LJ Downs-Ahearn: My summer placement at the Dracaena Centre

Creative Events Management BA student LJ Downs-Ahearn has completed a summer placement at local community hub the Dracaena Centre.

Situated between the Penryn and Falmouth campuses, the Dracaena Centre comprises of a community centre surrounded by green space, as well as a recently unveiled skate park. The centre provides a wide range of youth support, family groups, fitness classes, free legal advice, education, a Community Cafe and much more to empower individuals and strengthen the local community.

LJ started a placement at the centre in April, and has gained experience in planning, designing and delivering events for young people. She has also gained essential skills in safeguarding, ethics and data protection as well as developing her networking and relationship-building skills. Part of the placement also involves working with Senior Lecturer Helen Worthington on her Research & Knowledge Exchange (RKE) project that focusses on co-creating sustainable events with young people at the centre.

Ahead of finishing the placement and heading back to university, we caught up with LJ to see how she’s found her summer.

How did the placement come about?

As a student going into my final year of my Events Management degree, I was looking to find some summer work in the events sector. The university offers a fantastic portal, Handshake, where you can see new jobs and internships and apply with the support of the Placement Team. Having supported the Cornwall Business School team previously with research projects, seeing this job post pop up on Handshake was very exciting. I had an interview with my lecturer, Helen, and Dracaena Centre Youth Safeguarding Lead, Kate Springfield, and was accepted for the position of Event Marketing and Coordinator!

What did you get up to on the placement?

On a day-to-day basis, I share an office in the Dracaena Centre with Kate and some other youth workers. It’s a friendly space where we discuss planning, communications, progress, and any queries. We have weekly meetings where we reflect on previous events, have wellbeing check-ins, and manage tasks that need to be completed ahead of the next event.

Helen’s research project is based on the Dracaena Centre, and I contribute to it by using interview tents at events, conducting youth panels, and participating in RKE interviews. We periodically check in to discuss the findings.

Throughout the process of creating these summer series events, it has become apparent how important each of our roles are to the delivery of successful events and research gathering. It's been amazing to work in a professional team-working environment and gain real-world experience.

What's been the most rewarding part of the placement?

I am very grateful for the opportunity to learn 'on the job,' as I have been able to apply the knowledge from my course in a working environment. I’ve gained insight into how youth workers do their jobs, which has been very rewarding.

I’ve also learned about the importance of wellbeing at our events, and have applied practices I’ve picked up from youth workers to the attendees. Seeing first-hand the positive effects these techniques have on young people has been life-changing for me and is very different from a typical events environment.

How does it tie into the work you've been doing on your course? How will you use the information for your dissertation?

It ties into my course in many ways; from simple but important things like checking health and safety laws, to applying critical thinking regarding the methods support workers use compared to those in the events industry.

It also ties into social sustainability, which is crucial for our community, particularly for young people in today’s climate. Ensuring that the events are economically viable for young people to attend and that they are environmentally friendly is so important.

The research project has given me the chance to share knowledge from my degree with the Dracaena Centre while learning real-world practices from their amazing staff. I am looking forward to my module on creating a business plan next year, using some of what I’ve learned from the voluntary sector. The project has deepened my love for research, and my dissertation may include some of the ethical, legal, and procedural aspects I have picked up throughout the placement.

Talk us through the designs of the posters – what was the process for creating them with the students?

Throughout the process of creating the posters, I wanted to ensure they reflected energy and vibrancy, so I spoke to a few young people about their opinions of the posters and the marketing of the events more broadly, incorporating their feedback where I could. They have also been consulted about the kinds of events they’d like to see, which has informed the ‘Summer Series’ project.