An Evaluation of the Royston Road Community Parks Project

Report by Noema Research and Planning Ltd.
29 Arlingford Road 
London SW2 2SR 
Tel: 020 8 3556630
Fax: 020 8 2443138
ghilardi@noema.dircon.co.uk
www.noema.org.uk

Final Draft 

October 2001

CONTENTS 

1. Introduction

1.2 Commissioning 

1.3 Noema resource-based approach to community development 

2. The evaluation task 

2.1 Research methodology and workplan

2.2 Presentation of results 

3. Project description 

3.1 Project outcomes assessment - The capital programme 

3.2 The training programme

3.3 The artists residences

4. Conclusion 

1. INTRODUCTION 
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s recently published progress report on social inclusion (February 2001) outlines how sport and the arts can help to tackle the issues around social exclusion, and also to help cut crime while improving health, education and employment prospects in deprived communities. This report captures the extent to which culture and leisure in the UK and elsewhere have become part of the neighbourhood renewal process, constituting one way of combating social and spatial exclusion. 
An explanation for this policy focus can be found in the increasing evidence that participation in arts related activities can:
•	lead to enhanced confidence, skill-building, and educational developments which can improve people’s social contacts and employability;
•	contribute to social cohesion by building local capacity for organisation and self-determination;
•	bring benefits in other areas such as urban and environmental renewal and health promotion.
In particular, research into participation in arts projects, conducted across the UK by Matarasso in 1997, found that art-related activities had the following impacts on people:
84% felt more confident about what they could do in the future; 
37% had decided to take up training or a course; 
80% had learned new skills; 
54% had learned about other people’s cultures; 
21% had gained a new sense of their rights; 
40% felt more positive about where they lived; 
63% had become more keen to help in local projects; 
52% felt better and healthier. 
Studies such as this show the crucial role of the arts in engaging and strengthening the local community because they relate directly to individual and community identity, the very things which need to be restored if urban renewal is to be successful in neighbourhoods such as Royston. The understanding of these issues coupled with a dissatisfaction with the superficial and mostly cosmetic approaches to urban regeneration adopted in recent years across the UK have been at the heart of the Royston Road Project. 
More specifically, the thinking behind the development of the project was that, whereas the cultural policy-led urban regeneration strategies of the 1980s (which are still often applied today) tended to adopt a narrow concept of ‘regenerationfocused mainly on the economic and physical dimensions of renewal, the Royston Road Project took instead a more community-oriented type of approach. 

1.2 COMMISSIONING 
As a result, in February 2001 the Royston Road Project Ltd, put out a tender for an external evaluation of the activities of the past three years, since the project began.
Noema was selected as the preferred bidder among other candidates not only for its long standing expertise in developing cultural strategies, but also because of the innovative and developmental approach it takes to the use of cultural resources. This approach is called cultural planning. 
Unlike traditional approaches to cultural-policy-led urban regeneration, usually based on aesthetic definitions of ‘culture‘art’, cultural planning provides a detailed mapping of local cultural resources and a more creative way of managing those resources for the benefit of local communities. 
In other words, by linking culture and other aspects of economic and social life, cultural planning can be instrumental in creating development opportunities for the whole of the local community and, whereas traditional cultural policies tend to have a sectoral focus example, only developing theatre, dance, literature or the crafts – cultural planning adopts a territorial remit. Its purpose is to see how the pool of specific local cultural resources can contribute to the integrated development of a place, be this a neighbourhood, or a town. 
Moreover, the way cultural planning works is by cutting across the divides between the public, private and voluntary sectors, different institutional concerns, types of knowledge and professional disciplines. In this way, the partnerships established can contribute more effectively to community rebuilding programmes in areas of social stress and conflict.

