Page 4 - storytelling in practice

The Play Project

This project is one of our journeys of intergenerational connections, enabling three

organisations (Keele University, St Johns School, and the Beth Johnson Foundation) to work
collaboratively to explore the use of play across the ages. We met four times, once to paint

pebbles; once as a workshop to compare experiences of childhood play hosted by the BJF;
once as an excursion to visit a local park involving play-themed activities and to leave the
pebbles; and finally a workshop was held to reflect on what the groups learned about the

project activities and to evaluate the outcomes. All of the sessions were filmed, and the
resultant short film will document the project to establish existing perceptions around
age-friendly cities and inform future thinking around this concept.

The sessions have all been completed and provided mutual benefits to collaborative
working, enabling the sharing of knowledge and skills and promoting impact outcomes in

creative ways. Such opportunities enhance traditional research approaches,
demonstrating the integrated approaches to meaningful engagement with the non-for-
profit sector. The primary outcome of the project, the film, is currently being edited and

will document the interactions and collaborations between the schoolchildren and older
people as they reflect on and engage in stories of play at the BJF and during the park visit.
From the film, and the experience of organisation of the activities, the project team will

be able to critically evaluate to what extent the park can currently be considered age-
friendly and how it might be developed to be more age-inclusive in the future. (Nov 2023)

4