Sharing experience : shaping practice

1. Sharing experience : shaping practice Community Empowerment in Scotland: Some Context and Questions Andy Milne, SURF Chief Executive

2. Sharing experience : shaping practice SURF’s Role • Independent, cross-sector and holistic • Focus on ‘wellbeing’ as the ultimate outcome • Informing and influencing policy and practice

3. Sharing experience : shaping practice SURF Community Regeneration Awards

4. Sharing experience : shaping practice Scottish Policy Context • Community Planning – pre-existing • Regeneration Strategy – new • Infrastructure Plan – new • Cities Strategy – new • Community Empowerment & Renewal Bill – forthcoming

5. Sharing experience : shaping practice Questions of Empowerment • How ‘empowered’ is the Scottish Parliament to support regeneration? • What is it doing with the powers it already has? • What would it do with more powers? • What about welfare reform & tax policy?

6. Sharing experience : shaping practice Questions of Empowerment (2) • What is the optimum relationship of empowerment between national government, local authorities, private sector, third sector and communities? • Independent people and communities – or just parliaments? • Are we still handing our power to ‘the professionals’?

7. Sharing experience : shaping practice Reality, Resources, Resilience

8. Sharing experience : shaping practice Recession impacts • False economies • Blocked systems • Fractured plans • Reverse empowerment • Sense of abandonment

9. Sharing experience : shaping practice Ameliorative Responses • Creative collaborations • Liberating the front line • Willing partners ‘bending the rules’ • Useful political and bureaucratic cover of pilot projects • Some successes in scaling up and devolving down

10. Sharing experience : shaping practice SURF Annual Conference – Reality Checks • It’s the stupid economy – 7th biggest • First class services – Sharp elbows • Regeneration games – Fast track or false start? • This land is whose land? – 7:84 • Community assets & liabilities – dividend or diversion?

11. Sharing experience : shaping practice Thanks For more on SURF and its work, please visit: www.scotregen.co.uk andymilne@scotregen.co.uk 0141 585 6848