Final Major Project: Conformation of visit to the 'Poppy Appeal - Aylesford Village'

Here is a copy of the conformation I received which secured our visit to the British Legion Village at Aylesford from Ray Sheppard, Head of the Poppy Appeal.

Final Major Project: Correspondence

Here are some of the correspondence between myself and Christine Cobbold from the RBL Poppy Appeal. We have arranged for us to visit on the 26th September to film some footage at their centre and find out some more about what they do.

Final Major Project: Visiting the Poppy Appeal HQ

Today we filmed at 'The Poppy Appeal's Head Office' in Aylesford in Kent. We secured our time there with a contact I made, Christine, who is PA to the Head of the Poppy Appeal, Ray Sheppard. She put us in contact with Ray, who invited us to visit and do some filming within the warehouse and and to meet some of the team who work as part of the Poppy Appeal.

Here are some screenshot stills from the footage we got, most of which is actuality, but we also managed to film an interview with the warehouse manager who controls the operations in and around the warehouse.

Still from footage of a poppy making machine 

Interview with warehouse manager Steve 

Cutaways of Military badges used for Poppy Wreaths which are distributed around the country and across the globe 

Actuality footage of staff folding the boxes for Poppy collections 

Actuality footage of Wreaths being packed for distribution 

Cutaways of generic Poppy branded products

Final Major Project: Making Contacts

Since we've started our research for our documentary, I have been in contact with numerous people to organise meetings and schedules so that we can find out more information about the RBL and how they work. Our first point of call as mentioned was Becky Warren. Becky is the head of Public Relations. Becky gave us the go ahead for our documentary when I spoke to her on the phone. She advised me to speak to local beaches of the RBL to find our way in for filming purposes.

We then got in contact with Flo Owen, who is the service secretary for the RBL Maidstone Branch. After talking with her about our production, she was very keen for us to meet at the local branch of the RBL in Maidstone to discuss our ideas. She informed me that her husband, Ivor, was the Chairman of Maidstone Branch and that they would both be interested in helping with our documentary.

Mel and I decided that we would need some more footage or interviews with somebody from the Poppy Appeal which lead us to the Royal British Legion Village in Aylesford. The was very handy for us as it is just outside of Maidstone. We learnt that the Poppy Appeal was run from Aylesford and we contacted them to find out some more information. I spoke with a lady named Christine Cobbold who is the PA to the Head of the Poppy Appeal. Christine and I spoke about arranging a time for us to come and film some footage of of their centre at Aylesford. We some about their machines which make poppies and how they distribute them from the centre. We are hoping to arrange a visit within the next two weeks.

Final Major project: Research

So to start the ball rolling with our documentary, we needed to start thinking about what we would like to focus our story on. We originally liked the idea of focusing on the Poppy Appeal, which would look at how the Poppy Appeal was created, what it does, how the money is collected and where the money goes.

I started to make some contacts within the RBL and started at the top with the head of Public Relations for the RBL, Becky Warren. I had a conversation over the phone with Becky which we discussed our project and what we aim to do. Here is a copy of the email I sent her after our conversation about our work.

Since we had the go ahead, we could carry on with some contacts which I had previously made at the Maidstone branch of the British Legion who run their branch from 7 Marsham Street in Maidstone.

Final Major Project: Royal British Legion

So after complications with our first idea of creating a documentary based on the RNLI, we have decided to change our idea and focus on the Royal British Legion instead. The Royal British Legion is an organisation which provides remembrance and support to ex-service personnel and their dependants.

Here is some background knowledge of the British Legion from their website...

"Our history

The Royal British Legion was formed on 15 May 1921 bringing together four National Organisations of ex-Service men that had established themselves after the Great War of 1914-1918.

The main purpose of the Legion was straightforward: to care for those who had suffered as a result of service in the Armed Forces in the Great War, whether through their own service or through that of a husband, father or son. The suffering took many forms: the effect of a war wound on a man's ability to earn a living and support his family; or a war widow's struggle to give her children an education.

But even those who had come through the war relatively unscathed struggled with employment. As a result of the war, Britain's economy plummeted and in 1921 there were 2 million unemployed. Over six million men had served in the war - 725,000 never returned. Of those who came back, 1.75 million had suffered some kind of disability and half of these were permanently disabled. To this figure then had to be added those who depended on those who had gone to war - the wives and children, widows and orphans as well as the parents who had lost sons in the war, on whom they were often financially dependent.

