NEWSLETTER
Spring 2012
New Look Camphill Families and Friends have adopted a new look with a heading that has been taken from a tapestry woven by Eta Ingham Lawrie that hangs in Steiner House, London.
New Website CFF is developing a dedicated website www.camphillfamiliesandfriends.com . It will have a log in facility for members with access to reports, newsletters, details of current work and future meetings.
CFF Branching out CFF is expanding into Scotland. Many families cross the border with residents living in Scottish Camphill Communities and families living in England or Wales. A Scottish branch is now being formed which has the broad support of Camphill Scotland and a grant from the Camphill Foundation to cover setǦup costs. A meeting to launch the branch will be held later in the year.
Donations We have received many generous donations from members and other benefactors during the past year, including several in memory of someone recently deceased. CFF is extremely grateful for all these gifts which are being used to fund various projects, including the development of our website.
CFF ’s campaign to support Camphill in a time of change Members have already received a full report of our Delrow meeting of 3rdMarch and our suggestions supporting the retention of essential Camphill principles, practices and activities in a time of change. We will take this forward at our next meeting on 23rd June, for which please see further details below.
An important date for your diary: Annual General Meeting and open meeting for members The meeting this year will take place in London at the Directory of Social Change Charity Centre close to Euston station on Saturday 23 June. The full address is 24 Stephenson Way, London NW1 2DP www.dsc.org.uk . The meeting will be asked to ratify the decision of the Board to expand our charitable aims to include families and friends of all UK Communities. A discussion of the points raised at the Delrow Meeting in March, led by a group of speakers (to be announced), will follow with the focus being on How to develop practical ways of retaining Camphill ’s principles, practices and activities amid current changes.
Delrow Meeting “How to retain as much as possible of Camphill amid today ’s challenges ” This meeting held on Saturday 3 March was very well attended by over 100 family members and friends. At our successful meeting in Thornbury in November 2011 we had heard from Huw John, the Camphill Village Trust ’s chief executive officer, about the significant challenges facing Camphill. The trustees decided to continue the theme at our meeting in Delrow, by inviting five guests to respond to our queries and concerns about how their persponal roles are affected by Government regulation and the changes within Camphill. The challenge for Camphill is significant, as it is for many similar communities supporting vulnerable adults. External accountability and tightening of funding are requiring changes to organisational thinking and structures. Whilst it is recognised that there is a need to ensure that communities provide a secure and safe environment, it is also of critical importance that these changes are managed within the spirit of the philosophy of Camphill. In some communities change is being managed well and there is a happy alliance between ensuring robust processes and a continuing ethos of anthroposophical principles. Nonetheless many present voiced strong concern about the negative impact of structural and policy change in some communities. Poor communication and a seeming lack of desire to include and involve families and friends in managing change creates anxiety and tension. The creation and development of Family Partnership groups attached to each community is seen to be a key recommendation and CFF believes that it has a role to play in helping to develop guidance here.
Data Protection form To facilitate the formation of Family Partnerships a Data Protection form was sent out to members with our Annual Membership Renewal forms. The form asked permission to share contact details between all CFF members and/or just between members attached to individual Communities. If you are not sure whether you have completed one or would like further copies, please contact Annie Singleton, info@camphillfamiliesandfriends.com .
Benefits Update – Work Capability Assessments(WCA) According to “The Times ” on Monday 2nd April the latest WCA “early estimates suggest 37% are fit for work, with a further 34% well enough to prepare for a return to work. ” This means 29% will be in the support group who will not be expected to work. Paul Farmer, Chief Executive of Mind, has said that “changes made to WCA have not gone far enough. There remains a bleak picture those with mental health problems going through WCA. ” He thinks that, according to The Times “as many as a quarter of those deemed fit to work were not. ” Medical evidence was not being looked at and the whole process was being rushed. The National Autistic Society have given me details of another consultation on Personal Independence Payment which is easier to respond to. The website is http//www.dwp.gov.uk/consultations/2012/pipǦdetailedǦdesignshtml
It is worth keeping an eye on the websites of Mencap, Mind and the National Autistic Society. We have details of further websites which we will put on our website when it is up and running.