1.3 NOEMA RESOURCE-BASED APPROACH TO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT 
Noema’s approach represents a shift in emphasis from needs-driven to asset-based community development strategies. The context for this are recent economic trends, which over the past twenty-five years have had negative consequences on most Western European cities, with industrial jobs disappearing from their central areas. Furthermore, even where some of these central areas have experienced a ‘renaissance’, the jobs created are different from those that once sustained the economy – the new jobs are either highly professionalised and require many diverse skills, or they are routine, low-paying dead-end service jobs. In this situation, where decent employment possibilities for many people living in low-income neighbourhoods no longer exist, new approaches to rebuilding their lives and communities, and the creation of new opportunities, are a vital necessity. But many actual community renewal strategies focus solely on a community’s needs, deficiencies and problems. 
This is usually the result of the high publicity given to negative images of an area: these are images of needy, problematic and hopeless neighbourhoods populated by equally needy, problematic and hopeless people. Once accepted as the whole truth about a troubled neighbourhood, such images create a ‘needs mapinvites deficiency-oriented policies and programmes. As a result, many poor urban neighbourhoods see themselves as disempowered communities with special needs that can only be met by outsiders (usually the welfare services). 
The problem here is that the targeting of resources on a ‘needs maptends to direct funding not to residents but to service providers. Furthermore, making resources available on the basis of a ‘needs map’ can also have negative effects on the nature of local community leadership. If, for example, one measure of effective leadership is the ability to attract resources, then local leaders are, quite often, being forced to disparage their neighbours, and their community, by highlighting their problems and deficiencies, thus ignoring their capacities and strengths. 
This is a scenario familiar to neighbourhoods such as Royston (where more initiatives and funding have gone to the Roystonhill end, rather than Blackhill), and was one of the reasons for the development of the two pockets parks linking the two ends of the Royston corridor. This is why, from the start, by mobilising local community resources (thus challenging the cycle of dependence described above) and by the direct involvement of local individuals and associations in the physical renewal of the area, the Royston Road Project appeared to Noema to contain a strong element of innovation. 
In Noema’s experience, significant community development takes place only when local community people are committed to investing themselves and their resources in the effort. This is why our approach seeks to develop an alternative path to the needs-driven type of development described above, focusing instead on the positive capacities, skills and assets of people and their neighbourhoods. Initiatives such as the Royston Road Project have demonstrated that even the poorest neighbourhood is a place where individuals and organisations are themselves resources upon which renewal can be built. 
The key to community regeneration, then, is to locate all the available assets and to begin connecting them with one another in ways that multiply their power and effectiveness. Beyond the individuals and local associations that make up the resource base of a community are all the more formal institutions which are located in the area. For example, public institutions such as schools, police, parks, libraries; non-profit organisations such as social service agencies and hospitals; and private businesses, all contribute to the community’s fabric. Accounting for them in full and enlisting them in the process of community development is essential to the success of the community renewal process. 

2. THE EVALUATION TASK 
Bearing in mind this approach, Noema’s task in respect to the Royston Road Project was to describe what the project had achieved, both in terms of community participation and regeneration, and as regards a return on investment. In an environment in which performance indicators are applied to public services, such as health or education, there does not seem to be any convincing argument that the arts should not likewise be expected to account for themselves. The question is, according to whose values should those accounts be rendered: who is supposed to define what is a successful or worthwhile outcome? 
For this reason, the evaluation exercise was recognised from the start to be quite challenging as, on the one hand, it had to be able to provide some evidence of the intangible impact that local community participation in the project (and generally in arts-related initiatives) had achieved, while, on the other, it needed to show funders that the investment they had made was good ‘value for money’. The fact that there was little evidence of this type of evaluation having been conducted on projects such as these made the task more appealing to Noema. (So far, evaluation of small arts-related projects has been conducted, but not as yet on projects of this territorial scale, in terms of financial investment and the number of initiatives and organisations involved.) 
Moreover, the direct involvement of the artists in the Royston Road Project and the role they played in defining with the local community what the arts are expected to deliver, made the evaluation exercise all the more rewarding. 
Lastly, projects intended to produce social benefits should address stated needs or aspirations from the start, as it is all too easy to justify a project after the event by drawing attention to a few carefully selected outcomes. The Royston Road community representatives and members of the project steering group did identify from the beginning the overall objectives to be achieved. These, however, needed to be ‘shared’ with both the partners for each initiative and with the funders. This is because a shared evaluation encourages a process of exploring values, principles, methodology and criteria for measuring success – vital for the health of long-term processes of community development and partnership-building alike. 
Shared evaluation also invites accountability, multiple perspectives and diversity. This is not an easy process to handle and participants need to be prepared to make themselves open and ready to receive feedback in a constructive way. For this reason, one important aspect of Noema’s task was to produce a document that should assist the project by initiating a conscious reflection about their activity in a ‘safe.

