Today sees Springers on site at Wherstead Park, getting involved in the preparations for the East of England Co-Op’s AGM and Family event.

It promises to be a fantastic day, with a local suppliers market and cooking demonstration, and entertainment from the Co-Op Juniors, Concorde Singers and the Clacton on Sea Co-Op band.

Blog Post written by Erika Clegg

Spring loves supporting the Southwold Concert Series, not least because we get to meet all the lovely people coming to our office to buy their tickets. In the last few weeks in particular we’ve been inundated with Southwold Concert Series fans, all asking after the same show: William Walton’s genre-defying musical bricolage, Façade.

The first thing you need to know is that Façade is a very unusual show. When it was first performed back in 1923, it caused an uproar among the concert-going population, who did not know what to make of its groundbreaking combination of jazz and poetry. The show proved to be a real ‘succès de scandale’ for Walton; and for his mentor, Edith Sitwell, whose mellifluous poetry is spoken aloud throughout Façade.

“It’s a sort of 1920s hip-hop,” explains Spring’s old friend Nathan Williamson, artistic director of the Southwold Concert Series. “It’s one of the most extraordinary and original pieces ever composed. If you took the most wacky idea you had for combining music and words and multiplied it by ten, you’d still get nowhere near Façade.”

Claire Bloom stars alongside Humphrey Burton in William Walton's Façade

Façade will be performed by the Southwold Concert Series Ensemble and a stellar cast, fronted by Claire Bloom. In her six-decade career Bloom has worked alongside both Charlie Chaplin and Laurence Olivier, and earned herself the accolade of acting royalty. Accompanying her is the writer and broadcaster Humphrey Burton, who has won numerous BAFTAs for his classical music programmes. Both Bloom and Burton knew Walton well, and they open the show by reminiscing about their friendship with the famous composer.

Spring is delighted to be the patron of a series that brings so much originality and talent to Southwold, and we simply can’t wait for show night.

The first performance of Façade will take place on the 29^th June at 7.30pm in St Edmunds Church (the second half will be in St Edmunds Hall) in Southwold. A second performance will take place on the 30^th June in Aldeburgh’s Jubilee Hall. You can book your tickets by calling Spring on 01502 726161, or emailing halcyon.meldrum@springagency.co.uk.

Blog Post written by Spring

First announced by planning minister Nick Boles in January, it has been confirmed this week by the Department for Communities and Local Government that parish councils will receive up to 25% of the income local authorities are given if they host new development in their area.

Referred to as the ‘Community Infrastructure Levy’ (CIL), localised communities would receive a cut in order to fund initiatives such as enhancing play areas or improving village hall energy efficiency, rather than the entire levy going directly to the parent authority as before.

New homes

This initially raised some concern that local authorities would have to reduce spending on supporting infrastructure such as roads and utilities. However, others argue that surely it’s those living immediately adjacent to a new development that should benefit. Indeed, when we meet people in public consultation scenarios, it’s clear that the immediate neighbours feel they will be most affected, certainly more so than those controlling the purse strings at the district or county council.

For the community engagement team here at Spring, this poses some interesting questions.

Our role is to facilitate open and inclusive community consultation in plans for new developments such as housing and energy schemes. We aim to inform, listen and respond; endeavouring to allay concerns locals may have of what is ultimately ‘the unknown’ by being transparent throughout the process.

Financial incentives for communities who play host to, for example, new homes or a wind turbine, could be seen as an admittance that the development will have a negative impact and locals should be compensated. Yet Boles argues that: “If communities benefit directly from the building of well-designed, quality homes, we can help overcome people’s reluctance to development. Incentives are key to getting the homes built that we need today and for future generations.”

At a time when planning committees must adopt a presumption in favour sustainable development, my concern is the risk that financial incentives could result in communities who are ‘facilities-poor’ being more accepting of new development than others. The promise of funds to improve their community may cloud their view of whether a planning proposal truly fits in with the present and future needs of the area.

It will be vital that when positive planning decisions are made, we continue to engage communities in the allocation of CIL funds. Spring can help facilitate consultation to get to grips with the real priorities of communities.

It is our job to effectively communicate all the various issues proposals inevitably raise, including the positives and negatives about the roles CIL can play. If you need help structuring your messages and engaging the right people in your plans, please get in touch.

Blog Post written by Jessica Topham

At Spring, we really like our work.

And we really like our town.

And we thought, why don’t we do something that means we get more of both of them? So very soon, every Springer will be carrying their own Give Ten, Get Ten pledge card.

