- Posted on November 11th, 2024
Multistory – Transforming Urban Spaces with Community-Led Greening Initiatives
For Arts Council England and Julie’s Bicycle’s annual report 2023-24, we feature over 50 practical examples of cultural organisations taking climate action including 9 other in depth case studies like this one. Check out the full interactive report here.
This case study was written by Multistory, a community arts organisation based in West Bromwich in the borough of Sandwell, who work with a wide range of communities, creatives and partners to reimagine the local area, platform under-represented voices and inspire creativity and social change. They share the story of their Green Roots cultural programme that works with the local community to help build environmentally resilient local spaces.
About Green Roots
Over the last three years, Multistory has been delivering Green Roots, an urban greening arts and cultural programme of artist and community-led activities across three of Sandwell’s six towns: West Bromwich, Wednesbury and Tipton.
Green Roots is one of Multistory’s strategic cultural programmes seeking to address the climate crisis through positive and impactful creative partnerships. It aims to develop interest in local environments and bring communities together to explore how to make a difference in our neighbourhoods and on our high streets. The programme responds to the needs and challenges of each town, as identified by local communities.
A programme of free and accessible art and culture activities invites residents to develop a greater engagement with, and knowledge about, the capacity of both our natural and urban environments. Ultimately, Green Roots looks to build environmentally-resilient communities and spaces in Sandwell and raise awareness around the impacts of climate change.
Multistory is grateful to have the ongoing support of Sandwell Council for Green Roots West Bromwich which aligns to, and supports, their Urban Greening scheme. We also liaise with Sandwell Council’s planning team to ensure we are aware of wider developments across the six towns. We have benefited from financial support from Historic England through the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund for Green Roots Wednesbury; and from the Energy Saving Trust for Green Roots Tipton.
Green Roots encourages us to consider what is growing on our doorstep, exploring how we can make space for both people and wildlife in our towns; and how to utilise green spaces for our benefit as well as nature’s.
We’d like to highlight three important strands of the programme that have made positive change.
Green Roots on the Meadow
In September 2023, for Green Roots West Bromwich, we collaborated with the Birmingham and Black Country Wildlife Trust (TWT), Sandwell Council, New Square (West Bromwich’s major shopping centre) and residents and community members to plant a wildflower meadow. We planted a range of species that establish well and flower over a long period. The meadow is located behind the main shopping centre and is part of Sandwell Council’s Town Improvement Plan which has seen the introduction of urban greening to West Bromwich.
Over 40 participants kindly donated their time to plant packed trays of seed plugs provided by TWT. As well as bringing texture and colour to this previously unused bit of land, the wildflower meadow will increase biodiversity and give the urban wildlife a helping hand. The meadow compliments other local initiatives such as New Square’s wormery, growing area for staff and nectar hotel.
Tools Use Training with Sandwell College and the Birmingham & Black Country Wildlife Trust (TWT)
For Green Roots West Bromwich, we also worked with TWT to deliver a week-long programme of nature conservation training and skills development in the use of wildlife conservation tools with Sandwell College students from their Learning Foundation Department.
The training took place at the Centre of The Earth – a purpose-built environmental education centre run by TWT. As well as learning to use the tools, students helped to weed paths, cleared areas and made space for more native plants to be transplanted and repaired a dead hedge.
By the end of the week, alongside developing knowledge around tool use, the students also learnt the significance of working safely to protect our environment and native species to increase biodiversity and encourage wildlife.
“The students really enjoyed their time at the Birmingham & Black Country Wildlife Trust; being outside in nature was very beneficial for them as was learning new skills.”
– Mel Bagley, Work Placement Officer, Sandwell College.
The impact of the course extended beyond the training week, with one of the students deciding to continue studying gardening and horticulture after completing the programme. This demonstrates that projects like this can inspire young people to explore new career pathways, further their education, and promote long-term personal and professional development. We hope to offer more opportunities like this with Sandwell College in the future.
People & Planters
As part of our Green Roots Wednesbury programme, we have been delivering a collaborative project – People & Planters – with Bostin’ Arts (a local arts collective) and Wednesbury independent shops and businesses: the Ukrainian Sunflower Bistro, the Orchard Coffee Lounge, South Staffs Community Hub, O’Connells Florist, Eat Well Café, Sue’s Traditional Sweets, All Sorts Haberdashery and Blue Sheep Books.