2.1 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND WORKPLAN
The methodology chosen for the task was articulated around three stages: desk research, fieldwork with interviews and group meetings with key participants and funders, and the production of a report containing the issues emerging from the evaluation.
i) The desk research aimed at collecting information about: 
a) The capital building programme, in order to identify the potential linkages between the activities developed under these initiatives, and their relation to the cultural planning-type of development (for example, connections between the newly created parks and the local housing projects; participation in arts projects and improvements in the quality of life of the local community). 
b) The Wise training programme, to look at the types of skills created within the programme. 
c) The arts programme, in order to assess it, we looked at the linkages between audience development and residencies. Existing information about the needs, desires and aspirations of local cultural organisations and of local residents in relation to cultural activities were examined against the programme’s outputs. 
This stage of the research took about a month starting in May 2001. 
ii) The fieldwork was organised through: 
a) a series of one-to-one interviews and discussion groupsheld in Glasgow over a period of three months, beginning in April 2001.
The people consulted included: community groups and individuals, professional consultants, voluntary and statutory bodies, and the artists involved in the residences. Basically, all those who have been involved in the development of the project as partners and participants. Consultation and one-to-one meetings were aimed specifically at gaining an overview of the level of satisfaction with the project and at highlighting issues that could hinder, in the future, the development of new initiatives. 
A total of four discussion groups and of 24 one-to-one interviews were conducted, five of these interviews required two separate meetings.
b) In parallel, telephone interviews with key people working with the project were also conducted. They included key individuals from the Scottish Arts Council, the National Lottery Charities Board, Glasgow City Council, the European Regional Development Fund, the Esmee Fairbairn Trust Fund, Scottish Natural Heritage, the local Social Inclusion Partnership and the European Social Fund. These interviews aimed at an understanding of the different outputs/outcomes/impacts expected by the different funding partners.
Nine telephone interviews were conducted with representatives of the above group. 
A total of eight visits to Royston were made between April and the end of July by Lia Ghilardi and John Chell. 
Lia Ghilardi and John Chell took part in the Royston Road Project Ltd board meeting on one occasion, and John Chell was also present at a meeting organised in June by Fablevision to discuss the artists.

2.2 PRESENTATION OF RESULTS 
The information gathered through both desk research and fieldwork has been organised in section 3 of this document in the following way: 
i) background description of the project. 
ii) analysis of the outcomes of initiatives developed within the three main elements of the project. These are: the capital programme, the training schemes, and the artists residences. Initiatives within the three areas above have been analysed under the following categories: original objectives, actual outcomes, difficulties encountered, and issues that could influence future action. Each area’s description has a conclusive commentary giving an overall evaluation of the work done thus far.
As stated above, community renewal depends on people, and their self-confidence. Time and again, arts projects have shown how the acquisition of confidence through participation in the arts can transform both individuals and communities. For this reason, social impact outcomes, such as those related to personal development, have been considered prominently within the section concerning the artists residences. In particular, the types of impact considered are: the development of communication skills, self-confidence, organisational abilities and new skills; the extent to which participation in arts related activity helps reduce social exclusion and isolation, and fosters good relationships between individuals and groups. 
iii) the final part of this section contains a brief discussion of the issues involved in the development of the project and of the impact the initiatives launched have had, thus far, on local community development.

3. PROJECT DESCRIPTION 
The Royston Road Project initiative has been spearheaded by local people in reaction to welfare cutbacks, urban decay and a general loss of the community’s opportunities for involvement in the social and cultural life of the area. From the beginning, one of the main issues faced by the project was the isolation of the two communities at the opposite ends of the Royston Road. These have traditionally been in competition with each other; hostile and suspicious of each other’s efforts. Each has similar problems of poverty, social exclusion, marginalisation, demolition of old housing and the creation of new schemes (with all the associated problems that these developments bring). 
The catalyst for local action was the demolition of Townhead Church and the threat to the Spire. A community action committee was formed; petitions were lodged with the Council and the project grew out of the impetus to save the Spire, which was seen as a symbol for the aspirations of the area. The Royston Road Project then developed out of this experience, and the idea to create two pocket parks linking the two parts, east and west of the Royston corridor, was launched.
This proved to be the catalyst for the community to set up, in 1997, the Royston Road Project Ltd, a company devoted to building future regenerative, participatory arts and environmental projects. To help the different strands of the diverse communities of the area to come together, it was decided that the project should prioritise two areas: Roystonhill, around the spire, and Molendinar, around the waterfall. This is where – thanks also to a training programme linked to the construction of the two parks two new spaces are now located.
From the beginning, Fablevision (a professional arts and community organisation) was asked to facilitate the development of the project by applying other activities funding to institutions such as the Scottish Arts Council, the National Lottery Charities Board, Glasgow City Council, the European Regional Development Fund, the Esmee Fairbairn Trust Fund, the local Social Inclusion Partnership and the European Social Fund. Subsequently, in order to develop a greater sense of ownership and confidence, the parks were chosen as a physical focus for six artists residences. These participatory arts programmes were designed to help and support the social and economic regeneration of the area. 
Overall, the Royston Road Project can be described as a community-led and community-driven set of initiatives aimed at promoting and encouraging the development of local regeneration through the arts. Its philosophy can be best summed up in the identification of local needs and in meeting those needs in innovative ways (for example, by using the arts as a tool for social change and as a vehicle for new models of participation, consultation and decision-making). 

