News Bulletins

Current events - Past events - News bulletins

These News Bulletins have previously been circulated to CDAS members

February 2010

Information seems to be coming in faster than I can get it out again at the moment, so apologies for a long Bulletin – hope you can find what you are interested in.

Issues discussed at Members’ Meeting

CLD and National Outcomes Jim Rooney of HMIE introduced a discussion on the need for Community Learning and Development services (in all sectors) to get better at tracking their impact on national and local outcomes. A short paper, a first draft of an outcomes framework, and an example of a logic model being developed by voluntary sector adult learning provides, showing how these things might be linked are available and comments are welcome. The CLD Managers Scotland network will be taking discussions forward.

Community Development Statement of Principle CDAS members have previously seen a draft ‘Position Statement’ on community development in Scotland. We considered the latest draft, together with a short Statement of Principle, which might, it is hoped, help to express how the overall values and approaches of community development relate to a wide range of Scottish policy and practice. Final versions are now available, and we will consult members on how to use them to build understanding of and support for community development.

Exchanging International Experience The international Association for Community Development is a Non-governmental Organisation recognised by the United Nations, Council of Europe and African Union. It is based in Scotland and registered as a Scottish charity and company. However there has been no opportunity for Scottish practitioners to connect more closely to the organisation. A free seminar is being held in Dundee on the afternoon of 26 March to begin to remedy this and hear from people with community development experience in several parts of the world. Details Booking Form

Learning from Four Nations What can we learn from community development practice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and what can they learn from Scotland? How can we overcome the practical difficulties of exchanging learning across these nations? Peter Taylor is leading a consultation on behalf of the Community Development Foundation to look at these questions, and is keen to hear from members about their existing experience of learning from others around the UK, and how and on what subjects they might wish to exchange learning in future. Contact peter@pdtaylor.com 0141 586 7588.

‘Stronger Communities: Wealthier and Fairer Scotland’

Some of the presentations from last November’s CDAS conference on this subject can now be viewed on our website.

Better Community Engagement programme

This communications brief has been produced to inform people about the focus and progress of the Scottish Government funded ‘Better Community Engagement Programme’, which aims to develop a learning programme to support and improve practice in engaging with communities.

Code of Ethics – consultation

The CLD Standards Council is pursuing a voluntary model of membership under which workers, managers, training providers and others involved in Community Learning and Development will be able to register as members in various categories. Regardless of the category, a core requirement will be commitment to a Code of Ethics. This Code should also help to inform others in related fields of practice. 
 
An online consultation on a draft Code of Ethics will be available from early March. To enhance this, a number of events are also being held. One, which may of particular interest to CDAS members, is aimed specifically at people working in community development, whether or not they identify their work with CLD, to allow them to explore how the proposals might relate to their own practice. This event will be held:

1 pm-4pm      Wednesday, 14 April           Atlantic Quay, 150 Broomielaw, Glasgow.

In addition qualified or experienced CLD workers in all strands of work, at all levels, including managers and volunteers, and in all partner organisations, are invited to take part in the following events:

9.30am-12.30pm        Wednesday, 24 March          The Tolbooth, Stirling
9.30am-12.30pm        Friday, 26 March                    Dundee Contemporary Arts
1 pm-4pm                    Wednesday, 7 April               Urquhart House, Inverness
1 pm-4pm                    Monday, 12 April                    Atlantic Quay, Glasgow
1 pm-4pm                    Friday, 16 April                       Thistle House, Edinburgh.
 
Places at all these events are limited, must be booked in advance and are subject to confirmation. Please register your interest now by contacting Kirsty Horne (0300 244 1373, contactcld@scotland.gsi.gov.uk), giving name(s), job title(s), organisation(s), email address(es) and phone number(s) of those involved.

(For details of additional events aimed specifically at people in the broader fields of youth work and of community-based adult learning, contact Peter Taylor)

Upskilling

The first phase of the Scottish Government’s programme of investment in the CLD workforce is now under way. LLUK Scotland have been chosen to manage delivery of the project and will provide an analysis of existing approaches and highlight any gaps where resources should be focused. Resources are being allocated to local CLD Partnerships to help them to develop their local workforce development strategies and widen Continuing Professional Development (CPD) opportunities for CLD staff. There are also national pilot programmes in key areas of activity. Two of these are delivering leadership and management training programmes. We understand that one is already fully subscribed, but places are still available on the course offered by North Highland College.

In addition the Scottish Community Development Centre is delivering a series of seminars on "Outcome-Focused Practice in CLD".

• Edinburgh - Tuesday 9 March 2010 @ the Scottish Storytelling Centre
• Glasgow - Wednesday 10 March 2010 @ the Teacher Building
• Inverness - Thursday 25 March 2010 @ the Townhouse

 Participants should register their interest by 24th February by contacting aileen@scdc.org.uk

For further information, contact Moira Stewart, 0131 221 7912 or Alex Burden, 0131 221 7913.  For information on plans for the programme in 2010-11, contact Colin Ross in Learning Connections, 0300 244 1367.  

Meanwhile the CLD Standards Council for Scotland is developing a longer term strategy and framework for CPD in CLD. The focus for both is establishing a new learning culture which is celebratory and developmental; this will be a positive model, not a deficit, 'gap-filling' one.

New youth work qualification

The new Professional Development Award In Youth Work at SCQF Level 6 is the first national introductory level youth work qualification in Scotland to be accredited and available to volunteers and paid staff. The unit descriptors and other information are available on the SQA website.

Embedding an ‘outcomes approach’ in community regeneration

Five local partnerships have been selected to participate in a project aimed at embedding an ‘outcomes approach’ in tackling poverty and community regeneration.
The local partnerships that will participate in the project are:-

• Dumfries & Galloway Poverty, Inequality and Deprivation Working Group;
• Midlothian Improving Opportunities Group;
• Falkirk CPP Community Regeneration Theme Group;
• Fife Sustainable Communities Group; and
• West Lothian Life Stages Strategic Board.

The pilot project is a collaborative initiative between the Improvement Service (IS) and the Scottish Centre for Regeneration (SCR).  The project will provide practical, hands-on support to the local partnerships in order to help them fulfill the potential of the outcomes approach in their work. Regular updates on the progress of the pilot project will be posted on the Community Regeneration and Tackling Poverty Learning Network.

