On this page: Community Development in Action – Principles of Community Development Practice– CDAS Activities– Constitution

About Us

Community Development Alliance Scotland brings together networks and organisations at the Scottish level to promote policy and practice that supports community development.

The objectives of the Alliance are to facilitate and raise the standards of community development practice and to:

• Develop and influence policy, practice and training;
• Enable exchange of information on community development policy;
• Provide a forum for the discussion and debate of issues of national importance related to community development;
• Provide opportunities for the study of specific aspects of community development;
• Advise the Scottish Government, its Agencies and Non-departmental Public Bodies, on matters relating to community development;
• Collaborate with national agencies and contribute to the development of national strategies.

CDAS is not a single-issue lobby group, but a partnership network that brings together perspectives that are crucial to many aspects of modern government and also to local Community Planning and other partnerships.

It supports better policy and practice on many issues of importance to the Scottish Government, by providing a forum for constructive and independent debate and commentary.

Its members and observers are drawn from 29 organisations working at national level in:

• the statutory sector
• the voluntary sector
• professional bodies and networks

It has recently received funding from the Scottish Government (Learning Connections) to help it to develop its activities further.

Community Development in action

Community Development is essential to the effective delivery of:

• wealthier and fairer communities
• healthier communities
• safer and stronger communities.

It is a process and way of working which helps people to build active and influential communities. It is strongly based on values of justice, equality and mutual respect.

We often rely upon it to a greater extent than we appreciate. This is because the people who deliver the work put the emphasis on demonstrating what participants in communities can do, not on their own role.

Active citizens working to improve the quality of life in their communities are essential to the process. But professional community development workers often play a vital role in enabling them to do so.

Community development workers can be employed in local authorities, the NHS, voluntary and community organisations and many other settings. The communities that they work with can be based on where people live, or on a shared concern, issue or identity.

They can help people to:

• Gain the knowledge, skills and confidence to act collectively
• Strengthen organisation, networking and leadership
• Take action to address inequalities and issues that affect their lives
• Work for change through improved local democracy and involvement
• Make the most of opportunities for consultation or partnership working.

They also work with agencies, to increase their capacity to understand and work with communities.

Principles of Community Development Practice

Community development activities should be based on a commitment to the following principles:

Empowerment – increasing the ability of individuals and groups to influence issues that affect them and their communities;
Participation – supporting people to take part in decision making;
Inclusion, equality of opportunity and anti-discrimination – recognising that some people may need additional support to overcome barriers they face;
Self determination – supporting the right of people to make their own choices; and
Partnership – recognising that many agencies can contribute to community development.

(adapted from Working and Learning Together to Build Stronger Communities (Communities Scotland))

Activities

CDAS Activities are expanding but currently include:

Open events. The next of these is on the Scottish Government’s proposals for ‘New Powers for Communities’ (more in News section). We are working closely with the officials involved to ensure that this event contributes to the discussions on how the proposals will be implemented.

Members’ events. These provide an opportunity for members to exchange up to date information and discuss issues in depth – for example last month we looked at how community development can contribute most effectively to improving health.

Providing information. We regularly pass information on to members and will soon be able to do so to the wider public through an updated website.

Consultation. We consult our members and respond to relevant Scottish Government consultations and initiatives by summarising and reflecting their – inevitably diverse – views.

Public information. We are hoping to produce a short and practical pamphlet offering an explanation of community development to other professions, elected members and the public at large.

Constitution

CDAS is a registered Scottish charity. You can see our constitution here.