Meet the Team: Clare

Role: A little bit of everything, from toilet cleaning to chairing the committee. I am the Strategic Team lead so do direct longer term plans, funding applications, connections to other organisations in the city. My background in community development and working together with communities to co-create and co-produce the future that we all desire, means that I use tools from the art of hosting toolkit where possible. It would be great if we could have some help with toilet cleaning!  

Your OB Story: I first really got to know October Books when I wrote a book of walks from railway stations in our city, which was a partnership project with Transition Southampton and The Three Rivers Community Rail Partnership. The book was the number one best seller in the shop in Christmas 2015 and, in restocking supplies, I got to know Ian and the existing team. When the adverts came out for a new team to take over when Ian retired I applied and, along with Jess, Joey and Jaquie, started working at the shop in the summer of 2016. 

I was really excited about the new role and could see a future where October Books was really connected and embedded in the community again, with a regular events programme, volunteers helping out in all aspects of the business while maintaining the radical roots of the organisation and ensuring it was a place where everyone felt welcome. There was a bit of work to do to get to this place and when the idea of buying our own building came up, that seemed like the perfect solution to our rent woes and to provide a focus for our community to help. 

My role has changed over time and I am not doing so much of the operational and hands on work as I did at the start. We have grown, we have funders and members and a wonderful community space and all of these elements need holding and being encouraged to thrive. I know that together we can work out ways to do business, health, education, politics and life differently. I encourage you to join us.      

Passionate About: I am passionate about our environment and I have been involved in many different climate action movements here in my home town of Southampton and in Australia, where I lived before coming back here in 2011. Nature, the countryside, wildlife, weather, the seasons, all provide inspiration, relaxation and a sense of place for me and I love thinking about our more rigid societal organisational systems in terms of ecosystems.

Recommends: My recommendation is ‘From What is to What If’ by Rob Hopkins of the Transition Movement. It provides oodles of stories of people and communities all around the world who are and have been doing things differently, building fairer and more just societies and considering people, place and planet in all that they do.