The Commonwealth Games - involving communities!

It is now less than 3 years until the start of the Commonwealth Games which are scheduled to take place in Glasgow in 2014. How can we ensure that all communities in Scotland can benefit from the legacy of the investment and profile of this national initiative?

As part of the Commonwealth Games Legacy Programme, the Scottish Government has commissioned SCDC to work with community organisations across Scotland to support them to use the Games as a catalyst for building on their work to develop activities and projects that involve local people, increase local community action and support the achievement of better health and social outcomes.

Working with local Legacy Leads and partner agencies, SCDC are supporting community organisations to involve people in local conversations on what they would like to see as a legacy for their own communities, and to engage better at a strategic level in order to get their message across. In the first tranche of the programme, SCDC will be working with 12 localities and communities of interest across 6 local authorities in Scotland, adding value to community activity already happening in these areas by,

• supporting local groups and partnerships to demonstrate the contribution of existing activity to local and national outcomes
• increasing the profile of local organisations' activities through a local Games Legacy event and media strategy
• supporting local groups and partnerships to make stronger links with local strategic decision makers, by showcasing their work through the Games Legacy programme
• and, supporting the creation or development of local partnerships.

SCDC will be working with the following organisations and partnerships in the first tranche of the programme;

Argyll Activities is a community project based in Ardrishaig and is part of the Ardrishaig Community Development Trust.  The Project offers a wide variety of sporting and outdoor opportunities to the residents of Argyll. Through the Commonwealth Games Legacy Programme the Project will engage with Argyll sports clubs and the disabled community to find out what sporting activities disabled people are currently interested in, what the barriers are to getting involved and what will enable existing clubs to be genuinely inclusive.  Recognising that the issues/barriers will differ from area to area, Argyll Activities plan to engage with sports clubs and disabled people, using an online survey, video conferencing and community engagement events in Oban and Dunoon between February and March 2012.

Central & West Integration Network will use the support of the Legacy for Communities Programme to organise a community engagement event for its members and across the wider community of Central and West Glasgow. The community engagement event will include information on the various activities and services available from member organisations, what the Commonwealth Games involves and opportunities for dialogue about what a positive legacy for the local communities might look like.  The event will target a number of BME communities through member organisations of the network. The event will also include some of the sporting activities to give participants a flavour of what the Games will entail.

LEAP Sports is a new initiative, which has been set up by a group of highly skilled and motivated volunteers who are all representative of a variety of LGBT sports groups and initiatives across Scotland. The group exists to champion equality and inclusion for all within sports and outdoor activity across Scotland, and aims ‘to encourage and enable LGBT people to overcome the barriers which block their access to sport'.  As part of this, the group are planning a ‘Festival of Sport' event where members/associate organisations work together to contribute events to the program, and this is opened up to encourage LGBT people across Scotland to participate.  The Legacy for Communities programme will support LEAP Sports in planning these engagement events. As a national group, the LEAP events will focus on the barriers that exist in engaging LGBT people in accessing sports rather than specific neighbourhood areas.

Perth & Kinross Council has recently established a corporate legacy group to co-ordinate the activities of the Council and its partners in meeting the national objectives of the legacy programme whilst responding to local priorities and opportunities. A range of activities are already underway and it is anticipated that the Legacy for Communities Programme will support engagement in these activities and the production of a co-ordinated legacy plan for the area. The legacy plan will be informed by engagement with two neighbourhoods in the area which will receive intensive support from SCDC to carry out ‘community conversations' about what the Commonwealth Games Legacy will mean for their communities.

Stirling Community Planning Partnership is keen to encourage and support improved health and wellbeing outcomes within the most disadvantaged communities in the area. They will use the Legacy for Communities Programme to effectively join up and develop activity within existing community planning work streams related to Legacy, to increase profile and secure a lasting difference in the areas most vulnerable communities through: raising awareness of the Commonwealth Games in general, and Stirling's role as a camp/venue and supporting participation in sporting activity through the Games profile; increasing the profile and take up of existing health and wellbeing and employability programmes; examining opportunities for the development of related social enterprises; increasing take up in volunteering; delivering on the health and wellbeing issues raised by communities in their local community plans; engaging more young people in sports programmes; establishing ongoing partnering relationships with the Third Sector to create a sustainable Legacy infrastructure; and encouraging communities to share experiences, resources and opportunities, under the Legacy programme.

Dundee Partnership has already put together a Games Legacy Plan for the city which focuses on Dundee's contributions to the Games Legacy Themes. The Partnership is keen for any community engagement activity to be linked into Community Planning processes and the implementation of the Dundee Games Legacy Plan in particular. Two initial workshop discussions were held on 17th January with a range of stakeholders from local community groups/organisations - the discussions identified key themes and priorities for legacy activities and these will be discussed at a recall meeting in early March.

How to get involved 

If you are a community organisation, or know of a community organisation, who would like to participate in this programme please continue to check this page for up to date information. You can also subscribe to our general mailing list for news of all SCDC programmes.

Please note the deadline for Expressions of Interest for involvement in the first phase of the programme has now closed.  There will be opportunities for involvement in the next stage of the programme which will be publicised on this page .

For any general enquiries please contact Olivia Hanley on olivia@scdc.org.uk.