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SAC Report No. 12

Community Learning and Development in Aberdeenshire

 

Summary

This report sets out the process, conclusions and recommendations from the twelfth investigation carried out by Aberdeenshire Council’s Scrutiny and Audit Committee. The investigation was into the effectiveness of Aberdeenshire Council in helping to deliver the Aberdeenshire Community Learning and Development Strategy 2004–2007. During the investigation, the Committee heard evidence from Aberdeenshire Council officers and from representatives from community learning and development partners.

What is now Community Learning and Development has been through a period of transition in line with a significant shift in national priorities since 2002. The Service’s new remit is set out in a variety of strategies and plans, not necessarily accessible to those not working within the Service. The Committee believes that the vision for the Service must be communicated clearly to all stakeholders.

The Committee recognises that it is essential that Community Planning partners share a common vision for community learning and development in Aberdeenshire. However, the Committee does not consider that this should be at the expense of ‘ownership’ of policy by the Council. The limited degree to which the Aberdeenshire Community Learning and Development Strategy had been shaped and endorsed by Councillors is a matter of great concern and should be addressed during the review of the Strategy due during 2007.

Community learning and development includes adult learning, youth work and building community capacity. Work undertaken by the Service makes a real difference to individuals and communities across Aberdeenshire. However, the service to communities is patchy due to variations in the approach of staff, vacant posts and long-term sick leave.

Community Learning and Development has sometimes been seen as a “Cinderella Service”. In fact, it is clear that the work of the Service is central to much of what the Council wishes to achieve. Building community capacity is, arguably, a necessary precursor to achieving more effective public consultation and engagement when change is necessary or difficult choices have to be made. The Community Learning and Development Service is “mission critical” for the Council because it helps create the conditions that support effective dialogue between the Council and the communities it serves. Accordingly, it is important that the role, aims and priorities of the Service are understood in other Services and more generally. Increased clarity within the Community Learning and Development Service itself would assist in achieving this wider understanding.

National guidance places great emphasis on directing resources towards deprived neighbourhoods and individuals. In Aberdeenshire, this has meant that the Community Learning and Development Service is not doing all that it used to. Inevitably, this has caused some difficulties. Increased clarity is required about the level of service the Council will provide in different areas.

Volunteers play a key role in delivering the Aberdeenshire Community Learning and Development Strategy – and their commitment needs to be recognised and valued. Some volunteers are individual tutors, while others are involved in Community Development Groups. Supporting the large number of volunteers involved places considerable demands on staff. Staff experienced in working with volunteers are an asset the Community Learning and Development Service cannot do without.

Aberdeenshire is fortunate to have a range of service providers that offer high quality community learning and development services delivered by committed and knowledgeable individuals. Community Learning and Development staff have, through their work and their position in the Council, a unique knowledge and understanding of localities. The Committee believes that there are real advantages and added value from partnership working at operational level. The Committee identified examples of effective joint working between Council Services and between Community Learning partners, and it also identified areas where there was room for improvement.

The ability of the Community Learning and Development Service to recruit and retain staff is a crucial issue. For a Service that relies so much on understanding the needs of communities and building relationships with other organisations and with individuals, it is especially important to retain staff. Experience and knowledge are not easily replaced; continuity can be crucial to project management. The Committee became aware of the work that senior managers have done to tackle what is clearly a chronic problem, and recognises that there has been improvement. Nevertheless, there are workforce development and recruitment and retention issues that require urgent action.

The timing of the publication of the findings of this investigation coincides with three initiatives which, when taken together, create a significant opportunity for the Council and the Community Learning and Development Service to strengthen the effectiveness of its services to the community. These three initiatives encompass the publication of the Best Value Review of Community Learning and Development, the opportunity to review the strategic document Working and Learning Together to build Stronger Communities in Aberdeenshire 2004–2007 and the intention of her Majesty’s Inspectors of Education to carry out an inspection of the Council's education authority function, including the Community Learning and Development Service, during 2007. The Scrutiny and Audit Committee hopes the findings of this investigation will provide some of the essential building blocks to be put in place to take the Community Learning and Development Service further on its journey of improvement.

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