3.1 PROJECT OUTCOMES ASSESSMENT 

THE CAPITAL PROGRAMME

Original objectives 

To build two pocket parks, in order to link parts of Royston Road that felt separated geographically and socially.

To preserve and restore the Spire. 

To have two new public spaces that would help raise aspirations within the local community.

To provide a sustainable resource and contribute to the regeneration of the Royston Corridor.

To enable local communities to manage the design and construction of the two new spaces, and to gain ownership over the process of renewal in general.

To initiate, through the construction of the parks, a series of arts-based programmes that could contribute to local community renewal.

To complement the new housing schemes created around both parks by the housing associations.	

Outcomes 

May 2001, opening of the Spire Park. This will be followed in November 2001 by the opening of the Molendinar Park. 

Restoration work on the Spire has started. This is once more a landmark for the neighbourhood and a symbol of renewed confidence.

The high quality of both the design, and of the materials used, has contributed greatly to raising local aspirations and sense of ownership. 

Children are using the Spire Park in imaginative ways.

The campaigning efforts of the Royston Hill and Spire Project’s members have helped the rest of the community to gain the necessary confidence to initiate a renewal process.

In the planning stages of the project, the organisation successfully developed the use of the arts as a tool for actively involving local people in the regeneration of their neighbourhood.

Community ownership and participation are now key features of the project.

Community development outcomes include the skills learned by community representatives and participants alike through the process of developing activities together. These are: training in running groups, fund-raising, project development, company formation, formal document writing and running consultations. 	

Difficulties encountered

The timetable for the construction of the two parks had to be revised. In particular, the programme for the Molendinar Park has slipped, with inauguration now due in November, with risks of European funding delay or cancellation.

Drawings for both parks had to be revised several times. 

Technical problems, e.g. revisions to the Molendinar Park drawings. Spire Park planting also needed changes.

Security, both during construction and after has been a major issue. Local criminal gangs sabotaging work. 

Recurring vandalism.

Maintenance agreements difficult to work out.

Progress on site has been difficult to monitor. Corrective action to deal with programme slippage identified (in a couple of occasions) at the 11th hour.

Restoration of the Spire has been marred by a number of problems, from the involvement of the historic trusts to the identification of sources of funding, to maintenance agreements and transfer of ownership. 

Issues that could influence future actions

The difficulties in sorting out problems of ownership and maintenance of the Spire Park (because of the separation between the spire and half and the park) could be a potential source of conflict and of demoralisation in the future. The issues involved here are quite complex and the Royston Road Project might not be able to deal with them without ongoing external help (e.g. consultants or experts in project management). This needs to be built into the structure of the management mechanism immediately at the start of any future action and not when initiatives are already half-way developed.

The Board needs to be aware of the risks it ran at the beginning of the project in getting involved in two very different management tasks (the physical renewal with the creation of the parks, and the organisation of training on the one hand, and the arts related initiatives on the other). Each task demanded different types of management skills which, perhaps, the Board did not have ‘in house’. This is an issue related to the ‘how, and when to ask for help’ aspects of project management.	

