Episodes

  • 034: Rethinking Funding: Why Put Your Trust in Place-Based Groups

    034: Rethinking Funding: Why Put Your Trust in Place-Based Groups
    May 19 2026
    Join The Social Change Nest's Rufaro Mudavanho together with Elijah Williams from Brent Giving and Andy Crosbie and Rich Gibbons from Gateshead Community Bridgebuilders, on the latest episode of The Social Change Pod as they explore the power of place-based community work, highlighting how organisations like Gateshead Community Bridge Builders and Brent Giving empower local voices through participatory decision-making and funding.

    Together, they unpack what community-led decision-making looks like in practice, why funding needs to support capacity and relationships as well as projects, and how the ripple effects of place-based work can reach far beyond what is easy to measure.

    This episode is packed with honest reflections, practical insight, and big questions for funders, community groups, and anyone interested in how change really happens on the ground.

    Want to learn more about Gateshead Community Bridge Builders and Brent Giving, or explore how The Social Change Nest can support place-based work? Get in touch to find out how we can help.

    If you'd like to join the discussion on place-based work and what's going on in our communities, join us at our Wild Times un-conference on the 15th of September. You can find more information by visiting www.wildtimesuk.org.

    Host: Rufaro Mudavanhu, The Social Change Nest
    Guests: Elijah Williams, Brent Giving, Andy Crosbie, Gateshead Community Bridgebuilders, Rich Gibbons, Gateshead Community Bridgebuilders

    Theme music by Loyalty Freak Music
    Show More Show Less
    48 mins
  • 033: Paying People Fairly: Building Trust and Equity

    033: Paying People Fairly: Building Trust and Equity
    Nov 13 2025
    Join The Social Change Nest's CEO, Esther Foreman and Rachel Smith, Creative Director of Make/Shift, on the latest episode of The Social Change Pod as they unpack what it really looks like to pay people fairly for their time, energy, and expertise, exploring how Payment for Involvement works in practice when you’re navigating the “messy middle” between big institutions and grassroots communities. They also dive into how tools like Open Collective can bridge that gap by making funding more transparent.

    This episode is packed with practical insights, honest reflections, and advice. So if you’re looking to make your approach to community involvement fairer and more accessible, you won’t want to miss it.

    Want help designing a fair and equitable payment for involvement policy for your organisation? Are you interested in learning more about Open Collective? Get in touch to find out how we can help.

    Hosts: Esther Foreman, The Social Change Nest
    Guests: Rachel Smith from Make/Shift

    Theme music by Loyalty Freak Music
    Show More Show Less
    34 mins
  • 032: Fair Pay for Lived Experience: Lessons from Bristol City Council

    032: Fair Pay for Lived Experience: Lessons from Bristol City Council
    Oct 8 2024
    Today we are talking about the mammoth topic of Payment for Involvement, part of our Payment for Involvement podcast series that we’ve been running over the past couple of months since the launch of the payment for Involvement playbook.

    In the previous episode, we explored why it’s so important for organisations to recognise and value lived experience and to pay people for their involvement.

    In this episode we’re joined by three, absolutely brilliant guests from Bristol City Council.

    They share their journey of creating and implementing a payment for involvement policy in a local authority and discuss the practicalities of how you actually pay people as well.This episode is really jam packed with insightful learnings from their first hand experience. So whether you’re from a local authority, a nonprofit, or really just any organisation that’s looking to engage more equitably and fairly with the communities that you’re serving, you won’t want to miss it.


    Want help designing a fair and equitable payment for involvement policy for your organisation? Get in touch to find out how we can help.




    Hosts: Saoirse Barry, The Social Change Nest
    Guests: Robyn Taylor, Megan Belcher and Ellie Stevens from Bristol City Council

    Theme music by Loyalty Freak Music
    Show More Show Less
    24 mins
  • 031: Payment for Involvement - When Compensation Affects Benefits

    031: Payment for Involvement - When Compensation Affects Benefits
    Apr 30 2024
    What happens when you compensate people for their involvement, but doing so negatively impacts their eligibility for government benefits?