Camphill Pages Camphill Pages is the Newsletter of the Association of Camphill Communities, therefore, it is the paper for and from all Camphill communities in the UK and Ireland. It is produced twice a year and has recently been given a new look. The next edition is out soon and if you are not already a subscriber go to www.camphillpages.net .
New Lanark Conference Tues 22 – Thurs 24 May 2012 5th Conference on Community Building & Social Renewal This is an inclusive international conference attracting a broad range of participants including people with learning disabilities, families and carers plus representatives from a variety of organisations including global Camphill communities. The vision underpinning all New Lanark conferences is 'Community Building and Social Renewal'. Anyone with a connection to this vision through life or work is welcome to participate. This year our conference title "The Community Maze: Signposts to the Heart" emerged from experiences of striving towards clarity and truth in life and work, yet being constantly distracted by the complexities of social, professional and political direction. There is a simplicity we yearn for: to be the best we can be, to act with honesty and courage, to listen with tenderness, and to respond with love. How can we find the way to these qualities of the heart and allow their warmth to permeate our communities, whatever form or shape these communities may take? To register go to http://www.newlanarkconference.co.uk/register
What makes Camphill, Camphill? Two excellent resources are recommended to answer this question. The Challenge of Rudolf Steiner A documentary film by Jonathan Stedall Reviewed by Vivian Griffiths The DVD, which includes DISCs 1 and 2 costs £15 plus £2.50 postage and packing from http://rudolfsteinerfilm.squarespace.com Jonathan Stedall's film makes an awkward statement about Rudolf Steiner. Society can't do with him and can't do without him! With the perceived dilution and indeed attack on much of Camphill's ethos, this film couldn't have come at a better time. As we travel from Hyderabad to a Sussex farm; from a railway station in Austria, Rudolf Steiner's childhood home, to his college and university life settings in Vienna and Berlin, you begin to see just how important his contribution to society is from his practical life experience as a student and researcher at the
cutting edge of Europe's thinking at the beginning of the twentieth century to a person with a particular awareness and understanding of life's meanings. The story of Otto the severely disabled child that Steiner helped to cure is movingly described. As Family/ Families and Friends we particularly enjoyed scenes from The Grange Community and the interplay between the people in the workshops, garden and doing eurythmy. Something of the magic of community which brought us to Camphill in the first place shines through. You find yourself wishing that this film finds its way to the new managementÇŚorientated people as required viewing. We need this film to express something of our relation to the philosophy that underpins Camphill and to show that we can't do without Steiner's contribution. Discovering Camphill Edited by Robin Jackson ISBN: 9780863158117 Publisher: Floris Publishers This important book brings together research from scholars and experts in a variety of disciplines to explore a broad range of issues which affect Camphill life. The essays examine social, political and educational topics as diverse as spiritual needs, residential childcare, disabled identity, working with autistic children and the development of Camphill communities around the world. The lack of easily accessible literature about Camphill communities has contributed to a common and unjustified perception of Camphill as 'closed' communities which have little interest in communicating with the 'the outside world'. Some influential officials and practitioners who determine education and socialÇŚwork policy and practice still know little or nothing about Camphill, which increases the risk of misunderstanding and threatens the future of Camphill communities. This book seeks not only to bridge that gap, but to demonstrate to a wider audience their unique and inspiring qualities.
Contact Details Secretary
Evan Davies
Membership Secretary
Annie Singleton
Contact for Scottish Branch Elaine Dowell
02920 707751 evanandjennifer@hotmail.com 020 7585 0140 info@camphillfamiliesandfriends.com 01751 432369 elainedowell6@gmail.com
The Association of Parents, Relatives and Friends of Camphill also known as Camphill Families and Friends Registered Charity No 1078930