The concept of Give Ten, Get Ten is that Springers have each set themselves a ‘10% more’ growth target. This is a very specific action point for personal and professional growth, detailing an activity and its objective. Spring has committed to support these actions and goals with training, materials and reviews, and every Springer commits to support their colleagues in their own 10% growth endeavour. We anticipate exciting results from these comparatively small actions.

But how does this relate to Southwold?

Well, we decided that everyone deserved material rewards, as well as the warm glow of achievement, and we hit upon a way to do this whilst encouraging the Springers to shop local. Up and down the High Street, we have negotiated deals and discounts with restaurants and cafés, boutiques and florists, hotels and toyshops. (If you run a Southwold business and would like to be a featured trader, please contact us to chat).

So: Springers all get really good at something they want to know more about. Everyone helps everyone else. Spring’s clients benefit from an exciting new range of skills. All the Springers get to treat themselves and their loved ones. And the Southwold economy benefits too.

We reckon that’s worth 10% of anyone’s efforts!

Blog Post written by Erika Clegg

Last week, Maria Miller talked to arts executives from across the UK about the necessity for their organisations to present economic growth as well as cultural value. In these straitened times, everything anyone’s money goes into has to demonstrate the ability to create a decent return on investment.

Naturally, there’s been much debate about this ever since, with Dame Liz Fogan, for example, saying that “accountants making artistic decisions …is as silly as having artists making accounting ones.”

I’m torn on this. Clearly the arts cannot be a bottomless well for taxpayers’ money: but of course it’s often hard to demonstrate direct financial benefit. That’s why our own regional Cultural board, on which I sit, is working with the tourism and heritage sector to create a combined and demonstrable impact on the region’s growth across a number of streams including employment, reputation and income.

But Spring has certainly believed since the start that, if the arts are to flourish in the way available talent allows, it’s for businesses to put their hands in their pockets, not just the taxpayer. And that’s why five years ago we joined forces with composer and concert pianist Nathan Williamson to launch the Southwold Concert Series.

Nathan describes the Concert Series as “…the result of all sides of a community – businesses, charities, artists, volunteers – working together.

“By bringing leading artists to Southwold we’ve raised the profile of the town and the businesses that support us. Spring are the major Patrons and have been incredibly generous, and other businesses have followed their example in sponsoring concerts.”

The last few years have been significantly tougher for every kind of business and organisation than normal. Spring, in common with all of our peers, clients and suppliers, has had to work smarter, make some hard decisions and tighten our belts. But the one thing that has continued on an absolutely even level throughout the whole time has been our commitment to the Concert Series.

My view is that, when times are hard, the ability for a community to come together, to access high quality culture in its own environs, to have something that elevates everyone out of the daily grind to a more intellectually rewarding place, is irreplaceable. I see it very much as our duty to support that for as long as it is required and possible.

So we entered the toughest years of the recession with an ebullient redesign for Series programmes, website and publicity, and the message ‘discover musical contentment in Southwold’.

Our commitment to providing administrative support continued with our provision of the Series box office.

And when concerts don’t quite break even, we have injected funds, too.

The result is that audiences have consistently grown. The Concert Series has added to the value of Southwold as a year round tourist destination for visitors from near and far. Local residents and workers can tap into world quality music in their own little town.

And why do we make this commitment – a commitment which adds up to at least five days of every month donated work, not to mention thousands of pounds in financial contribution? (In fact, we estimate that in time and money, the Series cost Spring around £36,000 last year alone.)

Of course, Spring’s a creative business, albeit one focused on commercial objectives. To be so clearly connected with an arts project of this quality and profile underpins the creativity that is at the heart of the agency.

But it’s more than that: it’s that thing called ‘civic duty’ in which I am a real believer.

Not a day goes by when we don’t think how very lucky we are to run a business like Spring – one of the top 10 most respected agencies in the UK – from the beautiful town of Southwold. To be able to work with clients from across the UK including the Conservative Party and Thwaites Brewery, who see something of themselves in our own pioneering approach – like where we call home.

And in underwriting the Concert Series, we have been able to give something back to our hometown. That commitment is our big ‘thank you’ to Southwold for providing such a great location for our head office, for sharing our brand values, for giving our staff wonderful lunch hours and weekends.

You can’t root every business decision in profitability. Some decisions have to come from a genuine desire to be honourable. One of the ways that Spring fulfils that is through our patronage of the Southwold Concert Series  – just one route by which we support our community and the arts.

Blog Post written by Erika Clegg