    Together, we'll unpack why paying people for their lived experience is the right thing to do, but also explore the challenges of doing this effectively without disrupting people's benefits.

    This is something we've been grappling with as an organisation for the last six months, and over the course of this three part mini-series we'll be sharing everything we've learned along the way.

    p.s. Keep a look out for the launch of our free 'Payment for Involvement Playbook'. Designed to help you create a fair payment for involvement policy for your organisation.

    Hosts: Julia Fausing and Rachel Krengel, The Social Change Agency

    Theme music by Loyalty Freak Music
    Show More Show Less
    19 mins
  • 030: Join our board as a Non-Executive Director

    030: Join our board as a Non-Executive Director
    Apr 5 2023
    Are you a renegade anarchist who loves rules, compliance and risk management? We're looking for a new Non-Executive Director to join The Social Change Nest board.

    In this episode Pete Treganna (Non-Executive Director) and Sapna Patel (Operations Director) discuss what the role involves and why we'd love for you to apply!

    Interested in being on the board of The Social Change Nest?

    Find out more and apply at https://thesocialchangenestorg/vacancies/


    Host: Pete Treganna and Sapna Patel, The Social Change Agency/Nest

    Theme music by Loyalty Freak Music
    Show More Show Less
    13 mins
  • 029: We're in this together - Reflecting on movement trends in 2023

    029: We're in this together - Reflecting on movement trends in 2023
    Feb 21 2023
    Tactics employed by social movements are evolving, strikes are enjoying unprecedented levels of public support, and communities are increasingly taking matters into their own hands.

    Anya Stern and Aggie Taylor discuss some of the movement trends they've been observing in 2023.

    What trends have you been noticing? Share your thoughts by tagging us on Twitter @SocialChangeAg


    Host: Anya Stern and Aggie Taylor, The Social Change Agency

    Theme music by Loyalty Freak Music
    Show More Show Less
    20 mins
  • 028: What makes an effective protest movement with James Ozden from Social Change Lab

    028: What makes an effective protest movement with James Ozden from Social Change Lab
    Oct 31 2022
    Esther Foreman and Rachel Krengel from The Social Change Agency meet up with James Ozden, Director at Social Change Lab to explore what it takes to build an effective protest movement.

    Topics covered include:
    - why some protest movements flourish (and some don't)
    - whether disruptive tactics work
    - the importance of shared identity and collaboration
    - the need for more funding to be directed to towards social movements
    - how to avoid volunteer burn out
    - and much, much more!

    You can find out more about Social Change Lab at socialchangelab.org and find James Ozden on Twitter at @JamesOzden.

    Visit us at thesocialchangeagency.org
    Follow us on Twitter at @SocialChangeAg

    Host: Esther Foreman and Rachel Krengel, The Social Change Agency
    Guests: James Ozden, Social Change Labe

    Theme music by Loyalty Freak Music
    Show More Show Less
    25 mins
  • 027: Innovating funding with Chris Manion from the British Science Association

    027: Innovating funding with Chris Manion from the British Science Association
    Sep 2 2022
    Today we're speaking with the Head of Grants at the British Science Association, Chris Manion.

    We'll be discussing The Ideas Fund, an innovative public engagement program that provides grants for community groups and researchers who have new ideas for addressing local challenges related to mental health and wellbeing. We'll also be looking at the role funders play in bringing about social change, the power imbalances that accompany grant giving and what funders can do to ensure they address this imbalance.

    You can find out more about The Ideas Fund at www.theideasfund.org

    If you are a funder and you would like to meet with other funders to discuss the challenges, ideas, and opportunities relating to grant making, then head over to www.losingcontrol.org


    Visit us at thesocialchangeagency.org
    Follow us on Twitter at @SocialChangeAg

    Host: Maisie Palmer
    Guests: Chris Manion, British Science Association

    Theme music by Loyalty Freak Music
    Show More Show Less
    18 mins