Hi Suzanne. How would you describe your business and what it does?
We are a TV, film and media company creating content that offers a different perspective.
How did you find out about the Clwstwr funding?
We saw an advert about it, so we responded to find out more.
What inspired you to apply for funding?
I had been working with homelessness services using drama therapy to raise awareness about the causes of homelessness. We had also been producing content for the Adverse Childhood Experience Hub in Public Health Wales. The Welsh Government has a commitment to trauma-informed public services.The first area they focused on was within housing services. They began the transformation by training organisations and staff across all housing and homeless organisations.
Explain what you were aiming to do in your application
I could see that there was a need to train many organisations very quickly, something which would need a lot of resources to do. I knew, from researching effective training methods, that only 4% of information is retained via the usual chalk and talk training method. From my theatre work, I knew that getting people immersed in the process was a lot more effective.
Also, from exploring the sector of online games and apps at the Games For Change Festival in New York, I learned about examples of interactive training and live discussions in a range of experiences. It got me thinking about how, if there was a purpose-made informational digital game that all relevant staff could play as training, everyone who did it would be on the same page about what a trauma-informed service looks like. So, we applied to Clwstwr for funding to see where we could take these ideas.
How much funding did you receive?
Initially we received seed funding to assess whether the idea was viable. We later received an additional £50.000 to get it to a minimal viable product.
Describe the process you’ve been through since receiving the funding
After attending the Games For Change Festival, I talked to a range of housing services to assess demand and see if the project interested them - which it did.
Inspired by the potential, we brought Elin Festoy over from Denmark to do a masterclass at the University of South Wales. She won a BAFTA for her app My Child Lebensborn, which combined a historical event in Denmark with a gaming, whereby the game involved keeping an adopted child alive and well. At the masterclass, she talked about development and research and how she combined resources with a digital studio to produce the app, which sold worldwide. She talked about the issues she had and the investment required to realise it.
Following this, I partnered with an organisation called Platfform, whose head of operations understood the role the training could play. We determined that such a game would be best for new recruits to the sector, who could use it within the training portal and alongside existing reflective practices. To make it innovative and thorough, we wanted it to be possible to swap roles, so that the user could play as both as the support worker and as the person getting support.
To get a feel for how the game might play, we mapped out a scenario and three potential responses. With our Co-Investigator Rich Hurford, I worked with a former University of South Wales student to create a Miro board of responses and ironed out some of the issues. I tested out the game on cards with a group of staff from Platfform, which led to detailed conversations.
I tried a few digital studios, but they were either not interested or wanted to charge too much to produce the MVP. Greg, our Producer, connected us with E-Coach, who had an excellent reputation for online training. It was a good fit and we produced an online version of the game using filmed inserts.
We tested the game with five different organisations, reaching over 80 people. We got good responses, with 90% agreeing they would like a resource like this. I worked with Platfform to map out how the resource could fit into their portal, with extra bespoke tweaks and information panels, and we discussed raising funds to fully realise the game.
What would you say were the main outcomes of the R&D?
We created a minimal viable product with E-Coach, called Empathi, and had valuable user feedback and insights. Everyone liked the set up and the story, but felt more choices were required. Others wanted a more complex route through the game. The interest and positive feedback introduced the idea of having small, additional scenarios, too.
Where do you think you’ll go next, having carried out the R&D?
We think that online interactive training has huge untapped potential. The key is to keep it specific and simple. We are exploring other angles with Media Cymru seed finance, building on the experience gained through Clwstwr.