  Community DevelopmentBrief Description:Community development is a long term approach of building active and sustainable communities based on social justice and mutual respect. Moreover, it is about changing power structures to remove the barriers that prevent people from participating in the issues that affect their lives and enabling the community itself to develop solutions to the problems that are set internally.
Description:Community Development is not a typical participation method as it is based on long term work in communities rather than one off of short term interventions. Other methods of participation often form part of a wider Community Development approach. Community development workers work alongside individuals, groups and organisations principally within communities that are marginalised and excluded due either to their geographic location or as a �community of interest (eg. Young people. Migrant communities, Black and Minority Ethnic communities) It challenges the notion that solutions to local problems are found outside communities themselves and it seeks to identify and develop the skills and confidence of local people to address issues they define. Community Development involves starting with the issues which people in communities identify as being important to them, rather than starting with the issues that an outside agency wants to tackle. It is essentially concerned with helping people to understand why the issues they want to tackle have come about, and why some groups have more power or resources than others. Used For:Community Development is used particularly in disadvantaged areas or with sections of the population who are at risk of exclusion, facing difficult conditions or who need to overcome oppression and inequality. Relationships of groups to other community members, other local groups or organisations in the locality, and to public authorities and private sector organizations are key to Community Development in practice. Suitable participants:Community Development can work across all communities but it is focused more on communities experiencing poverty, disadvantage and / or discrimination.
Cost:As with any community based intervention, costing a community development project will vary depending on a number of factors including but not limited to; the concerns and issues to be tackled; the level (eg. For one group, the immediate neighbourhood, the entire strategic area etc) at which activities are focussed as well as the type of activities that need to be undertaken; the desired number of participants and the intended outputs / outcomes desired. Additionally to develop effective community action requires support from skilled practitioners who have access to support and other resources.
Time Requirements:Community development is a long term process and it has to be recognised that working with communities involves building trust, raising self-esteem and confidence as well as overcoming barriers to participation and conflict.
When To Use / What It Can Deliver:It is an essential component of community engagement and community empowerment. It has been argued that without community development other forms of community action are unlikely to be sustainable. By creating confident communities it helps to develop active citizens who are involved in the democratic process. It offers support to communities as they develop their own solutions to local problems.
When Not To Use / What It Cannot Deliver:Community development is a long term process particularly because of its focus on people and aims to create long term change. It is not about recruiting volunteers or volunteering per se as those who participate in CD work are often those who have no surplus of resources or time and are �forced� into taking action because they have no choice. It isn�t the answer to everything but it can be used effectively to meet targets on regeneration, health inequalities, engaging children and young people, etc
Strengths:� More inclusive than many other approaches and it is concerned with issues identified by the communities themselves rather than those perceived by external agencies Weaknesses:� It is often used as a short term solution for policy / strategic problems which curtail its effectiveness and true value. Origin:Developed in the 1960s in response to long standing issues in communities of deprivation.
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Related Methods
Restrictions In UseNone Further InformationContact the Community Development Exchange Scotia Works tel: 0114 241 2760 |
Popular Methods
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