Interest In a community: Hanley, Stoke on Trent

Featured Image: Beautiful graphic of the day to day life of Portland Inn by Artist Rebecca Davies

Below: Portland Inn working week: creating the potential for a micro economy with ceramics, furniture and architecture workshops….hooray!

The Portland Inn Project, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire is creating an artist and community environment where people and economic opportunity are part of a hundred year plan for regeneration and renewal. It’s an everyone in approach to the potential of their community.

You can watch a view of the Portland Inn Project on Andi Oliver’s Fabulous Feasts (Stoke).

The project is based in Hanley run by Staffordshire University’s Associate Professor Anna Francis a ceramicist and community arts practitioner and Rebecca Davies, community and international artist.

Back in 2013 Anna and her family won a house in the £1 house scheme lottery, Stoke council’s scheme to sell dilapidated housing stock for £1.

Stoke Council has followed up with the Reviving Communities Scheme: a plan for local first time buyers to buy new homes at a 30% discount and an economic planfor local growth and development:

Portland Inn is a Community Interest company using the skills, imagination, networks and enthusiasm with people locally to build confidence in the neighbourhood to make positive decisions and lasting change for the community.

A Community decision making panel made up of local people and services meet every couple of months to identify issues and concerns in the area, and plan together to raise resources and make the changes needed to improve the area for everyone living and working there.