1. Public & Collaborative Services: Case Study
Piece Project
Sutton Coldfield, United Kingdom, www.envision.org.uk/news_items/51,
http://www.pieceproject.co.nr/9
Description
Students from Arthur Terry School exchange their skills with local pensioners once a
week in Sutton Coldfield Birmingham UK. The project is an incentive to improve
generational gaps between teens and elderly and to take advantage of the different
knowledge these generations have to share. In order to help the community the piece
project want to bridge the generation gap peace by piece. The service was a solid peer-
to-peer (teenager to elderly) exchange of skills, stories about life and a trial to see what
a smaller gap between generations can do to the community.
Citizen Role
Fifty teenagers and fifty elderly meet once a week to collaborate and exchange skills in
mutual activities.
Degrees of Involvement
There is no variety in engagement when the framework is set up in a project based form.
However the teenagers and elderly bring different skills and stories to the table and the
key part of this project is to exchange within these weekly meetings. The elderly show
how to knit, play chess and teach the teenagers history while the teenagers show the
elderly technology and modern music.
Public Role
Public partners (e.g. schools and elderly organization) identify opportunities for people to
exchange and contribute their time to learn from each other.
Caring for Elderly and Children: Rosalind, Kara, Jennifer

2. Public & Collaborative Services: Case Study
Service Diagram
Enabling Systems
The meetings take place in Elderly homes and organizations in Birmingham. The
activities vary but always have the goal of exchange skills, allowing elderly to not be left
behind and teenagers to show that they are not dangerous and harmful.
The basic functions of this service is interaction between people rather than products or
digital environments. It is simple but clear.
Role of Digital Environment
The piece project uses their online site to promote the project and to share with others in
hope of bridging the gap between generations globally. The platform is not used
between members of the group and is not a large part of the project in itself.
Background / History
The children at the Arthur Terry school started a project about generations online via a
survey questionnaire. The results became interesting and the school decided to prolong
this project in a new shape and form. The project is aiming to last until April 2011 but has
continued this date. 50 teenagers and 50 elderly meet every week to exchange skills
and participate in activates together. The teenagers sat the goals for the elderly as such;
POSITIVE...
1. Think of all the skills you have gained from your life!
2. Increased friends - many of the elderly become chattier and are more open to making
friends
3. You'll be more at peace with yourself, and unlike teens, less confused, frustrated, etc.
4. Smarter - you will have learnt from your mistakes
5. Lots of stories to share with others
Caring for Elderly and Children: Rosalind, Kara, Jennifer