00:00Inside Jellyman's Mill, creativity and enterprise go hand-in-hand.
00:05Businesses like dog groomers and therapists work alongside artists and craftspeople.
00:11Volunteers have turned an abandoned outbuilding into a thriving wellbeing centre, already in full-time use.
00:18The building hosts courses in drama, photography and ceramics, giving people a chance to develop new skills.
00:24School holidays bring affordable activities for kids, from junior first aid to arts and crafts.
00:30There's also space for private events, from photo shoots to community meetings.
00:35Every room is in constant use, offering something for everyone.
00:39But none of this is possible without the money raised through bookings and donations.
00:44So how does Jellyman manage to keep going?
00:48So most of our income comes from renting space out.
00:52So we've got tenants that have monthly agreements to work from here, small businesses, creatives, charities.
00:58We've got function rooms that we let out for one-off events, parties, coffee mornings.
01:03We've got art classes and stuff like that. So that's the bulk of our income.
01:06We obviously get donations from people who come down.
01:09Some people have signed up for monthly subscriptions.
01:12But ultimately, it's just about keeps the doors open.
01:16This year, we're going to push for external funding to try and get some bigger projects off the ground, get some work done on the building.
01:21But so far, the first 12 months, it's all been organic.
01:24And it's all been goodwill and volunteers, which I'm really, really proud of.
01:28And everyone's been amazing.
01:30But obviously, to work on the building and get the restoration stuff done, you're talking big money.
01:35So this year is about raising funds, getting those external funding bids in and trying to build on what we've done in the first 12 months.
01:43Events are at the heart of Jellyman's success.
01:45Twice a year, Jellyfest brings the community together with live music, a craft market and heritage tours.
01:51Jellyween, their Halloween event, has become a huge hit, with the entire building transformed by volunteers.
01:58These projects will create more opportunities for people to meet, learn and support each other.
02:03But Jellyman isn't just about events. It's about creating opportunities and making a difference.
02:09So our charity's remit is quite broad.
02:12But one of the main things that we look at is intergenerational relationships.
02:17So obviously, Kidderminster has a strong history of carpet manufacturing, which is no longer the case.
02:23But a lot of the older generation here were heavily involved in that in various factories, etc.
02:28And a lot of the knowledge and the anecdotal stories that they talk about is going to be lost.
02:34We want all the people who've got some sort of connection to this site, that used to work for Bondworth Carpets or their grandparents did,
02:40to come down and have a series of coffee mornings.
02:43And young people from local schools and colleges will interview them.
02:46And what we will get out of that will then go to creating some artwork around the building,
02:50where we capture the sort of anecdotal history of the area, which isn't in textbooks, it's not in history books.
02:56These are people's memories and people's lived experiences.
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