The standard response to am a CD worker “oh so your social worker..? You’re a psychologist..? You help people..?”
So here is my attempt to explain community development which is more complex than it sounds and this answer may over simplify it.
There is no universally agreement of the definition. The definition will change depending on who you ask, what their training, experience, and or the context of where they are employed, however there will be some standard common agreements on the core objectives.
When asked, I try to explain my job, as being like a ‘team coach’. The team (Community) can consists of thousands of people, all of which are diverse in their backgrounds, cultures, beliefs, attitudes, perspectives, skills, abilities, political views, needs, wishes and dreams.
It’s our jobs to support those who want to bring about changes and improvements to the quality of life within their community. In Terms of CD Community is often defined as a specific geographic area or groups/gatherings with a common interest.
In addition to working with communities, we have to work with those who are in a ‘position of power or influence’ who can bring about change to policy and service delivery (both at front line and senior levels) where we try to support them in working with the community they serve. We do this as they may not be community workers, but need to engage the community to be effective in their own roles. For example police officers, are not community workers, however they deal with both criminals & complainers and often rely on community support for information to aid in their detection efforts.
We CD workers strive to ensure community has ownership, in decision making processes which affect the quality of their day-to-day lives. Community members are their own best experts, in terms of finding and implementing successful solutions to community challenges.
“Coaching is helping to identify the skills and capabilities that are within the person, and enabling them to use them to the best of their ability – and by that increasing the independence within the individual, and reducing reliance”
(Rixon, Nick, UK Coaching Academy CD "Goals and Motivations".)
Every CD worker, has different types people they work with, for CD workers to be effective they need to work with collective community using wider variety of tools to achieve the overall aims of the CD process.
We work with local residents within a community including those who may be classed, by some, as being in ‘social disadvantage’ (often they are more socially aware/rich than those that are not classed as ‘disadvantaged’), public or social housing residents, private residents (renters/owners), Local Businesses, Government Ministers and Departmental Officials/Services, and Non–Government Agencies.
Community Development Exchange UK network defined community development as:
“Both an occupation (such as a community development worker in a local authority) and a way of working with communities. Its key purpose is to build communities based on justice, equality and mutual respect.
Community development involves changing the relationships between ordinary people and people in positions of power, so that everyone can take part in the issues that affect their lives.
It starts from the principle that within any community there is a wealth of knowledge and experience which, if used in creative ways, can be channeled into collective action to achieve the communities' desired goals.
Community development practitioners work alongside people in communities to help build relationships with key people and organisations and to identify common concerns.
They create opportunities for the community to learn new skills and, by enabling people to act together, community development practitioners help to foster social inclusion and equality
Examples of types of work we carry will generally include:-
• Helping people find common cause on issues that affect them
• Helping people work together on such issues under their own control
• Building the strengths and independence of community groups, organisations and networks
• Building equity, inclusiveness, participation and cohesion amongst people and their groups and organisations
• Empowering people and their organisations where appropriate to influence and help transform public policies and services and other factors affecting the conditions of their lives
• Advising and informing public authorities on community needs, viewpoints and processes and assisting them to strengthen communities and work in genuine partnership with them
(Crown copyright -The Community Development Challenge 2006 report)
At the heart of any community development is the motto “never do for a community what it can do for themselves” or as the old proverb says “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Many would be surprised how this intention is rarely applied and lot welfare workers are responsible for aiding people to remain trapped in poverty and not just in terms of money. Another way of looking at CD, you can’t help someone stuck in a whole by jumping into the whole with them but you can help them find the means/tools of escape.
I moved on from working with individual case work, (advice and advocacy services) as I learned early on, that a lot of the presenting problems of individuals could be solved through changes to policy and practice and even collective and often entrenched attitudes.
People would present themselves as individuals and their problems, were in the main, all very common and familiar.
Please don’t misunderstand me, Community support workers who work with individuals on a case by case basis, provided an unquestionable worthwhile work and make difference to individuals lives daily that is invaluable.
I found case work frustrating and the systems and polices that were there to support people, often were the cause of the problems in the first place. (more about that on another day)
Community development is often associated with empowerment. However I personally do not subscribe to the belief that says one human being can empower another.
‘Empowerment’ of individuals can only comes from their own decisions, experience, and learning from both success and mistakes, through the exercising of their choices, rights and responsibilities as a citizen.
As CD worker, we merely provide the opportunities for people to have experiences and build frameworks/mechanisms were people can safely build relationships and social support networks, which can leads to their sense of empowerment. They become confident enough to become involved in community life, democracy and go on to positively influence policy and practice as it affect the quality of their life and their neighbours.
So at one end we may work with individuals who want to volunteer and learn new skills and meet new friends but maybe scared of their own shadow. At another level we help local activists identify communities’ deficits and assets that might help in fixing local challenges. At another level we will be found building relationship with decision makers to ensure those with no voice has the opportunity to be heard. It’s an established fact that when a community works together with and owns both the problem and the solution, the successes level for positive change is significantly higher.
The marks of a community that is working within a CD framework is where a whole community (those who chose and want to be involved, have the opportunity, resources and support to do so), are setting the agenda of change/improvement and own its implementation. Communities are complicated with many valid yet different perspectives, beliefs and cultures, and lots of shades of grey, However when these groups work together the community are best placed decided their own future.
CD workers should work in an inclusive manner, using the principles of mutual respect to achieve social justice. This will lead to the creation of a ‘melting pot’ of ideas, and implemented tangible results.
Assisting a community to unleashing the limitless potential within it, and asking decision makers to let go of control is no easy task. IF carried out correctly, given time and investment, it can lead to the creation of healthy, safe, positive, well connected and sustainable communities, were people would want to live with pride.
Next articles will explore some of the challenges of CD work.
What your thoughts on Community Development? Does it work? How would you define it?
What do you think the challenges of this model are?
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