CLDSC Members Survey – Planning for 2022 – last few days!
Only a few more days to tell us your views on the work undertaken by the CLDSC over 2021, and to help us shape future planning for 2022.
The survey will only take around 5 minutes to complete and will close on Friday, 29th April 2022. Please share your thoughts!
Virtual Member Meet-up – 5 May 2022, 1-2pm
Sign up to hear about how CLD practitioners in North Lanarkshire Council implemented the Youth Guarantee Programme to support CLD employment. For the past year, North Lanarkshire Council’s CLD team employed 19 CLD Assistant Support Workers (ASW’s) aged between 16 and 24 years for one year’s paid employment under the Youth Guarantee Programme. Each employee worked in all areas of CLD and had a robust training schedule. All but one ASW has continued onto a positive destination.
This session will showcase the ASW’s learning journey and what the evaluation has shown. Join us to find out more.
Unfortunately, both launches of the Adult Learning Strategy, due to be held on 10th and 11th May 2022, will be postponed. Those who have booked places will be contacted by the organisers.
The date and information about a new event will follow.
SCQF – Changes to Higher Education Tariff Tables
In July 2021, UCAS launched a consultation into a number of proposals relating to the information made available about qualifications and their use in progression to Higher Education (HE). Based on feedback received through the consultation and additional engagement with UCAS’ Qualifications Advisory Group, UCAS will be implementing a range of changes.
Significant to the CLD sector is the recognition that all SCQF level 6 qualifications are to be included from May 2022 for HE applicants starting courses in summer 2023. This will support widening access and participation, giving learners from a wider range of backgrounds the opportunity to consider HE. You can find out more on the SCQF blog.
Source: SCQF
OU Microcredentials – Free Places available now!
There’s still time to apply for a fully funded place on The Open University in Scotland’s (OUiS) online learning Microcredentials for those working in the CLD sector.
The courses on offer are:
Online Teaching: Creating Courses for Adult Learners
Online Teaching: Evaluating and Improving Courses
Online Teaching: Accessibility and Inclusive Learning
Teacher Development: Embedding Mental Health in the Curriculum
Online Teaching: Embedding Social, Race and Gender-Related Equity
These courses are at postgraduate level and will start in June 2022 and run for 12 weeks. For more information and to apply, please visit OUiS Microcredentials for CLD.
The deadline for applications is Sunday, 15 May 2022.
Development Trusts Association Scotland (DTAS) Conference
Save the Date! The DTAS Conference is back in person on 4th and 5th September 2022 at The Westerwood Hotel, Cumbernauld. The theme is Gather, Connect and Thrive. Check out the DTAS website for updates on the programme and registration.
LinkedIn Free Professional Learning
The Scottish Digital Academy, through its partnership with Skills Development Scotland is delighted to provide free access to LinkedIn Learning until the end of July 2022.
This professional learning opportunity is funded by the Scottish Government.
You’ll have unlimited access to more than 16,000 expert-led videos
With videos starting at a few minutes long, you can learn on the move
You’ll have access to course collections we’ve built to help you get started
You’ll be able to download exercise files, assessments and video transcripts to support your learning
You can even download videos to view offline
Courses include (but are not limited to): Leadership, Agile, Design Thinking, Educational Technology, Instructional Design, Visual Communication, Building Design, Power BI.
If you’re 25 or over and live in Scotland, working in the public or third sector, you’re eligible for unlimited access to LinkedIn Learning until 31 July 2022.
The CLDSC is conducting a survey to understand the views of members on the work undertaken by the CLDSC over 2021, and to inform future planning into 2022. We would greatly appreciate you taking the time to share your views with us.
The survey will only take around 5 minutes to complete and will close on Friday, 29th April 2022. Please share your thoughts!
CLDSC Development Officer Vacancy – closing date 24 April 2022
Last few days to get your applications submitted to join our team as our new Workforce Development Officer! The Development Officer will lead the development of workforce proposals to highlight and modernise CLD career pathways in Scotland.
Specific duties include:
Working closely with the CLDSC Committees and Officers, co-ordinate the CLD Standards Council internal and external policy profile pertaining to CLD workforce data
Providing advice to senior officers and assisting in drafting a range of policy and high quality papers and discussion pieces to stimulate dialogue and recommendations
For more information and to apply, view the Work for Scotland website. Closing date: midnight on 24 April 2022.
Virtual Member Meet Up – 5 May 2022, 1-2pm
Sign up to hear about how CLD practitioners in North Lanarkshire Council implemented the Youth Guarantee Programme to support CLD employment. For the past year, North Lanarkshire Council’s CLD team employed 19 CLD Assistant Support Workers (ASW’s) aged between 16 and 24 years for one year’s paid employment under the Youth Guarantee Programme. Each employee worked in all areas of CLD and had a robust training schedule. All but one ASW has continued onto a positive destination.
This session will showcase the ASW’s learning journey and what the evaluation has shown. Join us to find out more.
The Spring 2022 issue of Concept is now available to view and as always, it’s a great mix of articles and reviews. Where else can you read about adult education as a social vaccine, CLD practitioners’ engagement with ICT and The Welcoming Association Edinburgh in one place?
National Numeracy Day – 18 May 2022
We and our friends at @EdScotCLD are delighted to be Champions of #NationalNumeracyDay on 18 May! Join us and over 2,810 other Champions helping the nation get on with numbers. Sign up to become a National Numeracy day champion and in the build up to 18 May you will receive everything you need to support adults.
