104 SCHOOLS
CASE STUDY MATT + FIONA
From their beginnings in 2016, the design education entity that Matthew Springett and Fiona MacDonald devised, Matt + Fiona, has prioritised giving children and young people the
This image Brixton House is a co-working cafe, artist and theatre space
Right, top and bottom A cohort of children from four local schools set about visualising, designing, then making models for a temporary, demountable performance space
chance to actually build, not just design, their own structures, figuring there is no better education than hands-on making. Says MacDonald: ‘Our approach recognises that
children and young people have something to offer, and to learn, at every stage of the process of making buildings and shaping places.’ In April 2023 they realised their most
ambitious scheme to date, within the confines of Brixton House, a co-working cafe, artist and theatre space, which commissioned this Matt + Fiona project before the pandemic. Over a five-day build period in the Easter holidays, a cohort of 8–11-year-olds from four local schools set about visualising, designing, then making models for a temporary, demountable performance space. Dropping in to the workshop, there was a cheerful buzz in the room – all participants fully engaged and focused; you could see 8-year-old girls confidently wielding cordless drills as they screwed pieces into place, helped by their friends, all of them clearly galvanised by learning how to measure, cut timber and create complex frame structures, taking individual responsibility for specific areas, while also working as a team. The completed interlocking timber and plywood structure is colourful, fully accessible and interactive. It was used for the following few weeks for local school assemblies, storytelling sessions, monologues and art installations. Brixton House is now looking to find a local school, youth group or community organisation to give the structure a permanent home. Matt + Fiona’s social enterprise has now expanded into three strands: Build, Learn and Connect. The above workshop is a classic Build project. Learn is a programme for training teachers, youth workers and students to run similar hands-on making course, via workshops and continuing professional development (CPD) sessions. Connect is aimed at assisting local authorities, developers and placemakers in engaging with young and local people in the shaping of their neighbourhoods.
The Matt + Fiona social enterprise is supported thanks to long-term funders, Jestico + Whiles and Buro Happold. Individual projects have to find additional sources of funding, and the Brixton House initiative was supported by 145 backers through Spacehive Crowdfunding, a pledge from the Mayor of London’s Crowdfund London campaign, and a grant from the Co-operative Foundation.
FRENCH+TYE
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