Concluding comments 
The following remarks represent a summary of comments from the local community representatives who took part either as organisers, or as participants in the initiatives related to the capital programme.
At every stage of the development, the artists (Graham Fagen and Toby Paterson) and the architects (Loci Design) have worked with community groups and representatives to create the designs, models and plans for the parks. This is an important aspect of the Royston Road Project because both artists and architects have learned through this activity to negotiate a common ground between professional expertise and community aspirations. There is now a high level of trust between community groups and artists.
As a result of the enthusiasm of those who have been involved in the parks project, and in the preservation of the Spire, the community has begun to reinvent its gala days and re-establish a programme of arts and sporting activities. Another spin-off has been the creation of the ‘naming of the rose, which ran this year in schools throughout the area, and involved young people in drama, movement and the visual arts. The first new roses were planted at the Spire Park just before its opening – and the winning name will be announced in a ceremony at the end of August 2001. 
The park is well used by local children and young people and is not intimidating to them. The local pensioners group is now talking about holding an event there. If we contrast the new park with Glenconnor Park on other side of Royston Road – a green space landscaped by the Council advantages are clear. While the Glenconnor Park always looks empty and sad, the Spire Park is lively and pleasing to the eye. However, the new community park still needs promoting among local people. This sort of project could target other pockets of unused land (there are quite a few) in the area in the future. 
People from the two communities do not normally use facilities based in each other’s neighbourhood so the idea of bringing them together, although a bit artificial at the start, has worked so far. Blackhill is small and on the edge of Glasgow, and if it didn’t have this partnership it probably wouldn’t have got anything for itself. The tree-planting ceremony was particularly important because, for the first time, the two communities were united around an issue such as the drug-related deaths of young people from the area. 
Moreover, the waterfall and pond are needed as landmarks for the neighbourhood and as a recreational resource, particularly for young children, as there are very few facilities in Molendinar. Lately, the Molendinar side has also suffered considerably as a result of both the destruction of the community centre (which was burned down last year) and by the delays in the housing developments promised by Housing Associations.
Overall, the parks project has been an injection of energy for people such as the Community Council, which struggles to keep going despite the difficulty and hard work entailed in negotiating with regeneration bureaucracies. 
As is well known, the main problems facing the community are housing, crime and jobs. The jobs created through the project have been a major achievement. The project cannot do much on its own about crime or housing, but it can encourage the group to keep going and gain greater credibility in the eyes of other people in the community.
However, community groups feel that it has been hard work to keep the project going and often have had to face the problem of over-promising from government agencies; this has not been an issue with the arts projects, but explaining all the (bureaucratic) delays to other members of the community has been difficult.
Finally, although many people did get involved with the consultation, those who didn’t then complained that the park wasn’t what they wanted. Another issue has been the difficulty in getting the new people who are moving back into Royston to participate in the project. A major lesson to be learnt is the amount of time it takes for the local authority to deliver what it says it will, with all the consequences in terms of demoralisation that this entails.
The funders
The training element linked to the creation of the park is a very innovative aspect of this project which, perhaps, did not have clear objectives in mind at the beginning, which is quite understandable, given the experimental nature of the project. Because of the strong element of community participation, the project will be a useful model for other renewal projects. So far, although expectations have been met, it is however too early to tell if the project has assisted in regeneration or community empowerment. For example, it is disappointing that the housing refurbishment in Roystonhill was completed to a different time scale so the opportunity of using the park project to build community capacity might have been missed. Although the level of vandalism is quite disappointing, a positive view of this is that at least this shows the park is used (SAC and Glasgow City Council). 
The biggest difficulties seem to have been linked to the legal and technical aspects of implementing the project, particularly regarding the transfer of land. These are matters that have to be got right from the Community Fund’s point of view, and the land should be transferred to community groups as it is they who have led the way. These sort of difficulties, however, are common with projects of this type and are no worse than in many other cases. So far, the Lottery Community Fund sees this initiative as a two-year project which is only half completed, and therefore finds it difficult to say whether expectations have been met or not. 
Esmee Fairbairn feels it has had little feedback as yet from project, and it would like some quite soon. In particular, it needs to be shown in what way the community has been empowered by the project and if the art produced has been of a high standard. 

Strathclyde European Partnership likes the project and thinks that overall it is going well. SEP particularly values the economic impacts – for example, the local jobs created by the environmental improvements. SEP was also pleased to see that external consultants were brought in to oversee the construction element as they felt that this was an area of expertise that the Royston Road Project did not have ‘in house’. SEP would very much like a copy of this document and may post information about the project on their website as a good example of how ERDF funding can be used in a constructive way for community renewal. It has already included the Spire Park in a tour of Glasgow for representatives of Eastern European countries applying to join the EU. 

3.2 THE TRAINING PROGRAMME 

Original objectives

In an area of high unemployment to have local people employed in construction while receiving quality training in the process. 

To link the construction of the parks to aseries of arts-based programmes. 

Outcomes

The completion of the Roystonhill Park and work started at the Molendinar site.

The high quality of the work done in Roystonhill.

In July 2001, a total of 14 trainees were involved in work at the Molendinar site.

Trainees gained different skills through the activities they have undertaken on site. Examples of skills are soiling, turfing, kerbing, gravel path, painting, planting, and slabbing.

Trainees received an integrated package of training in personal and social development work experience and job search.

Work tasters have been introduced, to give local people the opportunity to try out site work prior to full commitment.

In July 2001, 9 trainees from Blackhill, Provanmill and Royston were accepted, a 69% of the trainees. 

3 people have completed the training and have now moved to a job.
Community outreach project ‘Visions of the Future’, targeting primary school children. The project aims to help children to highlight the issues that are important in their community at present and then focus on their hopes and expectations for the future. 	

Difficulties encountered 

Uptake from Blackhill/Provanmill too low.

Difficulties in recruiting the right type of trainees due to regulations related to incapacity benefits.

The Wise Group did not present regular monthly reports to the Board, thus generating a lack of communication which could have seriously threatened the success of the initiatives.

Delays in starting work in both parks, thus putting the EU funding at risk.

Security arrangements have been a major problem. 

Issues that could influence future actions 

The importance of the trainees being recruited locally. The sustainability of the parks relies on local people being employed and on having ownership.