There are separate registration pages for those working with schools and adult learning:
International Conference on Adult Education (CONFINTEA VII)
The seventh International Conference on Adult Education (CONFINTEA VII) will be hosted by Morocco in 2022. Over 1,000 participants are expected to take part in the conference, which will examine effective adult learning and education policies within a lifelong learning perspective and within the framework of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Conference participants will develop a new framework for action on adult learning and education that will replace the Belém Framework for Action (BFA), adopted at CONFINTEA VI in 2009.
World Community Development Conference 2022 – postponed
In light of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, the International Association of Community Development and the WCDC2022 organizing team in Georgia have made the decision to postpone the #WCDC2022 until 3-5 October 2022. The conference will still take place completely virtually, and all registrations and accepted abstracts will be honoured.
Please check the WCDC website for further updates.
Digital Youth Work Survey
A year ago, YouthLink Scotland asked a few questions about the digital youth work needs which helped shape its training offer over the last year. Once again, they would be grateful if CLD Youth Work practitioners could take a few minutes to fill in the Digital Youth Work Survey. There are 10 quick questions to answer and your responses will guide support offered in the future.
And also, Digital Youth Work is not all about online! Join the YouthLink Digital makerspaces learning community – in person event on 27 April 10am – 12.30pm at Heart of Midlothian Football Club, Edinburgh. If you’re interested in developing digital activities with physical groups you can join in, meet other youth workers and try out some activities that might be just right for your youth group.
The internet plays an essential part in our daily lives. We use it to communicate, to work, and to learn. Now more than ever, it is important we have the skills needed to navigate the online world, and to feel safe and confident whilst doing it. To help you measure your digital foundation, life and workplace skills, the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) have developed the Essential Digital Skills Check-up.
Based on the Essential Digital Skills Framework, it contains three simple checklists to help you measure where your strengths are and to identify the areas where you may need more support.
If you’re thinking about supporting your workforce’s digital skills, try the SCVO Essential Digital Work Skills Check-up tool, and get in touch with SCVO Digital team if you’d like to explore adapting it to suit your organisation. Email: digital@scvo.scot.
A warm welcome is extended to Robbie Crow who joins CLD Standards Council from Scottish Government for 6 months as Development Officer, Professional Learning. Robbie is looking forward to finding out more about CLD Standards Council and supporting us with a wide variety of professional learning activities.
And if you’re an avid Instagrammer, please also give Yogi, Robbie’s guide dog, a follow! @GuideDogYogi
Dundee and Angus College Standards Mark Approval!
CLDSC wish to offer huge congratulations to Dundee and Angus College Learner Engagement & Community Partnerships Team for achieving their approval for CLDSC Standards Mark.
Well done!
The Approval Panel noted the good quality of the submission given to them for consideration. This provided a clear picture of the learning culture within Dundee and Angus College. The panel acknowledged the collaborative approaches used across the whole College. This is helping them to make best use of the specific skills they know are available within their organisation.
A special note of acknowledgement must go to the Service Design Academy (SDA) within D&A College as a good example of collaborative practice.
It is evident that staff put people, clients, customers and students first by applying service design methodologies. The skillsets used by SDA are very similar to CLD which helps facilitate change in whatever form that takes and aims to create positive impact/transformative change. There is clear evidence of the strong and valued working relationship the SDA have with the Learner Engagement & Community Partnership Team.
Do you think your organisation should seek CLDSC Standards Mark (CLDSCSM) approval?
CLDSCSM approval is aimed at organisations who offer CLD learning to staff, practitioners and volunteers.
The Standards Mark is the approval route offered for organisations who offer CLD learning to staff, practitioners and volunteers: from the smallest voluntary sector project to local authorities and national agencies. The Standards Mark process looks at the whole range of learning opportunities offered, not one specific programme, as well as the learning culture of the organisation.
The Standards Mark will nurture a culture of learning in our sector in order that individual practitioner’s engagement with professional learning will contribute to the development of the whole profession. Through this they will demonstrate and enhance their commitment to a culture of learning:
Where learning is celebrated, recognised and encouraged
Where learning is reflected on and shared
Where challenge is relished and embraced
Where critical reflection is embedded in practice
Where individuals can explore learning related to their role throughout their careers
This culture is underpinned by the values and competences of CLD and commitment to our Code of Ethics.
The Standards Mark does not replace the existing routes available for approval of individual learning programmes. For example, a provider may offer the PDA in Youth Work, approved using the Developmental process, and also be awarded the Standards Mark.
Full details about the Standards Mark are available on the CLDSC website.
Virtual Member Meet-up – 5 May 2022, 1-2pm – Youth Guarantee Programme
For the past year, North Lanarkshire Council’s CLD team employed 19 CLD Assistant Support Workers (ASW’s) aged between 16 and 24 years for one years paid employment under the Youth Guarantee Programme. Each employee worked in all areas of CLD and had a robust training schedule. All but one ASW has continued onto a positive destination. This session will showcase the ASW’s learning journey and what the evaluation has shown.
Adult Learning Strategy Virtual Launch – 11 May 2022
The new Adult Learning Strategy will be launched over 2 days in May! An in-person event is taking place on 10th May, but has sold out quickly. The good news is, places are still available for the virtual event!
The Adult Learning Strategy’s vision is that adult learning in Scotland will develop better skilled, educated, confident and empowered people contributing to connected and inclusive communities. It’s aim is to create the conditions for connected adult learning opportunities that link Scotland’s communities, local authorities, third sector organisations, colleges and universities around an offer of learning for adults, particularly those furthest from inclusion and experiencing disadvantage. The launch will focus on how we can collectively achieve this aim by exploring the themes and actions within the strategy’s strategic action plan.
There’s still time to apply for a fully funded place on The Open University in Scotland’s (OUiS) online learning Microcredentials for those working in the CLD sector.
