Robert Gordon University

Robert Gordon University pledges to:

Challenge ourselves to increase the positive impact we make on our local community and make better use of our assets – our buildings/grounds and our people.

In the next six months we will do at least three things that we don’t do at the moment to improve our social impact.

Signed, Professor John Harper, Principal, July 2019

1st Commitment

We will launch a new Mobile Art School to widen access to creative education and careers for young people and to support the cultural development of the region through engaging with our local community.

Geographical location of impact: North-East of Scotland
Contact details: Libby Curtis, Head of Gray’s School of Art

2nd Commitment

We will positively impact on our local community with a commitment to design and print the first edition of the Garthdee community newsletter.

Geographical location of impact: Garthdee area, Aberdeen
Contact details: Anna Duthie, Communications Manager

  3rd Commitment

Streetsport will provide greater support to young people, beyond health and wellbeing, providing information on career paths and college and university courses to enable young people involved with the programme to make choices on their future that feel right for them.

Geographical location of impact: Aberdeen City and Shire
Contact details: Mark Williams, Chief Operations Officer, Denis Law Legacy Trust

Additional Information

Further details about our social impact pledges for 2019/20

Commitment 1:

We will launch a new Mobile Art School to widen access to creative education and careers for young people and to support the cultural development of the region through engaging with our local community.

To improve awareness, interest and understanding of the creative industries – a powerful, transformative and essential part of modern life, and a vital element in Scotland’s future – amongst young people across the region, RGU Gray’s School of Art is launching a new Mobile Art School. The outreach project aims to dynamically engage with communities in Aberdeen and beyond, supporting the importance of art and design in the cultural development of our region.

The first phase of this pioneering and engaging project will focus primarily on widening access to creative education and careers for young people by travelling to local schools in our custom-built Mobile Art School vehicle. This vehicle will be equipped with state-of-the-art creative tools and materials, capable of delivering workshops across a range of Art & Design subject areas. Future plans are to expand this offering to involve community groups, colleges, enterprise hubs and other organisations, as well as venturing further afield geographically.

Taking our expertise and resources beyond the walls of RGU directly to communities through free events and workshops will have a positive impact by providing opportunities to experience the personal and social enrichment creative learning presents, and ultimately get more young people interested in pursuing a career in the creative industries.

The project will also offer training and mentoring opportunities for RGU students and graduates, helping to develop the next generation of community-engaged artists and designers, attracting and retaining creative talent in Aberdeen and the North-East to further benefit the region in years to come.

Commitment  2:

We will positively impact on our local community with a commitment to design and print the first edition of the Garthdee community newsletter.

We are committed to actively supporting, and engaging with, our local Garthdee community to ensure we positively impact the residents who live there. As part of this, we are supporting the Garthdee Community Council in the production of its first ever community newsletter. We have pledged to sponsor and design this newsletter and print 3000 copies of the first edition which will be sent to every resident. The newsletter will share news and information with Garthdee residents and provide a platform for local organisations to promote their services.

Our contribution to the development of this newsletter supports the Garthdee Community Council to proactively and directly engage with the local area and its residents, enhancing its reach and helping it to make an even greater impact. It will benefit the whole community, connecting the Community Council, residents, and local organisations and services with each other, bolstering community spirit.

Commitment 3:

Streetsport will provide greater support to young people, beyond health and wellbeing, providing information on career paths and college and university courses to enable young people involved with the programme to make choices on their future that feel right for them.

Increasing health and wellbeing in young people across Aberdeen is the foundation of Streetsport. The initiative has been operating for 13 years, providing free weekly doorstep sports and creative activity sessions for young people throughout Aberdeen City and Shire, targeting those from deprived communities.

Streetsport has committed to seeing an improvement amongst those it has engaged with year on year, using the Shanarri Wheel to measure wellbeing. The Shanarri Wheel is promoted by the Scottish Government’s “Getting it Right for Every Child Policy” and states that young people should be safe, healthy, achieving, nurtured, active, respected, responsible and included. The team asks participants to simply say how they feel at home, at school and at Streetsport and measures their responses against the actors included in the Wheel. This allows them to assess their service and ensure that it continually evolves to meet the changing needs of its participants. The service has been nationally recognised in the past, having won the Queens Award for voluntary service and will continue to provide free access for all, supporting young people to thrive and improving health and wellbeing across Aberdeen.

In the next six months, Streetsport has committed to providing greater support to young people. This will be beyond health and wellbeing, taking a more active role in supporting young people to make the choices on their future that feel right to them. It will provide detailed information on career paths and college and university courses to ensure that the young people involved in the programme feel supported to progress their education or pursue their future career with confidence.