Networking
'...the process by which relationships and contacts between people or organisations are established, nurtured and utilised for mutual benefit.'
Alison Gilchrist: 'Community Development & Networking' (2000)
Networking is a means of communicating and organising according to a common cause, and a means of providing access to information, support, resources and influence. As such, networking is central to community development practice. In fact, CDX originally developed as an informal network of people coming together to champion community development.
CDX's support for networking has traditionally been in putting people in touch with one another, by creating opportunities for people to meet, and by providing spaces for interaction and learning. This might enable community workers to develop links between different organisations, to provide support to membership organisations, cross-sector partnerships and coalitions.
CDX supports networks of community development workers around the UK, including regional, sub-regional and specialist networks.
Regional Community Development Networks
Background
In early 2002, SCCD seminars in each of the nine regions on English Regionalisation: Opportunities & Challenges for Community Development. These seminars were held in co-operation with the Community Development Foundation and the Federation of Community Work Training Groups (now known as Federation for Community Development Learning - FCDL).
Following these events, regional networks have been established to promote the values and methods of community development. The aim is that these networks can then provide the regional agencies - such as Regional Development Agencies (RDAs), Government Offices for the Regions (GOs), Regional Assemblies etc. - with a point of access for community development in the area and plug into regional funding. A list of these contacts can be found below.
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Regional Contacts
Each region has put forward a selected representative to act as a contact for the area and to field any enquiries and receive information on behalf of the region. These contacts are as follows:
North East
valharris@phonecoop.coop
East
jenwingate@eeda.org.uk
Jan Crawley
You can find the new Regional Community Development Networks leaflet HERE
If you have any queries or ideas about regionalisation in general, please get in touch with Tanwir Rauf at CDX.
