Community Learning Development Resource 301 – 06
REVIEWING A PATCH AUDIT AND PROFILING EXPERIENCE
SUMMARY
A group activity for workers engaged in auditing and profiling a locality, community or neighbourhood, in preparation for the work of a project engaging people in community based learning, building community capacity within an area of deprivation.
Start with a deconstruction of worker experiences of community profiling – an exercise in pairs using the framework provided byHenderson’s six points:
- Environment
- Demography
- Power
- Communication
- History
- Resources
Each pair first share the environment – the nature of their target community location – confirm this and discuss aspects such as complexity, variety and sub-communities.
Prompts for sharing experiences within pairs/groups:
- What do we now know about the locals and in particular about the target ‘hard to reach’ people.
- Have we identified the needs and issues affecting their lives – what matters to them?
- What are the challenges for them and their aspirations – how can learning help?
- Have we talked and listened to intermediaries and primaries (target learners)?
- Is further contact with individuals likely, in due course, to lead to finding people with similar learning needs and the informal facilitation of groups?
- Where does the power lie, who has it and on what basis – within families and communities?
- Are there were issues around structural power in the communities? (As workers we have power)
- Who are the gatekeepers, where are the blockages and who are the stakeholders?
Further discussion in groups – reactions and implications for the way in which we will plan for learning:
- How might learning help powerless people to push the boundaries?
- How important are informal learning opportunities within familiar and user-friendly community settings, as a first tentative step towards learning recovery – when non-confident learners are ready for them?
- Is it likely that for many ‘hard-to-reach’ (primaries), an individual willingness to engage in informal group learning in the community would be significant progression?
- How might we evidence and demonstrate such gains?
Completing the activity
Participants identify their ongoing support and development needs – to be recorded and used to inform an ongoing training and support programme.
- ‘Promotion of learning should reflect what matters to people, their families and communities. Neighbourhood renewal and cultural enrichment must go hand in hand with economic goals’’
- ‘Informal learning that arises from social interaction and involvement in the community can be transformative and lead to significant personal development outcomes’. (McGivney 2001)