Get Involved

The Get Involved campaign was officially launched by SCVO at The Gathering in Edinburgh on 18 February. It aims to inspire more people to become involved with the voluntary sector in more ways throughout their lifetime, from paid work to one off volunteering and campaigning opportunities.

Youth Work Toolkit on knife crime and violence

As part of the Scottish Government ‘No knives, better lives’ Initiative, YouthLink Scotland is coordinating the development of a National Youth Work Toolkit around the issues of knife crime, weapons and wider violence. There are two ways you are able to get involved: Firstly, by providing activities and good practice case studies for the toolkit and secondly by taking part in a national survey for young people and youth workers. For further information on this project, please contact Richard Cooke, richard.cooke@fairbridgetraining.co.uk 07739430307 or Lisa Hogg lhogg@youthlinkscotland.org 0131-313-2488.

A Charter for Strengthening Relations between Paid Staff and Volunteers

Volunteering England and the Trades Union Congress (TUC) have jointly developed a Charter that sets out the key principles on which volunteering is organised and how good relations between paid staff and volunteers are built. Read More.

Governance Networks

The Supporting Voluntary Action programme, supported by the Scottish Government Third Sector team, is piloting the creation of a number of local Governance Networks which bring together the board members and trustees of organisations to address common issues, share information and experience etc. More information from ACOSVO, the forum for chief officers in the voluntary sector

Adult Literacy provision reviewed

HMIE, the education inspectorate, have produced an evaluation of adult literacy provision delivered by colleges, local authority community learning and development services and prisons in Scotland. One amongst several recommendations is that “local authority community learning and development services should ensure that they have effective processes in place to capture and demonstrate ... the impact of literacy provision on wider community outcomes.”

An Anatomy of Economic Inequality in the UK

The UK Government commissioned report “An Anatomy of Economic Inequality in the UK” from the National Equality Panel, has found that the gap between rich and poor is now bigger than it was 40 years ago and that "Deep-seated and systemic differences" remain between men and women and between minority groups and others.

Implications of Equality Bill

The Equality and Human Rights Commission is conducting the first phase of a consultation on draft Codes of Practice for the Equality Bill. This phase runs until April 2 and covers three aspects of the Equality Bill - employment, equal pay and services, public functions and associations. The latter includes draft guidance on “How voluntary and community sector organisations must treat volunteers”, including:

“In the absence of a contract [of employment], it is possible that providing a volunteering opportunity for someone counts as providing them with a service.
Whether this is the case or not, as a matter of good practice you should not discriminate against your volunteers or would-be volunteers because of their disability, race or sex, because they are pregnant, a new mother or breastfeeding, or because of their gender reassignment status, religion or belief, or sexual orientation ...
It is also likely that, whatever their legal status, a volunteer delivering your service would be acting on your behalf if they discriminated against a client or service user because of a protected characteristic, and you would be held legally responsible for what they did. This is true, even if you are not aware of the conduct nor approved it.”

Research on local-level work to tackle poverty, discrimination and disadvantage

The Institute for Public Policy Research has launched a project looking at local-level work to tackle poverty, discrimination and disadvantage, improve job opportunities and protect the environment. They would like to find out about the work currently being done by local organisations across the UK. They are keen to hear from all types of organisations, including trade unions, local authorities, charities, social enterprises, campaign groups and service providers - anyone who is involved in tackling poverty, improving job opportunities or protecting the environment at a local level. The survey can be accessed here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MXRWRQC.

Better Banking Campaign is Launched

The Better Banking Campaign is led by a UK wide coalition of third sector organisations. They came together during summer 2009 to run a campaign to address the problem of financial exclusion. To address the issue, it is campaigning for full financial disclosure by financial institutions, a cap on unfair credit rates for those who cannot afford them and obligations on banks to demonstrate that all who merit it have fair and equal access to credit.

New local food network

Since the local food gathering at Dunbar in October 2009, a steering group has been working to establish a national network linking people and organisations with an interest in sustainable food.  The network is called “Nourish  - Scotland's sustainable food network”. Nourish is open to all who are actively growing, selling and eating locally produced food in Scotland - be they farmers, gardeners, Transition food groups, local markets, chefs, artisan pie-makers or just keen eaters of good local food. Information Contact

Simplifying planning policy

The Scottish Government has launched a document which sets out planning policy on topics such as housing, wind farms, flooding and the natural and built environment. It replaces 17 separate policies with one single document which is easier for communities and developers to understand and interpret.

Social Enterprise Mark leads to controversy

We have previously reported the process of establishing a Social Enterprise Mark setting criteria for recognition as a social enterpriser. This has now led to controversy, with Senscot declining the opportunity to be the Scottish partner because it feels that the eligibility criteria are being “softened to enable [social enterprise] to become a high volume/quick impact instrument”.   Lobbying from, amongst others, the co-operative movement raised the cap on dividends that could be paid by a recognised social enterprise, from 35% to 50% of disposable income.  A concern also emerged about the possible inclusion of local authority subsidiaries such as Leisure Trusts.  

Meanwhile Senscot reproduces an article by Ed Mayo, secretary general of Co-operatives UK, arguing that “The term social enterprise has always benefited from its own ambiguity… A new term will be needed to evoke that broad movement that we can all feel part of.  I believe that Muhammad Yunus’ term “social business” will increasingly be used as the generic to cover everything from charities trading through co-operatives, CICs, social enterprises, housing associations etc”. 

Minister backs Trust Schools

Plans by East Lothian Council transfer clusters of schools into arm's-length trusts have been given broad backing by education minister Michael Russell. Under the East Lothian plan, management boards would be set up for each cluster, including "young people, education representatives, parent representatives, councillors, community representatives and local businesses".

Age Unlimited Scotland

NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts) has launched a new programme in Scotland called Age Unlimited. We are looking for people in their 50’s and 60’s in Scotland to come forward with new ideas that could be turned into live community projects which would improve the lives of older people. The programme aims to test how older people can be engaged in the design and delivery of innovative new services that could improve older people’s health and well-being and reduce dependency on costly mainstream public services. More information.

CADISPA

CADISPA (Conservation and Development in Sparsely Populated Areas) has been relaunched as an independent charity concerned with helping local people in rural Scotland to build a sustainable community ‘for themselves – by themselves’.

On-line resources

SROI Project  Social Return on Investment (SROI) is a framework for measuring a concept of value that is much broader than simply financial. New features on the SROI project website include an Interactive impact map  which goes through each of the stages.

