needs to refresh its language and reframe the arguments to engage more people in this process.
2016 presented a wake-up call for those of us who care about gender equality in the UK. 2017 isn’t looking much better. In keeping with this year’s International Women’s Day theme, we must ‘be bold for change’ and learn the lessons and take the radical steps required as a matter of urgency.
You can download Rebecca’s full provocation piece here. Please share your views and comments below, or you can contact Rebecca on Twitter.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
01 August 2017
Updated: 22 October 2020
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This blog was written by a group of 2016 Clore6: Youth Fellows who, as part of the programme, worked on a team challenge around ‘people development’.
Managing people is a huge responsibility, it can be a minefield of processes and overwhelming information, all of which is often shaped by your own experience of being managed.
In undertaking the first Clore6: Youth programme we were set a challenge to address a key leadership issue in the youth sector – people development. How do we get the best out of the most important resource in our sector, our people?
Following a human centred design process, we refined our approach to address that very real fear that many people told us about: when they become a manager for the first time, they just have no idea what’s going on! People shared their stories of taking on the responsibility and not really getting the support they needed, or being sent on a ‘new managers’ training months after having started!
We recognised that charity training budgets are often tight, the range of courses and training can be vast, but that there is a huge amount of knowledge and experience from individuals across the youth sector, as well as online – but knowing what is key is hard.
Having done our initial research, as a team we felt that the focus should be on creating a resource that new managers can have in preparation for taking on management responsibility. However, in the spirit of challenging our approach, we wanted to make something that provided an overview of the concepts that new managers should consider, and then signpost them to useful resources for further information, rather than trying to cover everything in one go.
In our online toolkit we cover some key topics, from having courageous conversations with team members to self-care, building on our experiences of the things we wish we’d known when we started out at managers.
This video provides a brief overview of these crucial topics.
Visit here to sign up to be one of the first to test our curated toolkit for new managers.
We want your help to continue to refine the video, the toolkit, and to reach as many new managers as possible across the youth and wider social sector. Please share your comments and views below, and join the conversation on Twitter.
The team of Fellows who developed this blog and the New to Management toolkit are: Fiona Ellison, Stephanie Papapavlou, Sally Marsh and Sue Burchill.
The next Clore6: Youth programme will take place early 2018 and we are now taking expressions of interest, please email: info@cloresocialleadership.org.uk
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
09 November 2016
Updated: 04 December 2020
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This week saw the publication of my Fellowship research Collateral Damage. In it, I have sought to shine a light on the hidden problem of children who witness police home raids. These children, whose parents or siblings have committed crimes, are the unseen victims of those crimes, often left deeply traumatised by the raids, and overlooked by the police.
In the report I have sought to make clear recommendations to key groups to encourage them to take some simple steps which have the potential to bring about significant change. But in those recommendations are some important lessons for leaders seeking to bring about change in a far wider range of sectors.
1. Easy does it
In San Francisco, inspired by the testimonies of young people, the Chief of Police has adopted a trauma informed approach to all arrests. This means that the police now do some very simple things to reduce the traumatic impact on children such as getting down to their level to talk to them or, when possible, giving the offender the chance to say goodbye.
It is easy to be lulled into believing that, because a problem exists and is deeply entrenched, only those with the ability to develop complex and intricate responses will be able to bring about solutions. But sometimes the most powerful responses are simple and straightforward. They just need people willing to get on and do them.
2. There's no I in team
Following on from the report, key charities such as Pact and Banardos, have made a commitment to working in partnership with their local police forces to develop solutions - such as the police providing families with contact details for those charities following a raid.
Leaders seeking to bring about social change can't do it in isolation. We must be able to work in partnership, across sectors and within sectors with 'rival' organisations. This means moving beyond the blame game and developing shared goals. And this will often require leaders who are willing to not take the credit or get all of the recognition they might deserve.
3. Talk isn't cheap
It almost defies belief that until now we have been willing to turn a blind eye to the harm being done to the children and siblings of offenders - and to the impact this has on society as we increase the likelihood of them becoming swept up in the currents of criminality. But it does not take many conversations on the topic to realise that this is because as a society we have a deep-rooted belief that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. And unless in the longer-term we tackle this narrative, we will never see really systemic change in how these children are treated.
This is the case for many of our most entrenched social issues, yet 'communications' is still seen by many leaders as an afterthought, the fluff to get around to when the real work has been done. But through communications - changing mind-sets, raising awareness, and bringing together stakeholders - we have a chance to move beyond sticking plasters to long-term solutions.
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