Progress on site has not been monitored sufficiently allowing for slippages in the starting and delivery times. Monitoring mechanisms needed to be put in place earlier on. 

Security arrangements should have been made at the start of work in Roystonhill. 

Local agencies (such as Glasgow North Ltd) could have been brought in as a partner for the training component. GNL could have helped with the recruitment and with any infill requirements (GNL have a database of local people looking for training and employment opportunities). 
	
Concluding comments 
The Wise Group has a very good reputation for delivering landscape projects while also using training packages to train and employ young people mostly drawn from the local area of the projects. Their reputation is obviously high, and the training element offered by the Group has been seen by the Royston Road Project as a priority. Moreover, by discussing the parkswith the architects from the Wise Group, Loci was able to establish a working relationship which helped deliver the project to both Loci’s and the community’s specifications. 
The project encourages good citizenship, but addresses the problems of lack of confidence through providing skills training and development at every level. This is an important aspect of any resource-based type of approach to urban and community renewal. Overall, the Parks project appears to have helped people not only to build new skills and work experience, but also to change their feelings about their capacities. In other words, working on the construction of the parks has helped participants gain a sense of achievement, of having done something worthwhile for the whole of the community. “This makes me feel I count as a person and that I too can help make things happen,one of the participants. 
The high degree of innovation represented by the training package offered through the project cannot hide the difficulties involved in the delivery of the scheme which, at times, has appeared to some people interviewed a bit too ambitious and, notwithstanding the enthusiasm of the community and the high reputation of the Wise Group, too difficult a process to control. An example of this can be seen in the way the recruitment has been conducted. The severe problems of the Blackhill and Provanmill area (with many people on incapacity benefit) could have been spotted before recruitment started, and solutions could have been sought by looking at how other European countries (Ireland, for example) have dealt with similar problems. The result (so far), has been to recruit for the Roystonhill Park trainees that come mostly from outside Royston. This could have a negative impact in the long run because, clearly, people from outside Royston have not got the same type of allegiance to the area as those who live there. 
3.3 THE ARTISTS RESIDENCES 

Original objectives

To celebrate the achievements of the local community with high profile arts activities and events as well as creating a memory of use of the new spaces which would encourage ownership and minimise the problems of vandalism. 

6 artists residences planned in order to build upon the creation of the parks and in order to develop a greater sense of ownership and confidence among local people of all generations.

The parks were the physical focus for the residences.

Lucy Byatt (The Centre) and Fablevision involved in developing the residences and in guaranteeing the high quality of the events and the widest possible range of community participants.

The quality of the art and of the artistic intervention very important through the whole process.

Outcomes 

The themes of the residences have been developed through the active involvement of local people.

Innovative, highly respected and internationally renowned artists have been working with the community, thus raising the profile of the area and engendering a sense of pride in the community.

Artists Graham Fagen and Toby Paterson worked with the the design team Loci for the parks, facilitating a process of community participation. 

The tree planting was a catalyst moment for the whole of the Royston community.

The creation of Radio Tuesday, with artists Campbell, Vernon and Frost working with the Drugs project at St Paul’s Church Hall for more than four months. Contacts were also established with Northern Rock and with North Glasgow College. The radio will now continue to broadcast under the name of Bolt FM (SIP application successful).

Artist Paul Carter has worked with Richard Quigley and a group of young people of Royston Youth Action at a project involving broadcasting sound from the Spire. The first message into outer space was sent in July from a signal hut. Participants to the project are expecting a reply and when one comes, the lights on the Spire will change colour.

Scott Myles is the highly regarded artist in residence at the library on Royston Road. He is beginning to engage with people at the library. The project aims at reconstructing stories and histories from the area.

Jenny Brownrigg confirmed as the artist in residence with the Molendinar Community Council.

Steven Healy developed a photographic project with Royston Youth Action with a permanent exhibition of images in the Rainbow Hall at the end of the project. 

Eddie Ladd will take up the 6th residency to push forward the wider celebration of the park project. She will be based at the Molendinar end of Royston Road.

Artist Gillian Steel will make a video documenting the whole process of community participation and renewal. 

Difficulties encountered 

Technical and funding issues raised by the Glasgow Preservation Trust which is carrying out the restoration of the Spire. It would like to have control overthe type of lighting that is going to be installed over the Spire by the artist at the end of his residency If on the one hand, this was indicative of the lack of trust and interest in the project on the side of GPT, on the other, it also showed the need for the development of a more continuous dialogue between the project and outside players involved in the diverse strands of the project. 

