Community Learning Development Resource 402 – 06
A LEARNING COMPONENT IN A BOROUGH COUNCIL COMMUNITY PLAN?
SUMMARY
To what extent does a Borough Council Community Plan provide local people with meaningful and effective access to power and influence in the planning processes – is it an accessible strategic plan inclusive of a ‘Learning ’ component or does it invite passive acceptance?
The issue is whether or not local people need to learn about local community plans so that they can participate effectively, with empowerment in their delivery?
- Do they need to understand and contribute to the plan – and do they need to be able to discuss, debate and influence the planning processes and outputs – and are they ready for this – or are there learning journeys to be undertaken towards effective empowerment?
- Or should they just remain largely passive and await the outputs and outcomes of any community plan – delivered to them from above?
- Does the Community Plan invite consultation, discussion and debate? Who is making sure that local people have power and influence? Who is checking that they have the capacity to be effective influencers?
- Is an effective community ‘VOICE’ essential for sustainable community plan outcomes? Is this ‘VOICE’ being heard and listened to?
PROMPTS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION
- Is there likely to be a learning theme throughout all of the Borough Council Community Plan strands? Is a learning component implicit in each strand?
- Would learning play a part in how the aims in the strands of the Community plan could be achieved?
- Is it likely that the profile of learning will need to be raised?
- What connections might be made between this Plan and other plans – e.g., the Community Safety Plan, the Local Health Plan?