Scotland: National Rural NetworkCommunity Links was established by community representatives in February 2002 as an independent organisation for community consultation and engagement. Originally serving Blantyre and North Hamilton, in line with the then ‘Social Inclusion Partnership' (SIP) geographical areas, Community Links is a company limited by guarantee with charitable status.
What are the aims of your project?To engage and empower residents within South Lanarkshire to be positive contributors to local decisions within their communities; take part in learning and development opportunities, benefiting them, the wider community and building community spirit whilst improving their quality of life.
Community Links is based in Blantyre and shares premises with the local Library and Changing Places Blantyre/Hamilton. The office is in a central position and has easy train and bus links for the neighbouring communities to access, to visit the premises. It is an aim of Community Links to reach as many communities as possible and they arrange to meet at locations and times which will benefit the nature of consultation or engagement activity.
Community Links work across all communities in South Lanarkshire including rural and semi rural locations, with a particular emphasis on those which fall into the worst 15 percent for deprivation as identified by the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation. The organisation employs five members of staff and is assisted in many of its projects by their most important and valuable asset - their volunteers, aiming to involve all local communities in particular those who are harder to reach.
Community Links are currently funded through Fairer Scotland Fund until March 2011, The Big Lottery - Dynamic & Inclusive Communities until December 2009, and a one-off Lloyds TSB - Capacity Building Grant. Since 2002 other funders have included VsGS Voluntary Action Fund, Lanarkshire Key Fund, Communities Scotland - Network Support Fund.
Community Links is a proactive community organisation and is always seeking out new and innovative ways in which to deliver their services. The majority of the Board of Directors are community volunteers, which ensures the decisions that are taken are driven by the community. The Board is also represented by one senior employee from Changing Places - Blantyre/Hamilton (formerly SIP), and a senior employee of South Lanarkshire Council, the latter who is represented in an advisory capacity only.
They utilise the expertise of local partners such as the Community Planning Partnership, Strathclyde Police, NHS Lanarkshire, Strathclyde Fire & Rescue, Credit Unions, and similar partner agencies. They also believe in continuous learning and development and implement the same ethos within their staff and volunteers alike, which provides them with new and updated skills in which to carry out their individual roles. Training is provided through the use of the Skillspack - Learning in Regeneration, accredited courses through further education colleges and in-house training delivered by independent training companies.
Throughout the years Community Links have experienced many achievements particularly where their volunteers have been involved. Examples of successes to date include:
The successful working relationships with partners!The biggest challenge that faces Community Links, as with many charities in the current economic climate, is the uncertainty and difficulty in securing funding in order to sustain their project.
Key areas are:
Currently Community Links is undergoing an organisational review and it is hoped that this process will put them in a stronger strategic position.
Community Links (South Lanarkshire), Unit 1a, Clydeview Shopping Centre, Blantyre, Glasgow, G72 0QD.
T (01698) 827583 F (01698) 829000 E comm.links@btconnect.com
The Buchan Development Partnership featured as one of the case studies in the Scottish Government's Community Empowerment Action Plan.
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Community Planning Models
In my opening article on Community Planning, I highlighted that the CP Framework was loose, in order to accommodate and reflect individual local needs. I outlined how it was evolving in Stirling and called for other examples, so that we could all see what was possible.
South Lanarkshire are the first to respond, and what an exciting model! They have clearly been ahead of the game, having started even before the 2003 Act. They demonstrate the power of community activists when they have the backing of the whole community.
Every community has and needs its "lions" and it would be interesting to hear the background to why different communities become activated and how they go about it. How many have used the framework offered by 2003 Act?
Ailsa Horizons
Ailsa Horizons have just taken part in the Featured Project section
Their aims are similar to Community Links - empowering communities, encouraging participation in planning etc. You can take a look at their article here:
https://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/en/node/1332
As their project has just started some of the questions, e.g. biggest achievement and challenge so far, aren't relevant at the moment. We'll be revisiting the project next year to get answers to these questions and get an update on the progress of the project.