Some elements of the programme have slipped due to complexity in securing sustainable and meaningful projects (e.g. Scott Myles’s library project). In particular, it has been difficult to cost and time jobs which are so experimental. 

Communication between the artists and the Board has been, at times, patchy. Both artists and Board members have been busy implementing activities and often there has been no time for exchange of information, nor for discussion of the issues emerging from the residences. 
Because of concerns expressed by Board members about the lack of information, a meeting between the artists and the Board was organised in June. Additional meetings have also been arranged for the future.

A conscious effort had to bemade in order to ensure that the Molendinar end of the Royston Road had the same residence opportunities as the Roystonhill side (re issues of rivalries over renewal resources). The Roystonhill community was more prepared to receive residences and responded with great enthusiasm, while at the Molendinar end the local community felt that they were once again going to be left behind. This situation required a certain degree of negotiation between the Centre and the Board on the one hand, and local community representatives on the other. 	

Issues that could influence future actions 

The residences have raised an interesting debate addressing issues such as: how closely the artists involved should make their proposals relate to the two parks? The Board’s view was that there should be a tangible link, while the artists who worked within the residences felt, at times, that they were struggling to maintain that link. 

From the perspective of the external evaluator, it has been easier, for example, to identify the impacts of the work done by the artists who worked with the local community on the design of the parks (with excellent results in terms of both the quality of the final product and of the participatory process), but it has been more difficult to assess the effects of the other residences because the linkages with the parks were not immediately evident (in some cases) to the artists leading those residences.

This is not to say that the residences have failed in their original purpose. On the contrary, it is more a question of viewing the residences as part of the ongoing process of community regeneration started by the creation of the parks. The type of process set in motion by the residences (although not unproblematic) constitutes a blueprint for the future of the local community both in terms of its growing self-confidence and as regards the skills gained in the process.

The tension between the artistsand the aspirations of local community workers/groups has been an important issue raised by the residences. In Noema’s view this should be seen as one of the positive effects of the residences. In particular, the quality of both the artists involved and of the outcomes is an indicator of the success the residences have had in terms of bringing into the open a debate (relevant to many art-based community renewal projects elsewhere) about how much, in a climate where funding depends increasingly on provision of social outputs, artists should compromise their aspirations in order to work within the community as facilitators of social renewal. 
This debate is just beginning and the fact that the Royston residences have provided a productive platform for experimentation around these issues can only be positive. 

Overall, if there is a lesson to be drawn from the residences, it is perhaps in learning how to set clear targets for the arts programmes from the start and how to integrate those targets into the priorities identified by the local community. In other words, more consultation and a clear statement of how far a specific arts programme can take the local community could contribute to a more sustainable and even process of community development. 	
Concluding comments 
As there is no other organisation in the Royston Road area providing this kind of service, (recent government cutbacks have removed community education workers, arts workers and, crucially, the local arts development officer), the Royston Road Project and the work it has done so far with the residences is clearly invaluable. Moreover, the artists chosen have been of the highest quality, and – because there are lots of good conceptual artists working in the city, unrecognised by arts funding bodies – the project has brought them to the attention of these institutions. For their part, the artists have done excellent work and have been generous in their commitment. 
One example of the success of the residences in facilitating community renewal is Radio Tuesday (now Bolt FM), where members of the drugs project together with young people from Blackhill/Provanmill have learned broadcasting skills. Likewise, the type of activity chosen gave the project an opportunity to make links with existing initiatives and with the wider community. With broadcasts listened to by every community along the Royston Road, the initiative has had considerable impact locally, and has led to an independent community initiative being set up in order to continue broadcasting. Not only has the project helped participants increase their capacity to find employment, but they also clearly felt more confident and found that participation in the project challenged their negative feelings about what they were capable of achieving in their lives. 
The tree planting project (some of the trees planted by Graham Fagen are giant sequoiaswhich may live for hundreds of years) has engaged the local community first through a process of consultation and then by bringing people together from the two ends of the Royston Road. Making friends and sharing feelings (in this case about the loss of young people’s lives) can be easily underestimated as an outcome, but in deprived urban areas, where isolation and resentment can make friendship hard to sustain, events such as this are vital to the healing process. 
About eight people have participated on a regular basis in the preparations for the broadcast, led by Paul Carter and Richard Quigley of Royston Youth Action at Rainbow Hall, of messages into space. This core group of young participants has been very committed to the project and, as a result, they have learned personal skills that will allow them to feel more confident about their lives in general. Among the other benefits of participation mentioned by the young people was that they learned to be more tolerant and to work more co-operatively with others (an important aspect of growth in an environment where gangs of youths often fight for territorial control).
Concerns, however, have been raisedabout the limited impact the project seems to have had on the rest of the youth club. It is important that this issue is given the necessary attention as it could be a symptom of the high level of expectations raised in this case by the residencies. Arts projects can facilitate the process of cohesion and confidence-building only if their work is linked to existing initiatives in a carefully co-ordinated effort. In other words it is important for the future to make sure that arts-based programmes (in Royston and elsewhere generally) are carefully planned (e.g. more consultation) so that they can complement and add value to existing initiatives aimed at community development. 
A second area of concern, this time linked to the library project, is that Scott Myles’s project appears to have overrun its time scale, with the artist having to put in a lot more time than he was contracted to do. This is an issue raised also by both the Centre and Fablevision, with Liz Gardiner and Lucy Byatt putting in more time than the project had budgeted for. Although it is probably a question of putting aside contingency money for all these eventualities, the Board needs to be aware this is an issue that, if not tackled on time and with the necessary attention, it could potentially militate against the sustainability of the project itself. 