CLD Talking Points  The CLD Standards Council offers a number of Talking Points, which are intended to be “a series of challenging, provocative essays and papers on CLD.

Regeneration Learning Points The latest Learning Points produced by the Scottish Centre for Regeneration are:
Developing Leadership in Community Planning
Introducing Excellent Approaches into Housing Organisations
Effective Procurement and Tendering for Services to Tackle Poverty
Growing Up in Scotland (developed bringing together practitioners interested in early years development and the practical use of data to evidence outcomes)
The Centre has also produced Lessons from the Fairer Scotland Fund case studies

Take Part online resource directory  ‘Take Part’ is an English three year programme of support for active citizenship and learning. It is a national programme, run at the local level, which aims to support people and communities gain the skills, knowledge and confidence to have more of a say about what happens in their area and become involved in local action to help shape the decisions that affect their daily lives.  It provides an online resource directory, including:
Take Part – find out about the Take Part approach to learning, and how programme is using this distinctive approach to support communities.
Empowerment – get information on what community empowerment is, and how it can help develop communities and improve local decision-making.
Directory – access a wide variety of resources, organisations and case studies, which can be searched and filtered to find the specific information you need.

Publications

The art of influence The Community Development Foundation has published “The art of influence: how community workers lobby for change from within” (Free download). CDF worked with two groups of frontline community development workers in the public sector to help them more effectively exert internal influence. In Project 1, a group of CD workers tasked with building ‘stronger’ communities successfully addressed the lack of profile and coordination of their work within their local strategic partnership. In Project 2, workers mobilised local service providers to act in partnership to address complaints from residents about the neighbourhood’s physical environment.

 Encouraging start for Community Initiative to Reduce Violence A report assessing the first year of Glasgow’s Community Initiative to Reduce Violence scheme shows that recorded violence among members who engaged with it dropped by almost half. There was also an 18.5 per cent decline in violent activity among gang members who refused to join the project.

How Inequality Damages all of us The 2009 book 'The Spirit Level', by Profs. Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett continues to be a regular point of reference in debates on poverty and equality and in media articles. Kate Pickett gave the SURF Annual Lecture for 2009 and presented the main lessons from the extensive research behind the book. A full transcript of this lecture is available here.

Approach to tackling inequality and discrimination needs radical rethinking A report by the independent think tank the Institute for Public Policy Research argues that the current approach to tackling inequality and discrimination is out of date, alienates many people and is often counterproductive. People in the UK have complex and multiple personal identities, meaning that the current ‘tick box’ approach to identifying problems gives a simplistic and sometimes false picture of disadvantage, exclusion and inequality. The report calls for a new approach to monitoring and tackling inequality and discrimination, including “approaches that avoid ascribing problems to broad group identities when the real cause could be other factors (such as skills, social class, deprivation and exclusion)”

Handbook of Sustainability Literacy A collection of Papers by leading thinkers in the field of sustainability and how it can be interpreted and applied to development practice is available in an expanded multimedia version at www.sustainability-literacy.org.

Health Impact Assessment of Greenspace - a guide Developed by greenspace scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage and the Institute of Occupational Medicine, this guide will help practitioners to assess the health and equity impacts of greenspace projects. The guide will also be a valuable tool in assisting people to demonstrate the role of greenspace in improving both mental, physical and community health.

Partnerships for anticipatory care NHS Health Scotland has published case studies of Partnerships between the NHS and Community & Voluntary Organisations for anticipatory care. They include examples of methods to reach “harder to engage” clients and of referral processes to community and voluntary services.

A Health Impact Assessment Toolkit  for social enterprises  This toolkit is designed to help social enterprises explore their understanding of health, how to improve health, and to judge how their organisation could impact on the factors and experiences that promote health. 

Dimensions of diversity This report by NHS Health Scotland Public Health Observatory Division provides a concise overview of basic information about 13 characteristics or groups of the population of Scotland. It covers: age, asylum seekers and refugees, carers, disability, ethnicity, language, literacy, migrants, poverty, prisoners, religion and belief, sex and gender, and sexual orientation. The most important, recurring, theme is the damage done to mental health and wellbeing by the pervasive and insidious effects of personal prejudice, collective discrimination and structural exclusion.

Making a difference to pupil exclusion The voluntary sector Pupil Inclusion Network has published ‘10 Things We Do To Make A Difference’, looking at how the voluntary sector makes a difference to the educational experience of vulnerable, disaffected and excluded pupils.

The Engagement Ethic This ‘think piece’ from the Innovation Unit argues that supermarket-style approaches have taken public services so far, but the next phase of improvement relies on their ability to engage and inspire citizens and staff.  It appears to be a source for the debate about ‘Easyjet’ vs ‘John Lewis’ approaches which has since received considerable publicity. 

It suggests that people will only encourage people to take more responsibility for their own health, learning and carbon footprint if people are given greater rights to shape the work of local public services.  It argues that public services need to strengthen their ethic of engagement by giving citizens and staff greater voice in decision-making.  If not, while public services are improving, the risk is that remain something done to the public rather than with the public.

BLF evaluates small grants The Big Lottery Fund has produced an evaluation of their various small grants schemes (Summary). 58% of the projects surveyed were first-time applicants. However  applying for small grants was particularly challenging for organisations that did not have any previous experience of funding.  71% of grant holders agreed that their project had been very successful in their local community.<p>

Understanding Britain’s Unmet Needs BLF has also published ‘Sink or Swim’, an assessment of ‘Britain’s Unmet Needs’ (Summary). ‘Implications and directions for action by foundations and policy-makers’ include:

• Support organisations providing preparation, bridges and support for difficult transitions
• Support projects that enhance resilience and coping with shocks
• Back projects that tackle isolation
• Support projects providing access with ‘no wrong door’
• Support provision of both new and old necessities
• Speed of response – pre-empting needs and understanding what’s changing
• Rethink welfare provision through the lens of wellbeing

Community Work Skills Manual The Federation for Community Development Learning has published its New Community Work Skills Manual 2009 (£30, discount to members). 

 Lifelong learning sector working together as 'one system' Lifelong Learning UK Scotland has published a report on a seminar which brought together employers from ‘all six sub-sectors of lifelong learning’. Discussions focused on how the lifelong learning sector can work better as 'one system' .