The situation so moved Lance Bombadier Tom Lister, a Lancastrian, that he decided that if the Government was either unable or unwilling to do anything to improve the lives of ex-Service men, he would do something about it himself. This eventually led to the formation of The Royal British Legion.

When the Legion's leaders looked around them in 1921, not only did they see a gigantic task in front of them looking after those who had suffered in the recent war, they also sought to prevent further sacrifice by reminding the nation of the human cost of war and to work actively for peace.

By the time of the Legion's formation in 1921, the tradition of an annual Two Minute Silence in memory of the dead had been established. The first ever Poppy Appeal was held that year with the first Poppy Day on 11 November 1921.

We were granted "Royal" status in 1971, and extended our membership to serving members of Her Majesty's Forces, as well as ex-Service personnel, in 1981. Now, anyone can become a member of The Royal British Legion. We welcome men and women of all ages, whether they have served in the Armed Forces or not."

Final Major Project: Meeting the Owen Family

Today we met with Flo and Ivor Owen at the Maidstone Branch of The Royal British Legion. we met at their centre at 7 Marsham Street, Maidstone, to discuss our documentary ideas.

We found out some really useful information about the work they do from the local branch and spoke a lot about how they are struggling to  recruit new members to their branch.

We also found out that...

• to become a member of a branch it costs a £6 annual fee for anybody aged 12-17 and a £16 annual fee for anybody aged 18+
• Each branch has to raise its own funds to keep themselves running and all money they collect unless specifically donated to the branch will go to the 'Poppy Appeal'
• 4 members of the Owen family are officers at the Maidstone branch.
• Ivor has given 25 years of his life working voluntarily for the RBL
• The branches no longer take care of Welfare (distribution of money) which used to be run from each separate branch, which is now run from the Kent county office for the Kent Area and determined by caseworkers who work from a specific branch.
• Maidstone has 93 members.
• Maidstone Branch raises £30,000 - £40,000 each year towards 'The Poppy Appeal'.
• The Maidstone branch are represented each year at the remembrance day parade as well as often attending the county and civic parade.
• Each month, the branch produces a newsletter/magazine called 'The Emblem' which contains information about the Branch and any events coming up including fundraisers and events which is sent out to each member.

We asked Flo and Ivor what they would like to get from our documentary and how they would like to benefit from it. There were two main points which they would like our documentary to highlight which were; 

• Raise awareness on their work for Welfare (helping people face to face who are ex-service personnel or their dependants).
• The importance of recruiting new members for each branch (Branches are closing down as they are not recruiting new members. This means that their expertise will not be passed on to younger members - this may lead to the closure of a branch which will affect the money raised for the Poppy Appeal in that area).

Using this information, we are able to ensure that our script will reflect the needs of the local branches of the RBL. 

Final Major Project: IDEAS - The RNLI

So for our initial idea, we have decided to make a 30 minute documentary based on the everyday running of the RNLI. 

"The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea

We provide, on call, a 24-hour lifeboat search and rescue service and a seasonal lifeguard service. Our Values reflect the way we do business as an organisation. 

Purpose:

The RNLI saves lives at sea.

Vision:

To end preventable loss of life at sea.
 

Values:

Our work is based on and driven by our values. Our volunteers and staff strive for excellence and are ...

Selfless: willing to put the requirements of others before our own and the needs of the team before the individual, able to see the bigger picture and act in the best interests of the RNLI, and to be inclusive and respectful of others. Prepared to share our expertise with organisations that share our aims.

Dependable: always available, committed to doing our part in saving lives with professionalism and expertise, continuously developing and improving. Working in and for the community and delivering on our promises.

Trustworthy: responsible, accountable and efficient in the use of the donations entrusted to us by our supporters, managing our affairs with transparency, integrity and impartiality.

Courageous: prepared to achieve our aims in changing and challenging environments. We are innovative, adaptable and determined in our mission to save more lives at sea."

The purpose of our documentary would be highlight the life of a crew member at different stations across the southeast and show how they work, how they save lives and the day to day running of each station.

We have made contacts at two different stations, one being in Hastings in Sussex and the other in Sheerness in Kent. The Hastings station has agreed to us filming with them on their boats and on training procedures which would give our documentary a real insight into the danger of working on the lifeboats. The Sheerness station has agreed to allow us to film with them, specifically looking at the SS Richard Montgomery, a ship which run aground  in the Thames Estuary just a mile off the sheerness coast, with a load full of live explosives which still lie dormant today.

Along with my colleague, Melissa, we would produce, direct and edit the documentary together, her taking the role of Producer, and my self becoming the Director and Editor.