The courses on offer are: • Online Teaching: Creating Courses for Adult Learners • Online Teaching: Evaluating and Improving Courses • Online Teaching: Accessibility and Inclusive Learning • Teacher Development: Embedding Mental Health in the Curriculum • Online Teaching: Embedding Social, Race and Gender-Related Equity
These courses are at postgraduate level and will start in June 2022 and run for 12 weeks. For more information and to apply, please visit OUiS Microcredentials for CLD.
The deadline for applications is Sunday, 15 May 2022.
International Association of Community Development (IACD) seeking Trustees
In advance of its Annual General Meeting in July, IACD is issuing a call for new Trustees to join the Board. It is seeking to fill 6 upcoming vacancies, and particularly welcomes expressions of interest to represent the global regions of South Asia, East Asia and Middle East/North Africa. You must be a current paying IACD member to apply.
IACD is a small organisation, with just one part-time member of staff. Much of IACD’s work is done by the Trustees, so it’s important that anyone joining the Board is willing and committed to getting actively involved in the organisation’s work.
Trustees responsibilities include:
attending four/five Board meetings per year (via Zoom)
joining at least one of the committees that are responsible for implementing actions in the Strategic Plan
representing and promoting IACD at local and regional events
gathering local and regional information about CD practice and feeding that back to the Administrative Officer to update and share through the website and social media outlets
helping with organising global conferences, practice exchanges
contributing to the magazine Practice Insights
IACD Trustees have plenty to do and must be willing to take on roles and actions. As a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation regulated with the Scottish Charity Regulator, all Trustees must comply with Scottish Charity Law. Find out more about Scottish Charity Law.
If you are a current paying member interested in applying for this role, please complete this Expression of Interest form by Thursday, 28 April 2022.
IACD will review your form, invite you to an information session, and then send you an application form to complete. If you have any questions about this process, please contact Anna Clarke, IACD Chair, anna.clarke@iacdglobal.org.
Social Security Scotland – National Engagement – Adult Disability Payment – Stakeholder Pilot Phase Event
Adult Disability Payment has been designed to provide extra money to help with the costs of living with a disability and/or long-term health condition and will replace Personal Independence Payment in Scotland, which is currently delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions.
Phase one of the pilot for Adult Disability payment launched in Dundee, Perth & Kinross and The Western Isles on 21 March 2022. Adult Disability Payment pilot will now be launching on 20 June for new applications only in the pilot areas of Tayside, Western Isles and Lanarkshire health boards (North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire and Angus local authorities).
If you are a CLD practitioner who supports families and individuals with benefits, Social Security Scotland is hosting a series of online stakeholder events to provide information on the key Adult Disability Payment topics, as well as answer any queries. Please note that these events are for stakeholders supporting clients in the Pilot areas only and national organisations. Further events will be held throughout the year to support stakeholders in other locations.
This series of events will cover six different Adult Disability Payment topics:
General Adult Disability Payment Policy Overview
Special Rules for Terminal Illness
Adult Disability Payment Applications
Decision Making and Supporting Information (Public Sector)
Decision Making and Supporting Information (Third Sector)
Debt, Overpayments and Hardship
A variety of dates will be available for each themed session. For more information about the events or to book a place please visit the Social Security Scotland – Events webpage.
Chris Walsh, National Engagement and Partnership Lead, will also be hosting a Virtual Member Meet-up for CLDSC in July, so watch this space for more details.
Join us as our new Workforce Development Officer! The Development Officer will lead the development of workforce proposals to highlight and modernise CLD career pathways in Scotland.
Specific duties include:
Working closely with the CLDSC Committees and Officers, co-ordinate the CLD Standards Council internal and external policy profile pertaining to CLD workforce data.
Providing advice to senior officers and assisting in drafting a range of policy and high quality papers and discussion pieces to stimulate dialogue and recommendations.
For more information and to apply, view the Work for Scotland website. Closing date: midnight 24 April 2022.
Scottish Attainment Challenge: A framework for recovery and accelerating progress
Education Secretary, Shirley-Anne Somerville has announced a new £2 million youth work, community & family learning fund to further enhance collaboration between youth work organisations and schools. She states, “In recognition of the importance we place on youth work, the third sector and community organisations, we will introduce, in August, a new £2 million fund to help enhance support for youth work, community learning and development services and family learning programmes.”
The new Adult Learning Strategy will be launched over 2 days in May! An in-person event is taking place on 10 May 2022 at Newbattle Abbey College, followed by a virtual launch on 11 May 2022. You can register for both events now.
This free online event will take place on Wednesday, 13th April 2022 at 9:00am BST (London) / 11:00am EAT (Nairobi).
Join De Wet Schutte (IACD Member; Community Development and Research Consultant, University of the Western Cape, South Africa) leading the discussion aimed at enabling academicians, practitioners and students to deepen their understanding and command of tools for sound community development practice.
This event is free and open to any members and friends of IACD! Register today and you will be emailed instructions for joining along with reminders. Feel free to invite a friend or colleague to register as well!
The Open University in Scotland (OUiS) is offering another opportunity to access fully funded places on their online learning Microcredentials for those working in the CLD sector.
These courses provide strategic skills for practitioners in any learning environment, in community or online and have been identified as relevant to CLD practitioners by the CLD Standards Council. They will help you to develop online programmes for learners which are accessible and inclusive while also focusing on key thematic priorities for the sector.
The courses available will allow you to look at how you can deliver a more digitally accessible service, while broadening your reach to more young people, adults, families and community groups.
