Audio Stories Reports

Skills for life


Reported by Mat

Published on Tuesday, March 21st, 2023

Volunteering and Employment
Audio Stories Reports

Skills for life


Written by Mat

Published on Tuesday, March 21st, 2023

Volunteering and Employment

This is Mat Amp reporting on 11th Feb 2023.. I’ve been really looking forward to doing this report this week, after seeing the project move to another kind of level.

We’ve been doing films, podcasts,  filming the Red Nose appeal with the BBC for Comic Relief, and it’s all happening. And it just gets me so excited. Honestly, I’ve worked with this sort of thing, telling stories and sharing experiences for five or six years. You know, going back to the Pavement Magazine and From the Ground Up and personally, I just find this type of thing – type of thing, God, how can I even call it a type of thing. It’s different from anything else I’ve come across.

The way we share our stories, the way we find a platform to express ourselves and just how that empowers us. Recently, you know, we’ve done the podcasts, like I said, and people have talked deeper about their backgrounds than I’ve heard them before. So I’ve had these incredibly deep conversations with reporters over the last few years. But I learned so much this week about, you know, where people come from, their back stories and the power of sharing, and that just cannot be underestimated.

For me, I was so mired in shame when I started working for Groundswell, that I was almost unable to make a decision without deferring to my boss. You know, I was all like ‘is it okay to do this? Is it okay to do that?’

The skills that this project gives you are skills for life. They’re not just about reporting. It’s about how to engage with people, you know, intellectuals, you know, professionals. They’re listening to us. They’re valuing what we say. And, you know, I think, I think, you know, that is…

I’m going to leave it at that because honestly, I’d just like to say thanks to everyone this week. It’s been a real pleasure working with you.. I have got loads from it. And, you know, this project kicks on. It’s fantastic.

 

Written by Mat


Mat came to Groundswell in 2018 after several years as a volunteer for the Pavement Magazine where he is now Deputy Editor. Part of his role at the Pavement was to help deliver ‘From the Ground Up’, a partnership between the Pavement and Groundswell that taught core journalism skills to people with lived experience of homelessness. As a Project Officer he continues to develop his one on one interview skills and runs focus groups all over the country. Mat’s involved in all parts of the research process, helping to produce: research frameworks; the foundation questions for semi-structured qualitative interviews and focus groups,; the content of quantitative surveys and data analysis. He also has experience of speaking at conferences, working on grant applications, podcast production and as a consultant for film production.

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Volunteering and Employment