Paradise Circus

Having sprouted a local surgery in Acocks Green (and the idea spreading even further to Brighton), the original Birmingham Social Media Surgery returns to Fazeley Studios for another session of free help and advice for Birmingham based voluntary and community organisations wanting practical help with getting their heads around social media.

When & Where

Next Surgery: Wednesday, July 15th, 2009 drop in anytime between 5.30pm to 7.00pm at Fazeley Studios, 191 Fazeley Street, Digbeth, Birmingham, B5 6DR, link to map. (not BVSC) It’s opposite the Bond and a go kart track. Push the large pale blue door with the silver door knob.

To sign up, just head over to the BeVocal website and fill in the form so that we know who to expect. There is also some information about other really local surgeries taking place in Birmingham over the next few weeks

What are they all about?

Volunteers from the Birmingham bloggers group are offering to show voluntary and community groups in the city how you can make best use of social media. It doesn’t matter if you are the head of communications at a major charity or an active citizen in your neighbourhood, if you’re at all curious come along.

More about what goes on at a surgery and how it can help you and your group here.

Nine months on from the very first Birmingham Social Media Surgery and Fazeley Studios hosts another session of free help and advice for Birmingham based voluntary and community groups wanting to get to grips with social media.

When & Where

Next Surgery: Wednesday, June 17th, 2009 drop in anytime between 5.30pm to 7.00pm at Fazeley Studios, 191 Fazeley Street, Digbeth, Birmingham, B5 6DR, link to map. (not BVSC) It’s opposite the Bond and a go kart track. Push the large pale blue door with the silver door knob.

To sign up please go here.

What are they all about?

Volunteers from the Birmingham bloggers group are offering to show voluntary and community groups in the city how you can make best use of social media. It doesn’t matter if you are the head of communications at a major charity or an active citizen in your neighbourhood, if you’re at all curious come along.

More about what has gone on over the past nine months and what you can expect at a surgery here.

By the way the surgeries have been nominated (by me I hasten to add!)  for the Digital Press Awards People’s Choice along with brilliant local activity like Rhubarb Radio and the Big City Talk site.

In the mean time, if you want to come along or know someone that could use the free help get them to sign up here so we have an idea of numbers.

No agenda, no fixed time (turn up and leave when you like on “Thursday Evening”, people tend to start arriving from about 6 – those that get there straight after work — but people arrive and leave all night until closing.

We’re not that fussed if you “blog”, or “twitter” or anything, it’s just nice to hang out with people that you don’t have to explain “the Internet’ to once in a while.

Please come along and meet people “off of the web”, bring some money for your drinks — there’s no agenda, no sponsors and nothing except friendly chat.

Time: from 6pm to chucking out time

Date: Thursday 11th June (see here for how we work out when bloggers’ meet-ups are)

The Flapper on Pub Explorer

Upcoming.org Event

View Larger Map

We’ve been hanging on confirming this month’s venue, so as to be near the Social Media Surgery (taking place in Fazeley Studios from 5:30 to 7) the meet-up will be a  visit to the lovely Spotted Dog. 2007 Brummie of The Year, landlord John Tighe, will make you very welcome.

It’s on the corner of Alcester St and Warwick St, and has a dalmatian stained glass window (beware if googling, there is another Spotted Dog in Digbeth:

Spotted Dog window by Albert S. Bite on Flickr

Here’s the upcoming event.

Here’s the facebook event.

Here’s what it looks like.

Here’s beerintheevening for the ‘dog.

Here’s a googly map

Nothing more than a repost from Interactive Cultures, but I’m sure they won’t mind:

This coming Tuesday will see an informal get together in Birmingham aimed at producing a response to the interim Digital Britain report. The Birmingham event is one of a number of events being held around the country under the umbrella of the Digital Britain Unconference. It will be held at BCU’s Margaret Street Building on Tuesday 12th May 2009 from 10am – 1:30pm.

The event will not keep to a strict unconference format (we prefer to see an unconference as being informal rather than unstructured). A call has been put out for people to chair a number of different strands of the day. Each strand will aim to explore one of the five key points of the report.

Digital Britain Unconference West Midlands has been convened by Interactive Cultures and Aquila TV. We would like to thank Margaret Street for the use of the room, and also our colleagues Clare Peters and Elizabeth Short who have put this event together in less than a week.

• To book a place at the table, please go to the EventBright sign up page.
• For general information on Digital Britain, refer to the main Digital Britain Unconference site.
• For spcific information on the Birmingham event refer to the Digital Britain Unconference West Midlands website.

Some things that may or may not intersect with the venn diagram of interests of Paradise Circus visitors:

BARG – Wide Open Space — This Saturday  —a day of gaming around Curzon Street Station

Digital Britain Unconference — Tuesday 12th May (daytime) —a chance for people to debate and produce a response to the Digital Britian Interim Report.

Eccentric City issue 3 launch & Eccentric Auction — Tuesday 12th May (evening)  at The Anchor — the World’s First Eccentric Newspaper launches issue three with drinks and larks.

Brum Bloggers Meet — Wednesday 13th May (evening) — still awaiting venue confirmation but it’ll be next Wednesday in a pub in town.

And in the longer term:

FlashCamp – Tuesday 16th June (afternoon- evening) at Central Library Theatre — for web people that dig that Flash stuff.

Moseley BarCamp — Sunday 28th June (day) at The Cross Moseley — a day of interwebs talks and fun, registration open now.

Next Surgery: Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009 drop in anytime between 5.30pm to 7.00pm at Fazeley Studios, 191 Fazeley Street, Digbeth, Birmingham, B5 6DR,  link to map. (not BVSC) It’s opposite the bond and a go kart track. Push the large pale blue door with the silver door knob.

>>> Sign up now so we know who to expect >>>

Lots to learn, little to lose. We promise you friendly advice.

These surgeries are organised by volunteer members of the informal Birmingham Bloggers group.  Non of them are getting paid to provide the help.

What happens at these surgeries?

Volunteers from the Birmingham bloggers group are offering to show voluntary and community groups in the city how you can make best use of social media. It doesn’t matter if you are the head of communications at a major charity or an active citizen in your neighbourhood, if you’re at all curious come along.

No boring speeches, no jargon.

Tools like blogs, podcasts, video and social networks can give a real boost to campaigning organisations, often for no or little cost. So these experts are offering you approachable one to one help and support because they believe it can help. You may just want to see what is possible and go away and think about it. You might be itching to set up a blog and start using it.

Perhaps you think video might help you tell your story but don’t know where to start? All is possible. There’ll be no lectures, just people with knowledge, ideas and a passion to help you make best use of the internet for your organisation.

Who are they for?

Charities based in Birmingham plus community and neighbourhood groups in the city.

Come to the pub on Tuesday 14th April, come anytime from 6pm and leave whenever you want to, or when the landlord kindly asks you to.

Bring good humour, Ben has promised cake.

(see here for how we work out when bloggers’ meet-ups are)

Upcoming event (Upcoming Group)

Map

Facebook (Facebook Group)

Beer in the Evening page for the Old Contemptibles

Come to the pub on Tuesday 14th April, come anytime from 6pm and leave whenever you want to, or when the landlord kindly asks you to.

Bring good humour, Ben has promised cake.

EDIT – venue change – see reasons below – new details here.

The next social media surgery for voluntary groups is this Wednesday March 25th 2009, as a drop in from 5.30 to 7pm.  We have a plush new venue, which is a few minutes walk from BVSC. For all the details and how to sign up visit the social media surgery page.