The courses on offer are:
Online Teaching: Creating Courses for Adult Learners
Online Teaching: Evaluating and Improving Courses
Online Teaching: Accessibility and Inclusive Learning
Teacher Development: Embedding Mental Health in the Curriculum
Online Teaching: Embedding Social, Race and Gender-Related Equity
These courses are at postgraduate level and will start in June 2022 and run for 12 weeks. For more information and to apply, please visit OUiS Microcredentials for CLD.
The deadline for applications is Sunday, 15 May 2022.
The Gathering 2022 – Pre-registration open!
The Gathering is back in person on Wednesday, 15th and Thursday, 16th June 2022 at the SEC, Glasgow! Do you want to have first access to the biggest ever programme of events at the Gathering? Do you want to book FREE delegate places before anyone else? Do you want to keep up-to-date with news about the Gathering?
Just complete the form on the SCVO website and SCVO will keep you in the loop and drop you a reminder straight into your inbox when bookings open in late May 2022.
And, as an added bonus, we’re delighted to announce we’ll be hosting an event on Wednesday, 15th June at the Gathering to launch our CLDSC Professional Induction Programme. Watch this space for more details!
SERA Conference 20-22 November 2022
The Scottish Educational Research Association (SERA) brings together an active community of researchers, teacher educators, teachers, other educational professionals, policy makers, and funders to share and debate current research in the field of education locally and globally.
The call for abstracts is now open for #SERAconf22 under the theme of Reconnection Educational Research, Policy and Practice. Please consider submitting an abstract to host a session related to CLD policy and practice. The conference will accept sessions on individual papers, short presentations, symposia, poster presentations, as well as suggestions for roundtable discussions and workshops.
See more information on the SERA website. The submission date for abstracts is by 5pm on Friday, 6 May 2022 and these should be sent to sera.conference@gmail.com.
SERA Conference registration for delegates will open at the beginning of May 2022.
Save the Dates! Scottish Government Adult Learning Strategy Launch
The new Scottish Government Adult Learning Strategy will be launched by Mr Jamie Hepburn MSP, Minister for HE and FE, Youth Employment & Training on Tuesday, 10th May 2002 at Newbattle Abbey College and virtually on Wednesday, 11th May 2022 via the College Development Network. CLD: adult learning workforce development will be discussed by Dr Marion Allison, Director of CLD Standards Council and Laura Starkey, Education Officer Community Learning and Development, Education Scotland. Booking details to follow!
Virtual Member Meet Up – 1 April 2022 – Education Reform
There is still time to register for our virtual member meet up on Friday, 1 April 2022, where CLD Standards Council Director, Dr Marion Allison will talk about all things Education Reform. This follows the recent publication of Professor Ken Muir’s report on Education Reform.
We want to hear your thoughts and hopes about Professor Muir’s recommendation that the CLDSC should remain part of the new proposed national agency for Scottish education.
CLDSC Professional Induction Programme – Extended Pilot
A reminder that if you would like to participate in our Professional Induction Programme, please get in touch by Friday, 1 April 2022.
As we highlighted in last week’s bulletin, we have been developing a CLD Standards Council Professional Induction Programme and are looking for CLDSC members to undertake the programme and provide feedback on any areas which need further development or clarity before our official launch.
The programme will take 15 hours to complete and this will contribute towards your professional learning commitment.
We are aiming for this to be completed during April and May. If you are interested in taking part, please email contact@cldstandardscouncil.org.uk by Friday, 1 April.
National Thematic Inspection: How well are CLD partners supporting COVID-19 recovery?
Community Learning and Development (CLD) practitioners and third sector partners have supported communities across Scotland during the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to better understand the role of CLD in supporting recovery from COVID-19 in local communities, HM Inspectors will undertake a national thematic review. The review will reflect on how well partners prioritise and use effective CLD approaches to support those who are marginalised or at risk of being isolated in their communities. It will also consider how the pandemic has affected the CLD landscape, including changes to the ways in which CLD is accessed and delivered.
HM Inspectors would like to engage with a broad selection of CLD partners and organisations from across Scotland. Participation will be voluntary, with engagement planned to take place during April and May 2022. With this in mind, we would like to invite you to consider involvement in this review. HM Inspectors are offering the following webinars to share more information about the review and to answer any questions you may have. Please feel to free to come along, using one of the links below to register. However, there is no requirement for you to attend a webinar before indicating that you would like to be involved.
If you are interested in being part of the thematic review, please complete this nomination form by midday on Friday, 8 April 2022.
Virtual College Expo 2022 – 14 and 15 June 2022
Rewrite the College Story: Learning Experiences, Skills Development, Anchoring Communities is the theme of the Virtual College Expo22.
Virtual College Expo22 is the professional learning event for the college sector in Scotland, offering inspirational keynotes, workshops, seminars, and panel debate. This year will also recognise Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022 celebrating and sharing student stories from across the country.
The primary responsibilities of the JETS committees are to validate and endorse courses leading to qualification in professional and pre-professional youth work and for CLD in Scotland, in their respective jurisdictions.
JETS works collaboratively across the UK and Ireland to ensure that qualifications approved are still fit for the mutual recognition agreements. Mutual Recognition across the UK and Ireland – Professional (higher education) qualifications are recognised across the UK and Ireland as long as the programme of study has been professionally validated/approved by the NYA (England), ETS Wales or the Joint ETS for Northern Ireland and Ireland and CLD Standards Council Scotland. This mutual recognition agreement was arranged by the Joint Education Training Standards Committee (JETS).
JETS also has a workforce development function, alongside a broader commitment to continuous professional development (CPD) for all staff, which is at the heart of the profession’s obligation to ensure that youth workers and CLD workers are fit to practice. JETS meets to share good practice, to develop commonality of approach, and to take joint action on any issues and concerns.
