The Resilience Programme was a mentoring initiative led by Applied Arts Scotland and Craft Scotland designed to help makers based in Scotland navigate the particularly challenging circumstances resulting from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Funded by Creative Scotland, the overall aim of the Resilience Programme was to support and encourage a mentoring culture in the Scottish craft community, building confidence and resilience amongst makers.
The Programme in 2021 helped makers to tap into the collective knowledge, experience and wisdom of the Scottish craft community to gain new perspectives, innovate, reinvent their ways of working and rapidly learn new skills. In a supportive environment, participants were able to take time to reflect and develop the resilience required to re-energise, revitalise and sustain their practice.
The programme was suitable for makers at any stage of their career and was specifically aimed at those keen to embrace mentoring and expand its benefits across the craft community.
Programme Overview
The Resilience Programme had two strands:
- Peer-to-Peer Co-Mentoring commenced April 2021
This strand was aimed at makers who were particularly drawn to working with other like-minded makers at the same career stage, had limited experience of mentoring and were less sure about how the mentoring process would help them.
It supported participating makers to determine the way they wanted to develop their practice through a broader, more collaborative approach and to develop confidence and resilience through identifying their needs and opportunities for skills and information exchange.
Selected participants were brought together to exchange ideas at a workshop that introduced the key principles of co-mentoring to support one another and understand its role in developing confidence and resilience. Basketmaker Sarah Paramor and accredited life coach and maker Jenny Pope, shared their experiences of mentoring and collaboration and the effect it has had on their creative and business development.
Up to 15 pairs of makers were matched to form mentoring relationships based on the priorities highlighted in their applications. - Mentor/Mentee, commenced May 2021
This strand was suitable for makers with at least 2-3 years’ experience in their craft career and who had a clear idea about the direction in which they wanted to take their practice and were keen to work with an experienced mentor to support them in their development.
In addition, this strand featured two Mentee Workshops to support makers to identify development opportunities in their creative and business practice and how mentoring can support them to achieve their goals; and if they wish, develop an application to the strand.
Makers could choose which mentoring model best supports their needs and make one application to the strand that fits their needs.
This activity was free, voluntary and unpaid.
Applied Arts Scotland and Craft Scotland:
- supported participants by offering them one to one check in sessions throughout the Programme to provide a steer, answer questions about the process or to resolve any practical issues
- developed free resources available beyond the programme to support makers in their understanding of the principles of mentoring and how to get the most out of it
- shared information about other mentoring programmes across Scotland and the UK
Mentee Workshops
Two workshops supported makers to identify development opportunities in their creative and business practice and how mentoring could support them to achieve their goals; and if they wished, develop an application to the strand.
Make It Happen
This assisted makers to prioritise and refine their ideas, and consider mentoring for their professional development. With Creative Edinburgh.
Evolving Ideas
This encouraged makers to foster new ideas, skills and ways of working to develop their practice. With the Heritage Crafts Association.
This article by Craft Scotland reviews the benefits of mentoring for building resilience in makers and the programme.
Resources
Here are mentoring guidelines and peer to peer and mentee/mentor agreement templates for you to download.