We worked closely with each shop owner to reimagine the high street and discuss the benefits of bringing more greenery to Wednesbury town centre. As a result of these long-term community conversations and a commitment from each of the businesses to tend to, and maintain their plants, bespoke planters were built and placed outside their shop fronts that include tumbling tomatoes, lavender, rosemary, fuchsias, strawberry plants and much more. The varying plants reflect the businesses and bring more biodiversity to the streets of Wednesbury. We also provided the businesses with watering cans, plant food and instructions to ensure the longevity of the project. With the planned introduction of more green spaces in the town centre through the Levelling Up Fund, the planters will align with the goals to make the town a greener place.
The People & Planters project is the beginning of an ongoing programme of creative projects developed with, and by, local communities and independent shops and businesses to transform the centre of Wednesbury and to increase knowledge about, and engagement in climate action. For the first few weeks the planters were the talk of the town and as they have grown and flourished and made a visual impact – people are now asking for more. The project is scalable, achievable, and brings great joy to those involved and the wider community.
Engaging with the Communities
For the Green Roots cultural programme, we worked with different groups in each of the three towns. For example, in Wednesbury, we partnered with the We Are Wednesbury Community Consortium, a group that Multistory established in 2019 as part of Wednesbury’s High Street Heritage Action Zone initiative and have continued to partner with. In Wednesbury, we started to engage with the community by standing on the high street to ask passersby to identify an unloved space that they wanted to improve.
The resounding feedback was to increase the planting on the high street, in particular for Union Street to have more flowers and be more colourful. To do this, we needed the commitment of local people to look after the plants. We achieved this through the introduction of bespoke planters for seven shops/businesses in Wednesbury High Street/Market Place. We worked with local florist O’Connells to buy flowers for the planters, as well as a local horticulturalist who helped design the planting. Community groups attended drawing, growing and mindfulness workshops and made woven obelisks for the climbing plants in the planters and, in May 2024, the local community joined us for the planting.
Multistory also delivered workshops with local groups and participants to engage with themes around greening, nature and memory, with activities including observational drawing of plants and seeds, creating natural dyes from vegetables, printing and small-scale planting. As well as art-making, we captured stories from members of the group about their experiences with nature and the environment. The work produced and stories from these workshops were incorporated into a small booklet that was given to the participating groups and is available to download via our website.
At a Wednesbury town centre market stall, we continued our community engagement with table-top planting run by Ideal for All, a user-led charity for disabled and disadvantaged people based in Sandwell. The session provided opportunities to share knowledge, skills, and expertise on environmental topics, discuss the seed growing process and give the participants vegetable plants (grown at one of Ideal for All’s community gardens) to take away with them.
We have increased engagement and participation with local communities and groups through demonstrating that their voices and opinions matter and by incorporating them into our work. Our programme provides opportunities for people to speak about their concerns for their local environment and increase awareness of the wider benefits of the Green Roots programme (mental health and well-being as well as increased prospects for the towns). The planters in Wednesbury have also provided an opportunity for shops and businesses to communicate more and work together to care for the planters.
Reflections and Future Programme
At the heart of Green Roots is our long-term commitment to provide opportunities for local people to actively take part in, and be, a driving force behind the transformation of their neighbourhoods, whilst also addressing the effects of climate crisis, biodiversity loss and intersecting challenges faced by economically and socially deprived communities.
The projects bring individual benefits to the people who directly take part and to the wider community who will enjoy the improved environment, the wildlife and green spaces in Sandwell.
As Green Roots is expanding, we will continue to further develop a hyper-local programme of commissions, workshops and events by bringing people together, using the power of working collectively to transition from climate awareness to action.
“All of Multistory’s work is developed with, and by, local communities and artists but we also bring wider partnerships together to make the greatest, most sustainable impact. Our Green Roots cultural programme is a testament to the power of community collaboration and our shared commitment to creating vibrant and accessible green spaces in urban areas across Sandwell. We look forward to continuing this important work and seeing the positive impact on both nature and the local community.”
– Emma Chetcuti, Director of Multistory
Header image: Planters after the planting day on Wednesbury High Street, May 2024, Multistory © Bostin’ Arts