Details of JETS, terms of reference, JETS Guidelines and Useful resources/links can be found on i-develop.
Change to the Credit Rating Status of City & Guilds of London Institute Learning Programmes
On 28 March 2022, the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework and the City & Guilds of London Institute issued a joint statement confirming that City & Guilds of London Institute (CGLI) confirmed its decision that it would no longer operate as an Approved Credit Rating Body. As of September 2021, CGLI have ceased all new credit rating activities.
*STOP PRESS* Virtual Member Meet Up – 1 April 2022 – Education Reform – Change to advertised event
Not an April Fool!
Due to the recent publication of Professor Ken Muir’s report on Education Reform, we have changed this member meet up from the advertised event providing an update on the Digital Competence Review to focus on discussions around Education Reform.
Join CLD Standards Council Director, Dr Marion Allison to talk about all things Education Reform. We want to hear your thoughts and hopes about Professor Ken Muir’s recommendation that the CLDSC should remain part of the new proposed national agency for Scottish education.
CLDSC Professional Induction Programme – Extended Pilot
We’ve been developing a CLD Standards Council Professional Induction Programme and are now in a position to do a ‘soft launch’. We’re looking for CLD Standards Council members to undertake the full induction programme so we can gather any final comments on areas which need further development/clarity before our official launch.
The programme will take 15 hours to complete and this will contribute towards your professional learning commitment. We are aiming for this to be completed during April and May.
The Edinburgh Study of Youth Transitions and Crime is a programme of research that has been running for 21 years. The overarching purpose of the study is to examine the causes and consequences of young people’s involvement in crime and anti-social behaviour. The core of the programme is a major longitudinal study of a single cohort of around 4,300 young people who started secondary school in the City of Edinburgh in the autumn of 1998.
This Latest report of the Edinburgh Study of Youth Transitions and Crime programme includes initial insights from the eighth phase of the study, which tracks the cohort from age 12 to 35. This phase was funded by the Nuffield Foundation and included interviews with cohort members, an online survey, and analysis of criminal convictions data. Some of the main findings from the study include:
Most of those who offend in adolescence do not go on to offend in adulthood, and many of those engaged in serious offending are not known to justice organisations in childhood or adulthood
Children who experienced a range of adversities (including poverty, trauma, care experience, etc) were significantly more likely to offend in adolescence and into adulthood, but the most persistent offenders also experienced adversities in adulthood
Desistance from offending is a complex process influenced by multiple factors that are not the same for everyone and do not necessarily remain constant over time; however, factors that could facilitate desistance would include prevention in relation to poverty, drug use and crime victimisation
Pathways of criminal conviction from childhood to early adulthood vary considerably depending on people’s early life circumstances, and are associated with a wide range of behavioural, familial, contextual and experiential factors. However, those who come persistently into contact with the justice system over time tend to be amongst the poorest and most vulnerable people in our cohort
People who have contact with the criminal justice system are not necessarily more likely to desist from offending and, in some cases it may act as a catalyst for continued offending into adulthood
Formal system contact is typically experienced by individuals as a set of barriers and hazards to be negotiated, but positive change relies on key individuals (such as youth workers or foster carers) who provide strong and consistent support
Successful outcomes typically involve achieving modest social norms (such as family, home and employment); however, change is often precarious, especially amongst those who have a poor start in life
Holistic approaches, which work across policy portfolios (education, economy, housing, and justice), and which target risk factors across communities rather than risky individuals in childhood and adolescence, are likely to be successful in driving down offending and conviction across the life-course
We are delighted to be a Champion of #NationalNumeracyDay on 18 May! Join us and over 2,810 other Champions helping the nation get on with numbers. Sign up to become a National Numeracy day champion and in the build up to 18 May you will receive everything you need to support adults.
The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) recently held a webinar on its Place Based Digital Inclusion programme. This approach puts people at the heart of service design and involves stakeholders working collaboratively at a local level to tackle digital exclusion.
We know that many CLDSC Members will be supporting communities and individuals in organising events and fundraising activities. We are grateful to everyone who is giving, organising events and helping to spread the word.
One such CLDSC Member is Darren Burns who volunteers as South West Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Coordinator and has asked us to highlight the DEC appeal.
The DEC has urged people to donate money rather than goods to help those affected by the conflict. We are seeing an absolutely incredible response from the public to this appeal, which has now raised over £150 million, including £25 million UK aid match.
Intense conflict in Ukraine is threatening the lives and livelihoods of civilians across the country, causing hundreds of thousands to flee.
Homes have been destroyed
Essential services have been hit
Families have been separated
People have been injured
Lives have been lost
Heavy fighting, shelling and air strikes across Ukraine have had devastating consequences for civilians
2.3 million people have fled the country in recent days, with millions more projected, and many more have had to leave their homes to escape the fighting
The DEC brings together 15 leading aid charities to raise funds quickly and efficiently at times of crisis overseas. In these times of crisis, people in life-and-death situations need our help and our mission is to save, protect and rebuild lives through effective humanitarian response.
Pooling our resources to work as one, DEC is pivotal in co-ordinating the UK public’s response to overseas disasters. In collaboration with the Rapid Response Network of national media and corporate partners, DEC raises the alarm to the UK public and sets up easy ways for them to donate. It has immediate impact, getting aid to people who need it, fast.
The Cabinet Secretary’s vision includes a new national agency for Scottish education that will take forward some of the current remit of Education Scotland. There was a clear recommendation that the CLDSC should remain part of the proposed national agency for Scottish education. Given that feedback from CLD practitioners has been positive about our work, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support for the CLDSC and offer assurance that our focus continues to be on supporting our members across the sector as we work towards a reformed education system.
