Creative Temporal Costings: A ProtoPublics Research Project with Leeds Creative Timebank

Creative Temporal Costings (CTC) was an experimental social design intervention that explored the practices of collaborative exchange as experienced by, and through a co-commissioned study undertaken with the AHRC ProtoPublics project and the Leeds Creative Timebank (LCT). Two key objectives were: to investigate the value of creative collaborative exchange in an emerging ‘parallel’ economy; and to test and develop experimental research methods for social design with the aim of prototyping new forms of collaborative research oriented towards social change, as part of the larger ProtoPublics investigation. Written with these diverse audiences in mind, this ‘proto’ report describes and reflects on methods used and outcomes achieved and contributes initial findings to current thinking on the alternative exchange mechanisms in the creative economy. The research team is developing more extensive texts through academic peer-reviewed presentations and publications, and in creative and experimental social design-oriented projects.