Participatory mapping - what works and what doesn't Participatory mapping  plays an important role in helping marginalised groups by making visible the association between land and local communities, highlighting important social, historical and cultural knowledge as well as presenting geographical feature information. The International Fund for Agricultural Development has published a report (free download) that outlines what is involved and looks at best practice.

The barefoot guide to working with organisations and social change Another international publication, this is ‘a practical do-it-yourself guide for leaders and facilitators wanting to help organisations function and to develop in more healthy, human and effective ways’. It was developed by ‘The Barefoot Collective’, a global team of collaborating practitioners and activists. The guide, with its supporting website, includes ‘tried and tested concepts, approaches, stories and activities’.

Community Benefit: measuring the impact of arts and crafts activity The Voluntary Arts Network has produced many useful Briefings. Its latest, number 131, is on ‘Community Benefit – measuring the impact of arts and crafts activity’. In 3-4 pages it gives brief descriptions of tools and frameworks, which may well be helpful to people in other sectors.

Disability organisations in Scotland The Scottish Government has produced a series of reports into disability organisations across Scotland and their capacity to influence public authorities.
Mapping Scotland's Disability Organisations
The Capacity of Disability Organisations to Engage with Public Authorities
Resource Guide to Engagement Standards, Guidance and Tool Kits

Events

"A Right Blether" "A Right Blether" is the Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People's consultation with children and young people on issues that affect their lives. Launches are being held across Scotland to explore how organisations can become involved in what will be a hugely exciting and influential piece of work.
Tuesday 9 March - 4.30 to 6.30pm, Glasgow
Friday 12 March - 1.30 to 3.3.0pm, Inverness
Friday 16 March - 4.30 to 6.30pm, Perth
Friday 19 March - 1.30 to 3.30pm, Dumfries
Tuesday 23 March - 5.30 to 7.30pm, Edinburgh

Places are limited at each event so you need to contact Sareta Puri 0131 558 3733 at SCCYP to guarantee a place or register your interest in becoming involved.

Fighting Poverty in Scotland: Achievements and Opportunities The Poverty Alliance’s annual seminar series is focusing on what has been achieved so far, and what the anti-poverty movement in Scotland should be pushing for in the next period.  The discussions at the seminars will contribute to the Alliance’s general election work, and will also feed into broader work around the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. Remaining events are:
Inverness, 2 March
Elgin, 3 March                                  
Aberdeen, 4 March
For more information or to book, visit http://www.povertyalliance.org/events.asp.

An Introduction to Working with Asylum Seekers & Refugees
2 March, Glasgow

A Scottish Refugee Council course for people working with asylum seekers and refugees who need a comprehensive understanding of the core issues affecting those seeking sanctuary in Scotland. It is particularly relevant to people working in social work, housing, welfare, education, employment, health, community development or the justice system. For information contact Jamie Spurway 0141 248 9799 or click here.

Study Visits to SURF Awards Winners In a previous Bulletin we highlighted the work of Playbusters, winner of the SURF Award for 2009 in the ‘People’ category. A free visit to the Glasgow East End project is being arranged on 8 March, 09.45 – 13.30. For more information and to register contact gabriella.coia@scotland.gsi.gov.uk or call 0141 271 3736.
There will also be visits to ‘Place’ winner, the TACT Healthy Park, Blantyre (1 March, 09.30 – 13.30) and ‘Partnership’ winner the South Lanarkshire Childminding Development Programme (10 March, 09.45 – 12.30)

Poverty profiling workshop
15 March, West Park Centre, Dundee

Another Scottish Centre for Regeneration event, in conjunction with the Scottish Poverty Information Unit and the Poverty Alliance, this workshop will explore practical techniques to profiling poverty and how to use poverty profiles to best effect locally. Contact gabriella.coia@scotland.gsi.gov.uk or call 0141 271 3736

Tackling Multiple Deprivation in Communities
17 March, 09.30-13.30, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall

And another, this time in conjunction with SURF. This free morning workshop will explore how we continue to address the pockets of complex multiple deprivation which persist in our communities. Contact gabriella.coia@scotland.gsi.gov.uk or call 0141 271 3736

Community Building Study Tour
20 March

The Glass-House and Development Trusts Association Scotland are delivering a free study tour to some inspiring community buildings across Glasgow. This one-day event is for community groups who are at an early stage in developing building or refurbishment projects in their neighbourhood. Please register your place by visiting the ‘What’s On’ Page of The Glass-House website.  Enquiries: 020 7490 3136 or hannah@theglasshouse.org.uk .

SURF Annual Conference  - Sustaining and Reinventing Community Regeneration
24-25 March, Edinburgh (Days separately bookable)

This key Scottish regeneration event will look at the challenges ahead; but its focus will be on linking people, projects and practice to examine the real opportunities for supporting more sustainable community regeneration in this time of change. In cooperation with the Public Policy Network of the University of Edinburgh, the first day of the conference will link Scotland’s extensive regeneration oriented academic resources with the practical challenges at hand for practitioners and policy-makers.

The second day will focus on cooperation in policy and practice. Key speakers, debates, presentations and panel sessions will link the policy process to the realities of delivering positive change in Scotland’s most disadvantaged communities. In doing so, we will showcase the assets and resources that are at hand to support and sustain regeneration, despite the increasingly difficult economic climate and related challenges.

You can register online by clicking here, or download a copy of the booking form.

Self Esteem – facts, myths, challenges, alternatives
Tuesday 30 March, 1.30pm to 4.30pm, Grosvenor Hotel, Great Western Rd, Glasgow

This Centre for Confidence and Well-being event is relevant for anyone working in mental health; health promotion; education (all types and stages); skills; social services; enterprise; sports coaching; human resource management; business. It is also very relevant to parents and anyone working with parents. Attendance is free but you need to reserve places in advance. Please email. For full information on the programme and speakers, please click here.

VOiCE Conference
11 May, Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh

VOiCE is a database planning and recording tool designed to assist individuals and organisations to design and deliver effective community engagement. This conference, which will be addressed by Alex Neil MSP, has been organised by the Scottish Community Development Centre in order to share experiences and lessons from the programme. Full registration and booking details will be available shortly. Please contact Aileen Skillen by email or on 0141 248 1924.

Annual International Community Development Conference
July 25-28, 2010, InterContinental Hotel, New Orleans

This year the International Association for Community Development’s world conference is being delivered together with the US Community Development Society and is on the theme of ‘The Role of Community in Economic and Disaster Recovery’. More details.