Dr Marion Allison Director, CLD Standards Council
Don’t Forget! CLD Digital Competence Review – Focus Group registration
There are still places available at the focus groups to discuss how digital should be embedded in our Competent Practitioner Framework, how you use it in practice and what support you need from CLDSC.
There are 5 sessions to choose from and you can register for all sessions on Eventbrite and choose one of the dates and times below.
Friday 18 March 2022 2-3.30pm
Monday 21 March 2022 1-2.30pm
Monday 21 March 2022 4-5.30pm
Thursday 24 March 2022 6-7.30pm
Monday 28 March 2022 1-2.30pm
Virtual Member Meet-up – 1 April 2022, 1-2pm
This is not an April Fool. Repeat, this is NOT an April Fool! Our next virtual meet-up takes place on Friday, 1 April 2022 at 1pm. Come along to hear the key messages coming out of the Digital Competence Focus Groups and share your views on what should be included in the next stage of the consultation process, the online survey, which will go live in April.
Save the Date! The new Scottish Government Adult Learning Strategy will be launched by Jamie Hepburn, Minister for Higher Education and Further Education, Youth Employment and Training, on Tuesday, 10 May 2022 at Newbattle Abbey College. A virtual event will also be held on Wednesday, 11 May 2022 hosted by College Development Network. More details will follow.
TES Magazine – Member Benefit
If you are looking for useful reading material, remember that your CLD Standards Council Membership gives you free online access to TES magazine. Details are available in the Members benefit page on i-develop.
You will need to login to access this, so if you have lost your username or password and are having difficulty resetting, email us at contact@cldstandardscouncil.org.uk.
The Community Development Journal – special issue on environmental community development in the climate emergency
The Community Development Journal (CDJ) has been published by Oxford University Press since 1966. The journal publishes “critically focused articles which challenge received wisdom, report and discuss innovative practices, and relate issues of community development to questions of social justice, diversity and environmental sustainability.”
This month’s issue focuses on environmental community development and features an editorial by Callum McGregor and Eurig Scandrett on community development, populism, and just transition.
In addition to the quarterly publications of the CDJ, there are also special issues, advance articles, and abstracts translated into French, Spanish, and Chinese – they are completely free to access online.
The SCQF at 21 Online Conference – 24 March 2022 – Recognising Skills in a Changing Landscape
SCQF have an exciting line up of speakers and presenters for the SCQF at 21 Online Conference, as well as a range of workshops to attend. The event will highlight the important part that the SCQF plays in supporting learner journeys in these rapidly changing times as well as showcasing best practice in the use of the framework. Delegates will also have the opportunity to hear about SCQFP’s latest projects and developments.
The Awards recognise the talent, skills and achievements of colleges, their staff and their learners and we’re delighted to say that one of the categories is the College Community Learning Award, so please do enter and highlight the fabulous CLD work done in partnership with colleges.
The deadline for entries is Friday, 1 July at 5pm, and the winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in November.
Dyslexia Scotland – New Strategy 2022-2025
National charity Dyslexia Scotland has launched its new strategy for 2022-2025, setting out the journey to a dyslexia-friendly Scotland.
The charity aspires to make Scotland the best place for people with dyslexia to live, learn, work, play and grow up in, through engagement with the dyslexic community and the change makers who can make a positive difference.
Whilst Scotland’s dyslexic community equates to around 545,500 people, the charity recognises that many of those feel alone, excluded and marginalised with their learning difference.
The organisation produced their plan as a full strategy document, two-page summary and for the first time, as a video version, in order to be as engaging and inclusive for their diverse audience as possible.
The charity calls on all people in Scotland, dyslexic or not, to be part of the journey to creating a dyslexia-friendly Scotland.
The Impact of Community Work – new publication underway
This week Marion Allison joined the authors of the book, The Impact of Community Work – How to Gather Evidence, to talk about their collaborative writing style, their commitment to writing from within the CLD sector and to contribute her knowledge and expertise to early stage dialogue around their forthcoming publication with Policy Press.
This next book takes a closer look at the relationship between theory and practice in an accessible way, informed by focus groups of current practitioners and those active in CLD work in communities. Marion brought a creative, energetic and knowledgeable voice to the discussion.
The authors believe strongly that it is important to write from within the CLD sector at this time and are pleased to be bringing another practitioner resource into the field. All are CLD Standards Council members, are very engaged in current activity in community settings and are writing to underpin practice. The group – Ed Garrett, Sue Briggs, Kevin Ditcham, Kirsty Forrester and Karen McArdle thanked Marion for the support received from the SC in their work so far.
Look out for Community Work: theory into practice when it is published in 2023.
CLD Digital Competence Review – Give us your views!
Work is cracking on to progress the priorities highlighted by Jamie Hepburn, Minister for Higher Education and Further Education, Youth Employment and Training, in the CLD Digital Investment funding announcement made in December 2021.
CLD Standards Council is undertaking a review to ensure that digital skills, knowledge and competence is embedded and visible across our Competent Practitioner Framework.
We want to hear your views on this and as well as the opportunity to complete an online survey in April, we’re hosting a range of online focus groups during March. These sessions are targeted at CLD practitioners (staff and volunteers across all areas of delivery) and the dates and registration link are below:
There will be separate sessions targeted at CLD employers, partner organisations and Higher/Further Education CLD training providers.
This review will be completed by summer 2022 so please come along and share your views on how best to incorporate digital into our Competent Practitioner Framework.
