Skills for the Job: Intergenerational projects

Why are intergenerational projects important?

Intergenerational projects bring different generations together in purposeful, mutually beneficial activities.

When done well, they are a valuable way of promoting greater understanding and respect between younger and older people, and contribute to building more cohesive communities. The practice is inclusive and builds on the positive resources the young and old have to offer each other and those around them.

They also have other advantages, providing an excellent model for working across organisations and/or departments within local authorities.

As a result, a project can be very cost-effective, using resources in a more well-organised and economical way, while at the same time promoting work across sectors.

What different forms can a project take?

Projects can be diverse in their form, ranging from one-off events to long-term programmes of sustained activity. They can also be flexible in their nature. Settings can include schools, residential care settings and community facilities.

Themes can be tailored to address specific issues, such as fear of crime or perceptions between different generations, to try and promote positive images of younger and older people.

Other common areas of focus are social justice and fairness between the generations, loneliness and isolation, employment and skills transfer, and health and wellbeing.

How do I secure funding for a project?

Although there is minimal funding specifically for intergenerational projects per se, there are a number of opportunities available that can be accessed. A good starting point to securing funding is to consider the issue you are trying to address, the desired outcomes and who should be involved.

For example, if you were looking at reducing fear of crime in a specific area you could go to the local community safety partnership, or look at an arts project, such as graffiti art, and then apply to an arts stream of funding. It is important to make a strong case for funding. The more creative and innovative a project is in its approach, the more likely it is to get funding and succeed.

What potential issues are likely to occur?

As with all good community projects, intergenerational projects need good planning and management that takes into account the needs of the generations involved in them.

It is important to make sure you have staff on board who have an understanding of intergenerational work, as well as a designated person to lead the work.

For the project to succeed the recruitment process is important – there must be a good balance in representation from both generations. Not preparing the groups of younger and older people before they meet and work together, or working with one group more than the other can cause issues, as can failure to having a mutually beneficial element for both younger and older people.

Time must also be taken when setting up a project to pay heed to the experiences and beliefs of the participants. Any prejudice or mistrust towards younger or older people must be recognised and expectations of what the project aims to achieve for the different parties involved should be clear from the beginning.

How can you evaluate success?

Evaluating the success of a project can pay dividends if you want to run it again or set up a different one.
Methods used to evaluate individual projects, such as questionnaires, will depend on the groups you are working with. You need to use a variety of methods to ensure they can show the impact the project has had for the different generations and the wider community.

These can include a record of surprising results and outcomes, a comments book, diary or scrapbook, audio interviews with participants and case studies.