Training & Consultancy Services

What can we offer you?

We offer short courses, independent facilitation, bespoke training programmes or tailored consultancy support in the following areas:

• Community Development - good community development is action that helps people to recognise and develop their ability and potential and organise themselves to respond to problems and needs which they share.  It supports the establishment of strong communities that control and use assets to promote social justice and help improve the quality of community life.  It also enables community and public agencies to work together to improve the quality of government.  We offer introductory and more in-depth training and consultancy in understanding and using a community development approach to change. (more)
• Community Engagement - the active participation of communities and service-users in decision-making processes and the design and delivery of public services is an increasingly central theme of public policy and service delivery. We offer introductory and more in-depth training and consultancy on the principles, standards, processes and methods that underpin good practice in community engagement. (more)
• Community Capacity Building - current social policy recognises that the action of empowered communities is critical to achieving the national outcomes set out by Scottish Government. However, to participate, have influence and take responsibility, communities need capacity.  Our training and consultancy support offers the opportunity to explore the nature and purpose of community capacity building; the role of local partners in supporting the development of this agenda; the principles of good practice in community capacity building and the tools and resources available to support this. (more)
• Participatory outcome focused planning and evaluation - we offer training and consultancy support in collaborative; need-led and outcome focused planning and evaluation.  Based on the LEAP framework (for information on LEAP, click here), we have extensive experience of supporting planning and evaluation at strategic and practice level. (more)
• Community-Led Health - community-led health is an approach to health improvement and addressing health inequalities that is concerned with supporting communities experiencing disadvantage and poor health outcomes to identify and define what is important to them about their health and wellbeing; the factors that impact on their wellbeing and take the lead in identifying and implementing solutions. We offer training and consultancy to agencies and health improvement partnerships in understanding and implementing this approach at both strategic and practice levels. (more)
• Community-led research - based on our successful SCARF (Scottish Community Action Research Fund) programme, we offer support to community organisations carrying out research in relation to community needs or issues, and to practitioners who want to support community groups and organisations to do this. (more)

What does it cost and how do you go about it?

SCDC charges a daily rate for its training and consultancy support. This varies between £500 and £600 per day (with discount available for community groups/unfunded organisations) depending on the length of the contract. All training and consultancy work is negotiated between the client and SCDC – we are committed to designing and delivering training/support which meets your needs rather than expecting you to fit into a set programme.

Further information and contact details

(updated 7 January 2010)