Ukraine Appeal – Inclusive Practices
Inclusive Practices, is a registered not-for-profit organisation based in Ureki, Georgia, which is looking for donations to help support its essential work with mothers of children with disabilities who have fled the war in Ukraine.
After just a few days of the war in Ukraine, Inclusive Practices had identified more than three hundred mothers of children with disabilities, who were forced to leave their native country due to the armed conflict. These children have a range of disabilities such as autism, Downs syndrome and cerebral palsy and will have suffered the trauma of their journey from Ukraine.
If you are able to support Inclusive Practices with a donation, this will help these mothers and children arrive in Georgia and get health and social support at the Black Sea coast resort of Ureki, where Inclusive Practices has a well-organised social infrastructure for children with disabilities and their families.
YouthLink – Digital Youth Work Events
Our friends at YouthLink have some digital youth work training opportunities coming up during March. All these events are free and targeted for youth workers developing their digital youth work practice.
Safe, Secure and Empowered Friday 25 March 11am-12.30pm Join a practical digital skills session, designed to help you support young people in developing positive safe practices in the digital world. The session will be led by Richard Bryce and introduces our Safe, Secure and Empowered resources. Register for the ‘Safe, Secure and Empowered’ session on Eventbrite.
How to set up a digital makerspace Wed 30 March 9.30am-12.00pm The Digital Makerspaces Learning Community is running an open session, with input from Darran Gillan, Digital Lead at YMCA Scotland. Come to discover more about how to set up a digital makerspace in a youth work setting. Register for the ‘How to set up a digital makerspace’ session on Eventbrite.
The consultation on Scottish Government Spending Review is open until 27 March 2022. The aim of the Resource Spending Review is to set out spending plans for the remainder of the parliamentary term which support the Scottish Government’s ambitions. The intention is to publish multi-year spending plans in May 2022 to provide stakeholders, delivery partners and organisations and individuals across Scotland with some certainty on which to base their own forward planning.
The Resource Spending Review will build on the Capital Spending Review published last year. Together, Scottish Government aims for these 2 spending reviews to give a comprehensive picture of Scotland’s public spending multi-year plans. Additionally, last December, Scottish Government published its Resource Spending Review Framework, which sets the scene for the development of these spending plans
The Resource Spending Review Framework consultation closes on the 27th of March.
CDN Pathways from Poverty Report
A new report, Pathways from Poverty: Current Challenges and the Role of Colleges (PDF) has been published by the College Development Network (CDN) and Colleges Scotland through the CDN’s Research and Enhancement Centre. The report highlights the crucial role that Scotland’s colleges play in tackling poverty and in creating a more inclusive society. The report highlights the vital position of colleges as anchor institutions in local communities, providing a focal point not just for course education but community engagement and action in relation to poverty.
Scottish Charity Awards – closing date 18 March!
The closing date for nominations for the Scottish Charity Awards is 18 March 2022 so get your nominations in now!
The Scottish Charity Awards are designed to celebrate the best of the voluntary sector by highlighting the best, most innovative and effective work from the past year by those who make a difference in our communities.
CLD Standards Council is proud to sponsor the Community Action Award again this year and would love to see a range of CLD practice represented throughout the awards category nominations!
The Award categories are:
Employee of the Year, Trustee of the Year
Community Action
Campaign of the Year
Charity of the Year
Volunteer of the Year
Digital Citizen
Pioneering Project
Climate Conscious
The winners will be decided by a panel of judges and announced at a glittering awards ceremony on 15 June 2022.
All finalists will also be entered into the running for the People’s Choice Award, giving members of the public a chance to vote for their favourite finalist to win
The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) received an overwhelming response last year, with hundreds of applications and thousands of votes cast in the People’s Choice Award, and event organisers hope to encourage even more applications this year.
Charities can apply until 12pm on Friday 18 March 2022. Apply now!
CLD Digital Competence Review – Give us your views!
Work is cracking on to progress the priorities highlighted by Jamie Hepburn, Minister for Higher Education and Further Education, Youth Employment and Training, in the CLD Digital Investment funding announcement made in December 2021.
CLD Standards Council is undertaking a review to ensure that digital skills, knowledge and competence is embedded and visible across our Competent Practitioner Framework.
We want to hear your views on this and as well as the opportunity to complete an online survey in April, we’re hosting a range of online focus groups during March. These sessions are targeted at CLD practitioners (staff and volunteers across all areas of delivery) and the dates and registration link are below:
There will be separate sessions targeted at CLD employers, partner organisations and Higher/Further Education CLD training providers.
This review will be completed by summer 2022 so please come along and share your views on how best to incorporate digital into our Competent Practitioner Framework.
CLDSC Conference 2021 – Feedback
Thank you to everyone who attended our virtual conference in December and completed the survey. The conference was a great success and we have had excellent feedback from those who attended. We have put together key points from the survey about attendance, representation and three things we have learned.
** Please Note – You will need to log in to your i-develop account to access. If you cannot remember your login or are having difficulty accessing please contact us – contact@cldstandardscouncil.org.uk.
CLDSC Conference 2022 – Save the Date!
The dates for our 2022 Members Conference have now been confirmed as Thursday, 1 December (evening lecture) and Friday, 2 December 2022 (full day conference). We are delighted to be holding the conference in person at the John McIntyre Conference Centre in Edinburgh with the lecture and keynote speeches streamed online to allow as many people to attend as possible.
So save the date now and watch this space for more information.
Placements require a strong partnership between Student CLD Practitioners (SCLDP), the field of CLD practice that includes the Practice Placement Providers (PPP), Practice Placement Supervisors (PPS) and Educational Providers (EP).
