Two Islands Playback CIC

There had not been a Playback Gathering in the UK and Ireland since 2016 and so it was necessary to undertake a variety of foundational activities to enable this to happen. A bank account had already been set up at the point of incorporation, but other essential aspects were needed, including: Designing a website Opening Gmail and social media accounts Setting up an initial list of contacts In January 2024 a questionnaire was sent out to all known playback groups and companies, and also to key individuals with the aim of assessing the interest in attending an event and participating in a network, and to get some ideas about what people would ideally want from these things. Feedback confirmed there was considerable appetite for attending a Gathering to kick start and refresh a stakeholder network. Working toward the event itself meant that the Organising Committee had to collaborate in designing a programme, working with the playback com-munity to identify facilitators and trainers, putting in place systems to enable online bookings, and reaching common understanding around the policies and procedures required (such as pricing and support for scholarships, a Gathering Manifesto, Social Media Policy and Can-cellation Policy, amongst others). An email database was also created (with permission from those who responded to the questionnaire). All the necessary elements were successfully put in place and bookings for the ‘Connecting Up’ event went live on 20th July 2024. Demand exceeded all expectations and the 60 avail-able places completely sold out within two weeks.