Rural Delivery Plan consultation response – March 2025

This Rural Delivery Plan consultation by Scottish Government provided another opportunity for CLD Standards Council members to help shape future democratic systems and processes that impact on Community Learning and Development, and the individuals and communities we work with. We wanted to ensure the voices of CLD practitioners were captured in this initial phase of this consultation, which was focusing on the vision, strategic objectives, and performance indicators. The Rural Delivery Plan will act as a framework to consider the full breadth of policy delivery in the rural space covering a range of key areas, such as agriculture, marine, land reform, transport, housing, social justice, population, skills, digital connectivity, economic development, and health and social care. We believe CLD practitioners both paid and voluntary, are best placed in terms of their skills and relationships with communities to co-ordinate engagement and support community voice informing this plan. It is essential to acknowledge that community development practitioners already play a crucial role in supporting the skills and learning needed for the implementation and development of community groups in response to emerging need and ensure rural communities are able to develop, thrive and prosper.