It was acknowledged that there was a need for a resource that could reflect the diversity of placements and practice learning across Scotland. A process was required that could provide support and contribute to on-going dialogue and developments.
This need was identified by Educational Providers to support the CLD Sector in their work with Student CLD Practitioners.
Keep Scotland Beautiful – Climate Emergency Toolkit for Youth Workers
Keep Scotland Beautiful has recently published a new Climate Emergency Toolkit to help youth workers inform young people about the climate emergency and empower them to take positive action. The toolkit has been designed in partnership with YouthLink Scotland and is part of the Youth Leader Climate Project funded by the Scottish Government.
The toolkit includes activities to help young people learn about and discuss the impact of our choices on climate change, environment and people. It should prove useful to many youth work settings, but particularly for youth workers who have completed the free Climate Emergency Training for Youth Workers course, part of the Youth Leader Climate Project. Learning takes place through facilitated discussions, interactive exercises, games and films, with every session having in-person and online delivery options. Find out more about the Climate Emergency Toolkit for Youth Workers.
Keep Scotland Beautiful have also initiated a Community Action Plan with 7 communities this year. The programme helps communities discover themselves and what they can do to take climate action based on local capacity, resources and commitment. Find out more about the Community Action Plan and read the news story.
What does Covid recovery look like for young people?
Youth work is at the heart of a community-based response to Covid 19 and its increasing importance needs to be reflected in policy, argues Dona Milne, Director of Public Health and Health Policy at NHS Lothian in her blog for YouthLink Scotland.
Virtual Member Meet Up, 2 March 2022 – Critical Reflection using the CLD Values
Places are filling up fast for our next virtual member meet-up taking place on 2 March 2022, 1pm-2pm. Come along and discuss some critical questions with Dr Rob Bray, University of Highlands and Islands and Graham MacLellan, Senior CLD Worker, Inverclyde Council including:
What does it mean to be a critically reflective practitioner?
How do we go beyond reflective practice to ask the key questions about our practice?
How can we be critically reflective practitioners in a positive and supportive way within a group of peers?
This meet-up is based on a journal article published in the Concept Journal: Critical Reflection and Community Education Values and will explore a range of critical reflection tools for use by CLD staff and volunteers. Participants will explore how we can use the CLD values as determined by the CLD Standards Council to ask key questions about our practice at an individual and also at a group level. Participants will also hear about how this work has been built upon within the further education sector.
Register for the March Virtual Member Meet-Up on Eventbrite.
Happy 1st Birthday, CLD Talks!
Connor Maxwell, founder of CLD Talks, has asked CLDSC to share with members how proud he is to have brought these podcasts to the Community Learning and Development world. He would like to thank everyone who has featured on the podcast and everyone behind the scenes who has helped along the way – Stephanie and Vic for hosting episodes, Ben for editing the in-person podcasts. And there’s a big THANK YOU to every single person who has taken the time to listen to the podcast.
If you haven’t caught up with the podcasts so far, it’s now Season 4 of CLD Talks! In the first episode find out how it all started and hear an update from one of the first contributors, Adele, on her year in CLD.
And in Episode 2, which is out this week, Connor speaks to our very own Chair, Alan Sherry. Tune in, listen in, join in #BecauseOfCLD.
Last Chance! Free Accredited Online Learning Microcredentials
The deadline for applying for The Open University in Scotland (OUiS) fully funded places on their online learning Microcredentials courses for those working in the CLD sector is Sunday 27 February 2022.
The courses on offer are:
Online Teaching: Creating Courses for Adult Learners
Online Teaching: Evaluating and Improving Courses
Online Teaching: Accessibility and Inclusive Learning
Teacher Development: Embedding Mental Health in the Curriculum
Online Teaching: Embedding Social, Race and Gender-Related Equity
These courses are at postgraduate level and will start in March 2022 and run for 12 weeks.
Check out the Education Scotland CLD webinar about the CLD Digital Portal and the range of microcredentials, on this session recording. Information about the Microcredentials is 8:05 minutes into the recording.
For more information and to apply, please visit OUiS Microcredentials for CLD. The deadline for applications is Sunday, 27 February 2022.
NATECLA Online Forum – Creating online books for ESOL literacies learners
The National Association for Teaching English and Other Community Languages to Adults (NATECLA) is hosting an online forum on Monday, 28 February from 7-8pm. The forum is aimed at anyone who is interested in creating online materials for ESOL literacies learners. Join in to hear about using Book Creator with invited guest Jo Patterson from Edinburgh College. Even if you don’t teach at this level, you’re very welcome if you would like to know more about Book Creator.
During the session, you will:
consider the pros and cons of existing materials used with literacies learners
explore bookcreator.com and its possibilities for ESOL literacies learners
learn how to open a free bookcreator.com account and use it to make simple, accessible online resources
learn how to share a book made online
Please feel free to bring along or talk about any useful online resources you use too.
Inclusion, Challenges, Opportunities, is the unifying theme for WCDC2022, in order to encourage a global discussion and reflection on the new reality that community development practice has to operate in as we enter a post pandemic world. If you’d like to present at the conference, abstract submission is open until 1 April 2022 and you can submit your abstract online.
Census Scotland is holding sessions to give a live demo of the online census completion website. These will include information on the toolkit and supporting assets and the help and support available to enable people to complete the census questionnaire. There are three sessions available and you can register for the relevant session below.
A toolkit and supporting assets have been created to support you as you engage with your own communities, groups, partners and service users about the census. The toolkit contains information about the census, as well as advertising, social media and other promotional materials you can download and share. Please use the toolkit and assets to promote the census, encourage participation and answer questions.
Register for one of the stakeholder support sessions below:
