Celebrating a decade of impact through photography

For much of my work the the emphasis is on supporting people to create their own photographs so that they can reflect on the things that are important in their lives and the stories that they wish to share. However there is another side to this social enterprise and it is finally time to share that with you.

I was commissioned by my lovely friends at Employability Solutions (ES) to create a series of portraits of students, staff and partners as part of their 10th birthday celebrations! Over the course of a decade ES have worked with thousands of young people to achieve their full potential, to make the most of their time in education and to move on into their dream careers.

The staff and partner organisations who have been an integral part of this process are also featured in the exhibition bringing together the individuals who have made such a difference to the young people taking part in ES projects.

It has been a HUGE honour to be entrusted with this task! To meet with individuals who have been involved with ES, to listen to their stories as they share their experiences (and to take their portrait too) what a wonderful gift!! I cannot thank ES enough for this opportunity - it speaks to everything that I hold dear about photography, that it is ultimately a vehicle for telling stories and connecting people.

My approach was to meet each person separately at a place and time of their choosing and to invite them to share their story with me. We’d talk about how their life was prior to being involved at ES and what prompted them to take part in the first place. I was struck at how often the stories people shared with me had common themes - of feeling lost and uncertain, lacking in self confidence and belief.

I also noticed that many people remembered the way in which ES staff supported them - things like ‘not giving up on me’ or ‘they listened’ and ‘they always believed in me - even when I didn’t believe in myself’ these small everyday actions were the things that resonated through the years as these young people became college students, university students or entered the world of work. It reminds me of the quote by Maya Angelou "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you make them feel"

We would talk about their experience of being involved with ES and which aspects they found most useful, what memories stood out for them and what advice they would give their younger selves if they could do it all over again. This opportunity for self reflection and to consider how far they have come since leaving ES was often a powerful one ‘I’d have paid more attention’ or ‘I would do it so differently if I could go back, you just don’t realise at the time how precious it is’.

Alongside their photograph, people were invited to share a few words about their experience and where they are now - some people wrote poetry, others came up with key words that reflected how they felt, however they chose to express their thoughts it was important that alongside each image was a message from the subject in their own words about what this meant to them.

We all like to know that what we’re doing is having an impact, that the change we are seeking to create is truly happening. Understanding this is hugely important to organisations like ES, not because they’re funders demand it of them but because as a Social Enterprise this change is the core part of WHY they do what they do. Their staff and students know this implicitly because they are present within the change as it is occurring but for those who are removed from that process it is often difficult to describe this change and next to impossible to define it through data.

So often the very things we measure, how we measure them, and who is doing the measuring can distort the very thing we’re trying to measure. Some forms of measurement actually disrupt the impact we are seeking to create by adding layers of bureaucratic processes which get in the way of participation or undermine people’s belief in themselves.

Too often measurement of impact takes the form of auditing instead of listening and is often initiated by a funding agency who is only interested in ‘their’ part of the puzzle and not about change which occurs beyond the boundaries of their funding scheme.

This approach to evaluating impact is based on listening, learning, connection and celebration. Not auditing or telling the funder what we think they want to hear.

This project creates space to celebrate the individual achievements and journeys of those taking part by holding up their stories (and their images) for themselves and the world to see. As well as affirming the achievements of the people featured in the photographs it also enables young people who are currently engaging with ES to see how others have progressed in their lives and give them a glimpse into their own possible future.

For ES as an organisation the ability to add qualitative context of the change that they are creating in the world is important. It goes far beyond auditing the impact on people while they are engaging with ES services and allows us to see how people are carrying that change with them as they progress in their life personally and professionally.

A celebration event is being held in July to mark the 10th anniversary of ES where the photographs will be on display alongside a few words from each person reflecting on their experience. I’ll share some of the individual stories in a future blog alongside photos of the celebration event and feedback from those taking part.