The local partnerships that will participate in the project are:
- Dumfries & Galloway Poverty, Inequality and Deprivation Working Group
- Midlothian Improving Opportunities Group
- Falkirk CPP Community Regeneration Theme Group
- Fife Sustainable Communities Group
- West Lothian Life Stages Strategic Board
The pilot project is a collaborative initiative between the Improvement Service (IS) and the Scottish Centre for Regeneration (SCR). The project will provide practical, hands-on support to the local partnerships in order to help them fulfil the potential of the outcomes approach in their work on tackling poverty/community regeneration.
The five partnerships that will participate in the project were drawn from a total of 14 applications. Commenting on the selection process, Jim Carruth of SCR said: "We were encouraged both by the overall number of applications and by the fact that the standard of submission was generally high. The IS/SCR panel charged with assessing the applications had some difficult choices to make but we ultimately came to a unanimous decision on the five partnerships to be included in the pilot. We think those selected will provide a good mix for the pilot, reflecting differences in scale of partnership as well as a balance between urban, rural and mixed geographic areas. We also sought to achieve a mix between relatively mature partnership groups and those that have been established fairly recently.
"We will capture and disseminate the key learning that emerges from the project, particularly given that it is likely to be of wider interest across the country. This will include producing a series of Issues Papers, Learning Points and Case studies. We will communicate progress and key messages from the work via online dissemination and by inputting to relevant seminars."
The hands-on work with the five local partnerships will commence on a staggered basis commencing February 2010 and the overall project will run for a period of approximately 15 months.
Andrew McGuire of the IS set out the approach that will be taken in working with the five local partnerships: "Whilst the overall focus of the work is upon embracing an 'outcomes approach', we are certainly not seeking to impose a 'one size fits all' model. The precise nature of the support offered via the project will vary to accommodate the requirements of each local partnership. This may include support in areas such as developing understanding of the evidence base, prioritising outcomes, reviewing local partnership structures or refining outcome-focused targets. The project aims to 'add value' through the provision of external expertise that can supplement the skills, knowledge and experience of each local partnership. The key aim is to support local partnerships in a range of ways that will strengthen their focus and, ultimately, help them achieve better outcomes within their local communities."
Regular updates on the progress of the pilot project will be posted on the Community Regeneration and Tackling Poverty Learning Network.
