Makers’ Toolkit
Look after yourself
How to make a brilliant Fun Palace without wearing yourself out.
Making a Fun Palace is one of the most joyful things you can do – and because you care, it’s easy to take on too much. This guide is about keeping it fun for you, too.
Why this matters
Fun for everyone – including you
When the very first Fun Palaces were evaluated back in 2014, Makers said they’d gained so much: new friends, new skills and a real sense of belonging. But the evaluators also found that the biggest risk to Fun Palaces wasn’t money or venues. It was Makers running out of steam.
One Maker at Brockwell Lido found it hard to hand jobs to other people, and for six months the Fun Palace took over her life. Her Fun Palace was a huge success – and the following year, new people signed up to help straight away. Sharing it sooner would have made it lighter for everyone.
“Fun Palaces joins up thinking and watching and learning without pressure of expectation.”
Fun Palace Maker, Gladstone’s Library, 2014
Six promises to make to yourself
Making it, the kind way
1
Share the load
When someone offers to help, say yes – and give them a real job.
- Make a short list of jobs: welcome table, tea, photos, setting up, packing away.
- Ask “Would you be up for…?” rather than “Let me know if you need anything”.
- Pair new helpers with someone friendly.
2
Keep it small
A Tiny Fun Palace with three neighbours counts just as much as a big one.
- One activity done well beats five done in a rush.
- Short is fine – an hour can be plenty.
- Try the Tiny Fun Palaces guide.
3
Say no, kindly
To one more activity, one more meeting, one more anything.
- Free and fun beats big and stressful.
- You don’t have to do the Weekend of Action – any date works.
- “Not this time, but maybe next year” is a perfectly good answer.
4
Money isn’t the only resource
Most Fun Palaces are made with no extra money at all.
- Borrow, swap and ask – people love to lend.
- Keep a ghost budget: note what you’d have paid, to show the real value.
- Ideas in Funding your Fun Palace.
5
Let it be imperfect
Something will go wrong on the day. That’s part of the fun.
- Nobody minds as much as you do.
- Handmade is a feature, not a flaw.
- If it rains, it rains – people still turn up.
6
Look after you on the day
You’re allowed to enjoy it too.
- Plan a break – and take it.
- Water, snacks and somewhere to sit.
- Let someone else run the welcome table for a while.
After the weekend
Rest, celebrate, then pass the baton
Rest first. Then say thank you – to your helpers, your venue and yourself.
When you’re ready, think about next time. In Whitstable and at Brockwell Lido, the very first Makers handed the lead to someone new for the following year, and stayed on to support them. Brockwell held its first “next time” meeting just two weeks after the weekend.
- Hold a relaxed catch-up a few weeks later: what worked, what was hard, who’d like to do more?
- Write a one-page handover note: useful contacts, what you’d do again, and where the bunting lives.
- Ask who’d like to lead a bit next time – even just one activity.
“The baton is being handed on for 2015, with support from this year’s Makers.”
The 2014 Fun Palaces evaluation, on Whitstable
Quick check-in
Am I looking after myself?
Run through this a few weeks before your Fun Palace. If you can’t tick most of them yet, that’s your cue to share, shrink or say no to something.
☐ At least two other people are helping me
☐ Everyone knows their job on the day
☐ I’ve said no to at least one thing
☐ My plan fits the time and energy I actually have
☐ I’ve planned a break for myself on the day
☐ I know who to ask if I get stuck
☐ I’ve got some rest booked in for afterwards
You’re not doing this alone
Thousands of Makers have been where you are. Talk it through with the team, or meet other Makers who’ll happily share how they keep it fun.