Tottenham is going through great changes... in a time of transition and huge regeneration, The Platform at Bruce Grove will be a temporary grassroots alternative space playfully merging creativity, commerce and community. The Made Up Collective will visually transform a disused area into a public seated court yard, (similar to our Barking Sq Pallet Pavilion), and a variety of interweaving venues. The buildings will become a Pop Up Food Hub, Studio Spaces for Artists, Workshop Spaces for the Community, an Event/Gallery area to host music and art, and an exterior set aside for general seating and a weekend Made Up Market. The Platform will showcase hidden businesses, community groups and creative collectives already present in Haringey through an 8 week programme of events. By creating a place on the high street to collaborate, rather than compete , where space is traded for skills, we hope to test possibilities which will feed into a proposal for longer term use as an ideas incubator.

What we'll deliver:

• Engage and support food venders/businesses in trying Pop Up ventures
• Make a platform for local musicians and artists to showcase skills whilst helping businesses
• Make sure all fittings and furniture are either used for continuation of project or repurposed
• Open up an unused high street space to temporary multi purpose use for 8 weeks
• Provide temporary studio spaces for socially minded artists in return for offering workshops to the community
• Create a proposal for future use of Bruce Grove Platform space as a test bed for collaborative ventures
• Create a seated public courtyard with planting (repurposing surplus materials)
• Evaluate the outcomes of 8 weeks of cross pollinating creative, commerce and community ventures
• Offer a timetable of donation based creative workshops for the local community
• Promote the space as open for local groups to be involved in as the project develops
• We will harness experience from previous projects, (which can be viewed at madeupcollective.com)

Why it's a great idea:

In areas where high levels of regeneration are underway, local communities seldom have an opportunity to make an impact on their environment. The Made Up Collective want to create a temporary Platform to test out an alternative model where different groups work in close proximity, for mutual benefit, socially and commercially.
Haringey has great hidden communities, such as a large Latin American Market, and a Live/Work warehouse district full of creative professionals, from musicians, to artists/designers, set dressers, etc. These, and other assets are hidden gems that could add identity and vibrance to the high street, especially to an area in flux.
Places such as Dalston Eastern Curve Garden, Passing Clouds Venue, West Norwood Feast are inspiration.
By providing a supporting test bed for people to collaborate and try out something new without the weight of paying commercial rent, we’re creating opportunities for businesses to grow in line with the regeneration of their town.

Steps to get it done:

• A skeleton framework of 8 weeks of events will be set up, with room to adjust according to successes
• Posters and Leaflets will call out for collaborators, from local businesses, creative residents and community groups
• The Made Up Collective will factor in an evaluation and proposal for further use of space in concluding the project
• The Platform Creator Space Summer of Events will be promoted online and through numerous other media outlets
• The Platform will be structured by our in house team of creatives
• To start off, events will focus on weekday Studio Residencies/ workshops , with pop up food hubs and music at weekends
• We will work alongside Tottenham Regeneration Team and National Rail to ensure best use of time, funding and space
• Different people will oversee Food Hub, Gallery Space, Musicians, Workshops and a possible Market
• Particular groups will be approached personally to collaborate
• We will set up a core team to transform the courtyard, interior spaces, and create graphics for The Platform

The Made Up Collective believe in repurposing materials, upcycling, and generally using a 'make do and mend approach' which is even more fitting in setting up temporary structures. The Platform on Bruce Grove will grow through people making their mark, and in doing so we hope to create a concept for how the space can be used long term. We don't know the answers yet, and the Platform is set up very much as a test bed. Ultimately, at a time where regeneration is synonymous with gentrification, we'd like space to see if current communities can collaborate rather than compete on the high street and create an alternative haven in doing so. The challenge is to see whether we can take a disused space, limited time and resources, and under publicized communities and create a Platform for positive change through combining creativity, commerce and community.