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Arts Access SA’s Club Cool recognised by the Community Business Partnerships Awards
Article courtesy of Arts Access SA
Thanks to Arts Access SA and the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel, better known as The Gov, many remarkable stories and relationships have arisen. Nine years ago, on a Sunday afternoon, Arts Access SA’s Claire Thackray turned up to The Gov to attend what was then called, Club Contagious. The atmosphere, the obvious enjoyment people were having and its friendly, welcoming nature, led Claire to become a long-term supporter of what Arts Access SA now calls, Club Cool.
Occurring monthly, on the last Sunday, Club Cool provides Adelaide with its only funky and energising socially inclusive ongoing music event. As well, it provides performance opportunities to musicians and artists with disabilities and the provision of a healthy, friendly and integrated environment for people with and without disabilities.
Claire Thackray, now the Events and Volunteers Project Officer with Arts Access SA says, “Words can’t fully express how special Club Cool is. Something I’ll never forget is the afternoon, when a young girl came to The Gov on a stretcher. She was obviously very sick and all she could do was move her feet to the beat of the music. The happiness that it gave that young girl, I will never forget,” It was also at The Gov that Claire met her husband.
Now in its 12th year, Club Cool is an event that Claire has remained strongly involved with.
Claire remarks, “Each time Club Cool happens, different performers many with disabilities, come and give so much of themselves, like the new Radio Cool presenters, MC Frost and DJ Dubarama. Their enthusiasm is infectious. Combined with an inclusive, safe-space, it provides the rare opportunity for people with and without disabilities to socialise together.”
This is just one example of how Arts Access SA nurtures wonderful new musical and theatrical acts. Arts Access SA hopes before long, to increase community ownership of Club Cool, through its participants taking a greater role in the shaping and running of it.
The Gov has also been seriously instrumental in making Club Cool a success. The Gov’s publicans, the Tonkin Family have supported making it a smoke-free venue. They have constantly sought to make The Gov disability accessible and have always been so warm, welcoming and patient with their patrons with disabilities.
The nurturing of this relationship by Claire and other members of Arts Access SA and The Gov’s generous support is what makes it such a holistic community business partnership.
In September, this partnership won The Gov and Arts Access SA, the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership’s 2006 South Australian Small Business Award, for demonstrating a commitment to their community through excellence in a community business partnership.
Following that success, Arts Access SA and The Gov are now one of three community-business partnerships, in the offing to win the National Small Business Award. Prime Minister John Howard will award the awards on Tuesday 17 October in Canberra at the National Library of Australia.
Recently Club Cool changed its start time to 12.30pm. The Gov supported it, not because it was going to increase their sales, but as it allowed Arts Access SA to fundraise to provide essential funds for it services, through a sausage sizzle. Not only did they support it, but they also helped out by providing equipment and much more.
Through innovative thinking, negotiating and sound community-business understandings, both parties’ organisations have grown and deeply understand the ‘win-win’ benefits of partnering.
Winning the SA Award and being nominated for the National Small Business Award seems like the perfect natural progression for Club Cool. Over the years it has provided many stepping-stones, which have helped breed, the successes of many well-established Adelaide musical groups, including the Fine Lines Band.
deeply understand the ‘win-win’ benefits of partnering. www.artsaccess-sa.org.au
Arts Access SA is the peak organisation for arts and disability in South Australia Arts Access SA advocates for access and participation in South Australia’s arts and cultural life by all people with disabilities, recognising that the arts have become the language of the disability cultures – http://www.artsaccess-sa.org.au
Club Cool now in its twelfth year is an ongoing, socially integrated musical event held the last Sunday of every month at one of Adelaide’s leading live music venues, the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel. Club Cool provides a smoke-free, friendly and inclusive environment with a mix of people with a disability, their friends, families and carers as well as the broader public. Combining music, creativity and fun Club Cool provides both top quality musical entertainment and participation to audiences as well as a showcasing opportunity for disabled artists’ work from across the sector. http://www.artsaccess-sa.org.au/projects.htm#clubc
The Gov is Adelaide’s leading live music venue. Its pivotal role in keeping music live provides significant support to South Australia’s arts and community sectors. www.thegov.com.au