January 2010

Measuring What Matters – the movie

A short video of extracts from the ‘Measuring What Matters’ conference that we held last year, mainly featuring contributions from Nick Marks and Ron Colman, can be seen on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAKSQCnv6Fk

Scottish Community Empowerment Newsletter 

The Scottish Government has produced the first version of a quarterly Scottish Community Empowerment Newsletter. This electronic newsletter is intended to update readers on the progress of the Community Empowerment Action Plan, give details of training opportunities and upcoming events, and provide examples of community empowerment in action.

 Standards Council opts for voluntary model

The CLD Standards Council has been looking at how to introduce a system of registration for Community Learning and Development workers in a way that best suits the values and diversity of the field. They hope that this will foster a strong sense of identity and a shared understanding of professionalism within CLD and its constituent strands. This understanding will be reflected in an increased awareness of and respect for CLD work by other partners.
After scrutiny of existing models in comparable fields, its Registration Committee has recommended a voluntary model of registration for workers, managers, training providers and others involved in CLD. The core criteria for all applicants, regardless of the category they register within, will be:

• making a clear commitment to the CLD values and competences
• signing up to a CLD Code of Practice or Ethics
• committing to ongoing development and improvement of practice.

There will be a small number of categories of registration depending on qualifications and experience. The committee will work on the details of these and consult with the field before finalising the model. This consultation will begin with a series of events around the content of a Code of Practice / Ethics.

“Equal Communities in a Fairer Scotland” Action Plan

Following the Equal Communities in a Fairer Scotland Policy Statement published jointly by Scottish Government and COSLA in October 2009, which reaffirmed the need for targeted action to tackle disadvantage in spite of the demise of the Fairer Scotland Fund, the two partners have now issued an Action Plan. This consists of a work plan for the Community Regeneration and Tackling Poverty learning network, setting out a range of support to be provided to Community Planning Partnerships and their delivery partners until March 2011.

Concordat reaffirmed

The two partners have also issued a brief statement reaffirming their Concordat, stating a continuing commitment to partnership working between national and local government. Particular mention is given to the delivery of services to the elderly and tackling climate change.

Ministerial responsibilities

The Scottish Government has announced some changes in the responsibilities of the ministerial team working with the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning. Full details.  Keith Brown’s title changes from the Minister for Schools and Skills, to the Minister for Skills and Lifelong Learning. Community Learning and Development continues to be among his responsibilities. They also include ‘Universal provision’ for young people ‘(e.g. youth work)’. He is supported in this area by Adam Ingram, whose responsibilities also include ‘Workforce (Children and Young People)’ and ‘Regeneration (Children and Young People)’.

Declaration of Dunbar

In October groups interested in promoting local production and consumption of food in Scotland came together for the first time and issued this Declaration:
“We are working towards a sustainable Scotland in which, in every region we produce more of what we eat and eat more of what we produce.
We believe a more localised food system would be better for the environment, health, community and economy of our country. We are building a movement to create a food system that:

• Is locally based with shorter supply chains
• Promotes and respects seasonality
• Is resilient
• Is fair and accessible to all
• Creates and maintains a sustainable livelihood for producers.

These steps are essential in order to ensure a fairer more equitable food system appropriate for a low carbon economy.”

Local community development in practice

The 2009 SURF award in the ‘People’ category went to Playbusters, a grassroots voluntary organisation that provides a broad range of educational projects for children, families and the wider community within the East End of Glasgow. Project funding originally came through the Standing Up to Antisocial Behaviour Award. A grant was later awarded by The Big Lottery Fund in Scotland.
Its activities have included: 

• A programme of collaborative working between schools and older people, providing opportunities to learn new skills and enjoy visits to places of interest.
• ‘Easy Spanish’ workshops, which offer a fun family learning experience, and a ‘hidden’ educational agenda; these are having a visible impact upon the number of children who move on in education, and demand has grown substantially
• A practical environmental project that was developed through engagement with local Eco-School committees. Participating groups took part in the creation of community gardens in several neighbourhood locations, and the project has also developed a rooftop garden and an allotment.
• Opportunities for local people to become involved with the project in a voluntary capacity, and to later progress onto paid sessional work.

So, by my reckoning, their community development approach has helped to make people Smarter, Greener, Wealthier, Safer and almost certainly Healthier. For more information, contact Margaret Layden on 0141 551 0071 or info@playbusters.org.uk

Community enterprise enters new league

Stenhousemuir FC has become the first professional football club from either the Scottish or English Leagues to become a Community Interest Company. More.

On line

Guidance on social networking  YouthLink Scotland, in partnership with Young Scot and Fujitsu, organised a very successful conference last year on how youth work can engage young people through the use of digital technologies with a special focus on social networking. Delegates were asked to contribute to the development of Guidance Notes for Youth Workers. These Guidance Notes are now available to download along with copies of some of the workshop presentations.

Lifelong Learning debates Materials from Lifelong Learning UK's annual conference are now available. As well as key note speakers Will Hutton, of The Work Foundation and Stephen Uden, Head of Skills and Economic Affairs at Microsoft Ltd, the conference included inputs from Rory MacLeod and Duncan Simpson of the CLD Standards Council for Scotland around the nature of professionalism

“The debate around professionalism is particularly pertinent at the present time in the CLD Standards Council. We want to embrace all of those working in the sector, so we are not about to develop an exclusive club for ‘professionals’. On the other hand, we do want our workforce to aspire to the good things about professionalism – like shared values, a commitment to quality improvement, and taking personal responsibility for the development of services”

A Practitioners Guide to A Curriculum for Excellence  Copies of presentations on how A Curriculum for Excellence relates to work with young people (from a seminar held by YouthLink Scotland in partnership with Learning Teaching Scotland) are available.

Publications

SOAs and youth work  The Children’s Voluntary Sector Policy Officers Network has analysed the extent to which issues affecting children and young people have been addressed in the 2009 Single Outcome Agreements (SOAs). 

Meeting the Shared Challenge  The Scottish Community Development Centre has produced a short Briefing Paper on the community-led approach to health improvement and the work of its Meeting the Shared Challenge programme to promote this.

Community Self Help   The Community Development Foundation has published a position paper (free download) on community self help. It describes this as the collective ability of groups to make decisions and take direct action in addressing their communities’ needs — with minimal influence from government. Self-help groups and projects can complement existing public services, and offer an innovative way to enrich service provision across the country.

Voluntary Sector and Freedom of Information  A survey report has been published on the use of Freedom of Information laws by the Third Sector in Scotland. It appears to cover organisations of all sizes and types, and finds that half of all respondents had made a Freedom of Information request. 

National elected member development strategy  A National Elected Member Development Strategy for Scottish local government has been published by the Improvement Service. The strategy outlines how councils, the Improvement Service and other partners can work together to establish development programmes and other opportunities for elected members to develop their political, leadership and governance skills. It says:

“Without elected members supporting improvement and change agendas at local levels much in terms of public service improvement could stall or fail to have the impact that it otherwise could have. Elected members will be fundamentally important in ensuring that improvements in outcomes for communities, families and individuals occur and as the only locally elected individuals within the community, they will also be a vital link to engaging with the community itself as part of the improvement process”.

Green Up – English guide  CDF has produced Green Up!  (free download), which ‘provides community groups with everything they need to work productively with their councils on environment and sustainability issues’. Though the general principles are useful, the guide is very much about the English system.

However its plain English approach makes it very handy if you want a quick description of how Local Area Agreements, National Indicators etc work south of the border. Shouldn’t someone be producing something like this for Scotland?

Practitioner - Led Action Research  A pack is available from the Scottish Government containing examples of practitioner led action research in adult literacies, and a guidance booklet on how to carry out this out. 

Teaching Reading to Adults Handbook  A pack created by adult literacies practitioners in Scotland is now available. It is described by one participant as “A collection of ideas, strategies, innovations, resources and terribly clever practices.”

Impact of devolution  The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has published a series of reports on the impact of devolution. One looks at the impact on Area-based Regeneration, identifying the relevant policies in each nation.

Another looks at devolution and low income and identifies some of the key challenges in the years ahead if devolution is to make more of an impact
on people and places in poverty. 

Creating a Successful Development Trust  The Development Trusts Association is distributing a learning resource based on the story of Comrie Development Trust. Community organisations who would like a free copy of “Inspiring Change”, which includes a booklet, DVD and timeline wallchart, should contact Katrina .

Community Benefit clauses  The Scottish Social Enterprise Coalition has published ‘Winning new business through sustainable procurement : An introduction to Community Benefit clauses’, described as ‘a new slow burn revolution currently taking place in public sector procurement practice’.

OECD on community capacity building  The OECD has published a guide to ‘Community Capacity Building: creating a better future together’, edited by Antonella Noya, Emmy Clarence and Gary Craig. Drawing on examples from around the world, the book analyses community capacity building in social policy, local economic development and environment. Purchase details.

Events

Civil Society Summit
Thursday 18th February, Edinburgh International Conference Centre, 10am (Registration 9:30) to 4pm Free, but places limited Details

This summit represents a desire to bring all sections of the Third Sector together with other parts of civil society such as faith groups, trades unions, campaign groups and co-operatives to discuss the themes of:

• Poverty & economic democracy
• Equalities & Human Rights
• Climate Change and Climate Justice.

YouthLink Scotland National Conference
Thursday 18 March, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Glasgow
The YouthLink Scotland National Conference and Youth Worker of the Year Awards 2010 : conference brochure,  booking form, or book online at  www.youthlinkscotland.org

SURF Annual Conference
Thursday 25th March, Roxburghe Hotel, Edinburgh
To receive early notice by email, please sign up for the SURF events e-bulletin.

The theme of the 2010 SURF Annual Conference is sustaining and reinventing community regeneration in a time of anticipated record reductions in public spending, sharply rising levels of unemployment and resultant poverty.

There will also be an Academic Symposium on the 24th March, in co-operation with the Public Policy Institute of the University of Edinburgh, to help link Scotland’s regeneration oriented academic resources with practitioners and policy-makers.

Social enterprise trade fair
Wednesday 21st April, Corn Exchange, Edinburgh

Early bird rates are available for those booking at Scotland’s premier social enterprise trade fair, S2S, prior to Friday 19th February. Last year’s event attracted almost 500 attendees and exhibitors. Details 

Don’t forget

To book for the CDAS conference on ‘Putting Community Development into Community Safety’, Monday, 22 March in the Renfield Centre, 260 Bath Street, Glasgow G2 4JP from 10.30am (registration 10) to 4pm. Flier. Please book online, or use this booking form

Christmas 2009

CDAS conference on community safety

Bookings are now open for our conference on ‘Putting Community Development into Community Safety’. This will take place on Monday, 22 March 2010 in the Renfield Centre, 260 Bath Street, Glasgow G2 4JP from 10.30am (registration 10) to 4pm. The conference is organised in association with the Scottish Community Safety Network.
Speakers include:

• Fergus Ewing MSP, Minister for Community Safety
• Detective Chief Superintendant John Carnochan, Violence Reduction Unit on ‘Violence reduction – a public health issue’
• Jon Bannister, Senior Lecturer / Network Leader (Communities and Crime) the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research, Glasgow University on ‘Community development and best practice in community safety’.

Workshops will include sessions on: community development practice examples; How Community Safety Partnerships can support community development; Community Learning and Development approaches; Preventing inter-community conflict and promoting cohesion; Violence against women; and possibly more.

The cost is £25 for voluntary & community organisations and £35 for other organisations. Here is a flier for the event. Please book online, or use this booking form.

SNH/CDAS event: Community Learning and Development  and Sustainable Development Education

Across Scotland there are people working in Community Learning and Development (CLD) to build communities’ capacity to address local issues. There are also people working in Sustainable Development Education (SDE) to encourage local communities to take action to address global issues.

Scottish Natural Heritage, in association with CDAS and the Sustainable Development Education Network, is holding an event to bring together these two groups to share their expertise, learn from each other, and examine opportunities to embed best practice in CLD into SDE, and best practice in SDE into CLD. Rory McLeod of the CLD Standards Council and Morag Watson of the SDE Network will lead discussions on the two approaches.  Practical examples of CLD and SDE approaches to working with communities to support local and global action will be showcased. 

 The event will take place 10am (9.30 registration) to 4pm on 10 February at The Tolbooth, Jail Wynd, Stirling FK8 1DE, cost £55. Flier. Booking Form

UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development – Action Plan

Work has been proceeding on an Action Plan for the second half of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. A conference for education and sustainable development stakeholders to look at the key messages and actions in the Action Plan is being held in Edinburgh on the afternoon of 21 January. It is important that people involved in all forms of community learning are represented. Although places are by invitation, please enquire via Peter Taylor peter@pdtaylor.com 0141 586 7588 if you would like to be involved.

Advocacy and community development – CDAS discussion

The CDAS website now contains a full summary of the presentation by and discussion with Professor David Donnison of Glasgow University at our last members’ meeting on the role of advocacy services in the changing welfare state in Scotland. This led to some interesting discussions about the common origins of community development and advocacy, and the issues both face.

Safer Communities Programme

The Safer Communities Programme was announced at the National Community Safety Convention in September. It is intended to provide the framework for a series of new national guidance and support which the Scottish Government's Community Safety Unit will publish over the coming months.  An introduction to this series is now available. The programme has been developed to support:

• Multi-agency strategy level groups dealing with issues relating to community safety.
• Staff from partner organisations who play a key role in providing support to the partnership and delivering partnership activity.

Climate act “an opportunity for community development”

The Sustainable Development Commission Scotland's Third Annual Assessment of the Government's progress on sustainable development says that the world leading the Climate Change (Scotland) Act is a golden opportunity for the Scottish Government to deliver on health, community development and social inclusion. The report claims there needs to be a rethink of the structure of communities and economy if Scotland is serious about a low-carbon sustainable lifestyle.

Better Community Engagement Demonstration Projects

The Better Community Engagement work that is being pursued by the regeneration division of the Scottish Government currently involves a series of Demonstration Projects, leading towards an integrated programme to develop skills and capacity in community engagement. Here is a communications brief on current progress.

Social Return on Investment – and the alternatives?

Many organisations in Scotland are currently considering a Social Return on Investment (SROI) approach to reporting on their performance. This interesting piece from Social Enterprise magazine asks, to my mind in a constructive and useful way, whether SROI is the right method for everyone. It concludes that “SAA [Social Accounting and Audit]  and SROI each have considerable strengths, but also a number of weaknesses; in theory, a merger of the two processes into a new approach combining the best features of both may prove beneficial, but it is not yet clear whether this will be achieved.”

Are there three sectors in the Third Sector?

Senscot has produced a short paper that sets out very clearly a view that they and some others have been strongly urging, namely that the so-called ‘Third Sector’ is in fact made up of ‘three main branches – the social enterprise, the community or the voluntary sub-sectors’ which require to be represented in different ways.  

Social enterprise manifesto

The Scottish Social Enterprise Coalition (SSEC) launched its manifesto in Westminster this month. It calls for the UK government to shake up its support for the sector in banking, employment, procurement and the environment. SSEC chair Laurie Russell, launched the manifesto: ‘There’s an opportunity now for social enterprises to grow to a scale where they can deliver for the community with social and environmental business.' he said. He added that government support was 'one of the key aspects' of continued success.

EU Year for Combating Poverty

2010 is the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. The Poverty Alliance are keen to highlight the wide range of activities that are taking place in the UK to address poverty and social exclusion, ensuring that a lasting legacy of good practice and knowledge will emerge from 2010. If you want them to help publicise the work you are already doing to address poverty and highlight it to the members of the Network across Europe, please download the form from their website. 

Community Allowance scheme pilots

We have previously highlighted the idea of a Community Allowance scheme that will allow people on Incapacity Benefit or Employment Support Allowance to do up to 16 hours a week of work that benefits their community, paying them up to £92 a week without affecting their benefit entitlements. The Create Consortium, a group of not-for-profit organisations set up to promote the scheme, on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions has now announced the three organisations that will pilot the scheme in various areas of England. The project is expected to run for two years from January. Background report from New Economics Foundation.

In defence of community based Housing Associations

Community controlled housing associations have been one of Scotland’s housing and regeneration success stories in the last four decades. The Glasgow and West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations, Employers in Voluntary Housing (EVH) and SHARE have come together to look at how they respond to the challenges facing the sector. They see threats arising in recent pronouncements from the Scottish Housing Regulator and in the draft of the forthcoming Housing Scotland Bill.

Research into Community Ownership and Management of Assets

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has commissioned the Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR) and Cordis Bright to undertake national research into the community ownership and management of assets. The researchers would very much appreciate input from voluntary and community groups by completing their short online survey. The deadline for completing the online survey is Friday 18 December.

Standards Council Workplan

The Work Plan of the CLD Standards Council for Scotland, detailing the key activities it is taking forward, is now accessible online.

Scottish Government consults on Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisations

The Scottish Government has begun its consultation on options for implementing the part of the Charities and Trustees Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 which relates to Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisations (SCIOs).  Written responses to the consultation must be submitted to the Scottish Government by 26 February.

Embedding an Outcomes Approach in Tackling Poverty / Community Regeneration

The Improvement Service and the Scottish Centre for Regeneration are looking for local Partnerships who will take part in a pilot project on embedding an outcomes approach in tackling poverty and community regeneration. The project will provide hands on, practical support to four local partnerships to help them realise the full potential of an outcomes approach in their work on tackling poverty/community regeneration. Details of the project and information on how to apply, plus an application form are available. The deadline for applying to participate is 18th January.

Online Resources

Third Sector Online Interactive Evidence Library SCVO has launched this evidence library at: www.scvo.org.uk/evidencelibrary

Beyond GDP The European Union and other partners, including the OECD, have a ‘Beyond GDP’ website highlighting work on improving measures of progress, wealth and well-being. It includes information on recent developments, such as the EU policy paper “GDP and beyond: Measuring progress in a changing world.”, and on ongoing work on indicators to assess social, economic, and environmental progress.

Housing & Neighbourhoods Monitor The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has produced a Housing and Neighbourhoods Monitor, which offers easy viewing of maps of a range of social and economic indicators at scales ranging from UK wide to local neighbourhoods, and charts showing trends.

Publications

Beyond the Fairer Scotland Fund The Scottish Government  has published research by ODS to assess the past development and implementation of the Fairer Scotland Fund, and to provide a detailed picture of the continued support needs of Community Planning Partnerships in tackling poverty and deprivation under an outcome based framework.  Findings include:

• There was little evidence that regeneration programmes over the last ten years have acted as catalysts for mainstream expenditure. On their own, the ... funds were seen to be insufficient to bring about the scale of change that is needed.
• There is a perception that partnership working has improved during the life of the FSF. Reasons given for this included shared outcomes giving partners a clear focus for their work and partnerships being taken more seriously by senior managers in public agencies
• Active members of communities often felt less directly engaged in strategic, thematic approaches than they had been in neighbourhood based programmes.
• Continuing community engagement appears to be mainly at a local level and to involve consultation rather than decision making.
• There is a need to develop ways of involving communities (and service users) that are appropriate for these strategic approaches. This may involve new methods of engagement - and it will be important to share emerging good practice in this area.

State of Social Enterprise The State of Social Enterprise Survey 2009  (summary) was the largest survey of its kind of social enterprises in the UK. It finds that despite the recession, social enterprises are twice as confident of future growth as SMEs (smaller businesses).

Connecting Generations The Scottish Centre for Intergenerational Practice has published “Connecting Generations: A Guide to Best Practice”, a practical guide to developing your own intergenerational programmes, with case studies of pioneering projects in Scotland. 

Equal opportunities and the Scottish Parliament The Equality and Human Rights Commission has published “Equal opportunities and the Scottish Parliament: a progress review”, in order to contribute  to understanding of the progress made by the Scottish Parliament and  Scottish Government in using the equal opportunities powers granted  under the Scotland Act 1998. It finds that:

• Understanding of the equal opportunities powers conveyed by the Scotland Act is quite limited. 
• Where the equal opportunities powers are used, the impact can be limited as a result of a perceived lack of scrutiny and leadership from the Scottish Government. 
• But, even with a variable understanding of what the Scotland Act powers mean in practice, equality considerations are found to be embedded in public policy discourse in Scotland.

Tackling Health inequalities: who does what? CHEX, Voluntary Health Scotland, Community Food and Health Scotland and UK Public Health have joined to produce a briefing entitled ‘Tackling Health Inequalities in Scotland: working with communities – a partnership of Scottish Health Intermediary Bodies’ which highlights their collaborative work, together with their distinctive roles and remits and the activities of their respective constituents.

SCVO pre-Manifesto Discussion Document SCVO has issued a Discussion Document to start a process of sector-wide discussion to produce a Scottish Voluntary Sector Manifesto for the UK Elections 2010 and Scottish Elections 2011.

The highs and lows of a community association Ormlie Community Association has produced a book based on the last 12 years of community development and regeneration in the Ormlie area, Thurso.  It highlights the lessons that have been learned over the period.  The book is available at a cost of £7.99 plus postage from Ormlie Community Association Ltd, 108 Marr Terrace, Thurso KW14 7SW.  Tel: 01847 891789.  Email: ormlieca@tiscali.co.uk.

A Guide to Collaborative Inquiry and Social Engagement The book “SAS2: A Guide to Collaborative Inquiry and Social Engagement”by Canadian authors Jacques M. Chevalier and Daniel J. Bucklesis freely availableonline. It argues thatthat group dialogue and social inquiry are crucial for local and global development, and presents the concepts and means needed to support multistakeholder dialogue and a selection of techniques for collaborative inquiry and examples of real-life applications in South Asia and Latin America.

Events

Scottish Credit & Qualifications Framework and Community Learning Practitioners Friday 15 January 2010, 9.50-15.00, Scotland's Colleges, Argyll Court, Stirling (free)
This event will promote and support implementation of the SCQF in community based learning settings.  View programme Book online , closing date 14 January

Policy and practice for community-led health  Monday 1 February 2010, Perth Concert Hall
This conference “Communities, inequality and health improvement: Policy and practice for community-led health” is based on the lessons of the ‘Healthy Communities: Meeting the Shared Challenge’ programme that aims to encourage and support community-led approaches to health improvement throughout Scotland. It aims to share experiences and lessons from across Scotland, to link community-led health to key policy agendas, and help signpost the resources that are now available to support community-led health.

Full details of the event and registration forms will be available shortly on the project website. For enquiries, please contact Lee Goundry at SCDC lee@scdc.org.uk, or 0141 248 1924.

Tackling Poverty and Social Exclusion in Europe through Education for Democratic Citizenship / Human Rights Education Glasgow, March 3-4, 2010
This conference, organised by BEMIS (Black and Ethnic Minorities Infrastructure in Scotland) and DARE (Democracy and Human Rights Education in Adult Learning), consists of country reports and case studies from all over Europe to highlight the effects of poverty and social exclusion on education for democratic citizenship and human rights education - and vice versa. Workshops and site visits introduce the conference participants to local and European best practices. For more information visit the DARE website

Fighting Poverty in Scotland: Achievements and Opportunities
The Poverty Alliance's annual series of free seminars across Scotland will focus on looking at what has been achieved so far, and what the anti-poverty movement in Scotland should be pushing for in the next period. A total of 10 seminars are being organised this year:

 For further details and to registerclick here

How to engage with the NHS
Tuesday 19 January 2009 – Dumfries    
Tuesday 2 February 2009 - Falkirk
Tuesday16 February 2009 – Inverness   

Voluntary Health Scotland is promoting a series of one-day seminars across Scotland to equip third sector organisations with the skills to engage with NHS Health Boards. Each day is planned to help members of voluntary and community organisations, Councils for Voluntary Service, Volunteer Centres, Social Enterprises and Equality and Diversity groups develop strategies for increasing influence on and engagement with the NHS. As there are limited spaces it is advisable to book early. To register for these seminars please complete and post / fax the registration form on the event flyer , complete online or call Voluntary Health Scotland on 0131 225 7290. 

Competencies of Community Researchers Wednesday 24 February, 9.30-16.30pm, Thistle Hotel, Glasgow (TBC) £50 until 6th January, £75 until 5th February, then £125
The Glasgow Anti Racist Alliance GARA is holding this conference to help identify the type of research experiences that people working in the community have had in the areas of health, education, employment, housing, social justice, youth work, etc. (not necessarily exclusive to BME communities). GARA also wants to identify the core competencies required of community/peer researchers in order to conduct their tasks effectively.

The conference is suitable for anyone involved in community based research, peer/community researchers, community research contractors, independent researchers, organisation leaders, service providers, policy makers, academics interested in conducting community research.

For more information visit the conference page or contact GARA 0141 418 6530 or events@gara.org.uk.

Archive of past bulletins

Please keep sending me items for circulation to other CDAS members

Policy & Development Consultant,
Community Development Alliance Scotland,
56, Turnberry Road
Glasgow G11 5AP
0141 586 7588
peter@pdtaylor.com