A group of young people from Turlin Moor have come together to create a unique project that aims to challenge misconceptions about their local community and demonstrate why they hold the area dear to their hearts.
The youngsters, all aged between 10 and 18, have used photography, filmmaking and songwriting to create a showcase of their work at Lighthouse, Poole’s Centre for the Arts. Celebrating life in Turlin Moor, the project takes a closer look at some of their favourite locations including the youth centre, lunch clubs, community garden, church, schools and shops.
Youth Worker Louise Howlett, who was involved closely in helping the group deliver the project explains: “The inspiration came from discussions with the young people, who felt that Turlin Moor is a lively and vibrant place. They didn’t think that other people understood why they love it so much. Some also didn’t feel that they got the same opportunities as others due to misconceived ideas about where they are from, and in some cases they were even nervous to tell people where they are from. We wanted to do something about that. They designed a questionnaire which went out to residents to capture how they felt about Turlin Moor. The main theme that came out time and time again was the sense of community people felt, among other things, and that was something they really wanted to share with wider Poole.”
The group worked with local filmmaking company Dixie Videography and even a local songwriter to write and record a song about where they live. Their hard work will now be celebrated at a special VIP event at Lighthouse hosted entirely by the youngsters, with support from Turlin Moor Youth Centre.
Louise continues: “Lighthouse has enabled us to be able to display the work in a professional way and has provided funding for the project so that we could really make the young people’s ideas come to life.”
Youth Development Officer for Turlin Moor, Jane Milton added: “I am very proud of all the young people who have participated in the project. They have all worked very hard and are very passionate about the project and the area that they live in. I am very lucky to work in an area with such a sense of community pride and great young people.”
Sara St George, Head of Sales & Marketing for Lighthouse responded: “Lighthouse believes that talent should be nurtured, developed and shared with an audience, but sadly not everyone has the opportunity to do this and so we are delighted that we can showcase the many talents of these young people.”