4. CONCLUSION 
The evaluation results presented above give us a positive picture of the Royston Road Project both from the point of view of its social impact and from the type of approach adopted for community renewal. 
As explained in the introduction, the approach used is very much assets and resources driven. By identifying from the start the community resources available, instead of just putting community needs first and then looking for outside agencies to provide help, the project has managed to create a positive environment in which to integrate community-driven initiatives. 
Using this approach, the project has demonstrated that focusing on the assets of lower income communities does not necessarily imply that these communities do not need additional resources from the outside. Rather, it simply suggests that outside resources can be more effectively used when the local community is itself mobilised, and if it can itself define the agendas and the additional resources which must be obtained.
Starting with what is present in the community has meant that the Royston Road Project was able to form partnerships with the associational and institutional base of the area. Thus, local housing associations, enterprise companies, the community council and a variety of community groups, the City Council, the police, local schools and training associations were all brought on board. The most attractive aspect of this approach is the internal focus the project adopted. By this we mean that the development strategy of the project concentrated first of all on the agenda-building and problem-solving capacities of local residents, local associations and local institutions. This internal focus was instrumental in establishing the primacy of local investment, creativity, hope and control over the attraction of external resources. 
From a management point of view, the project has been a testing ground for all those involved. In particular, it is important to highlight the role of the Board in the development of the project. 

The Board
The creation of the Board was in itself an important step in the process of community development. While it was originally created out of a genuine community need to take action in an environment of apathy and physical degradation, it has developed into a true catalyst for the identification of priorities of development for the whole of the community. Via the Board (and its activity), the local community has effectively begun the process of coming to know its strengths and resources, thus gaining more confidence in the ability of Royston to reverse the process of decline. 
Difficulties encountered
From an internal perspective, the Board members themselves have gone through a complex process of change. From a needs-based type of approach (where the focus was on the difficulties of dealing with a neighbourhood which has many problems of poverty, moral and environmental degradation and high crime) members have been able to make the shift to a more positive outlook, thus breaking down the barriers of isolation (one of the principal elements in the demoralisation of the local community). This has been particularly evident in the ability of the Board to establish networks and partnerships with organisations which have been dealing with similar problems elsewhere and to aspire to high-quality targeted initiatives. However, some members of the Board felt that it has been hard work to keep the project going and that, at times (partly because of their lack of previous experience in managing large projects and budgets) it felt as if there were too many external ‘expertsand not enough community members.
This raises an important issue for the future involvement of external consultants/experts in new initiatives. If there is no question, for instance, that Fablevision was instrumental in getting the project off the ground, given the scale of the initiatives planned, doubts can be raised about the future ability of the project to continue its work without external help. At this stage of development, the project not only has to be able to maintain its momentum, but it also needs to think strategically about the sustainability of the whole process of the area’s renewal. How this is going to be achieved is one of the challenges the Board will have to face in the future. 
Issues of leadership and management should be very much on the agenda of future development. It may be worth considering questions such as: what if the people who, up to now, have been fundamental in driving the whole process forward would leave? What role should external experts have in the future? Should the Board dissolve? Or should it be opened up to other organisations, (e.g. SIP and more local community representatives?).
Equally, given the high expectations of the local community, issues related to the planning of future initiatives shouldn’t be ignored. At present, the feeling is that the Board needs to develop planning tools capable of setting clear priorities for the Royston area as a whole. For instance, one of the issues that the Board could face in terms of priorities is linked to the rebuilding of the community centre (should it be rebuilt? Does the community need another building-based focus? Or does it just need a diversity of meeting points linked together by a series of carefully integrated activities?). 
These conclusions should not be taken as a denial of what the project has achieved so far, rather they have to be seen as an incentive to consolidate the ground for an even more integrated local community development.