! !
! ! RE:generate!(Action!to!Regenerate!Community!Trust)!is!an!enterprising!social!action! charity.!We!train!and!support!individuals,!multi!agency!teams,!community!and! voluntary!sector!organisations!to!deliver!a!dynamic!and!empowering!process! designed!to!tackle!the!root!causes!of!poverty!and!disadvantage.!It!is!called!Root! Solution!–!‘Listening!Matters’,!because!we!believe!that!in!the!root!cause!of!issues! faced!in!society!lie!the!root!solutions.!It!is!this!process!and!strategy!that!will!be!at!the! heart!of!the!training!of!5000!community!organisers!in!England!in!the!coming!4!years! and!the!development!of!the!associated!Institute.!! ! Action!to!Re:generate!Community!Trust!has!worked!in!the!UK!for!over!22!years!and! in!Zambia!since!2001.!On!extremely!limited!resource!we!have!developed!our!work,! process!and!strategy!organically!–!informed!by!Delta!Training!for!Transformation!as! delivered!in!many!countries!of!the!world.!Our!work!and!our!process!has!also!been! influenced!by!the!philosophy,!methods!and!approaches!developed!by!educators!and! community!activists!such!as!Paulo!Freire!and!Saul!Alinsky!in!the!Americas.! ! The,experience,base,for,RE:generate’s,process, ! Root!Solution!–!‘Listening!Matters’!is!a!holistic!homegrown!organising!strategy! conceived!and!developed!by!Action!to!Regenerate!CommunityTrust!–!a!social!action! charity!founded!by!Stephen!Kearney!and!Julia!Olsen,!social!entrepreneurs!with!first! hand!experience!of!individual!and!community!disempowerment.!They!developed! their!approach!and!process!while!working!with!communities!in!towns,!villages!and! cities!throughout!the!UK!in!the!late!1980s!and!early!1990s.!! ! In!the!mid!nineties,!after!training!with!USA!Community!Organisers!Ed!Chambers!and! Ernie!Cortez!and!Partners!Ireland,!they!incorporated!aspects!of!Freire’s!and!Alinsky’s! work!and!teaching.!The!working!model!for!transformation!has!been!tested!in!major! cities,!large!towns,!market!towns,!villages,!disadvantaged!estates!and!mixed! communities!and!Root!Solution!–‘Listening!Matters’!is!now!a!highly!effective! development!tool!that!supports!people!to!act!and!transform!their!lives!and! communities.! ! RE:generate!has!continually!worked!to!develop,!adapt!and!use!organising! techniques,!participatory!training!methodologies!and!transformation!training!in!very! complex!environments.!To!date!thousands!of!people!have!been!listened!to!in!the! UK,!many!have!been!trained!in!local!and!national!programmes!and!thousands!have! directly!engaged!in!activities!and!developments!that!have!changed!their!lives!and! communities.!! !
This!work!has!linked!people’s!personal!growth!to!local!action!and!institutions,!which! has!in!turn!impacted!on!the!wider!society!as!we!see!from!the!Community!Organisers! Programme.! ! In!transforming!communities,!we!are!guided!by!shared!values!and!principles!that! bind!us!and!our!partners!in!common!purpose.! ! Re:generate,believes,that, ! •! A!healthy!community!is!a!living!democracy!where!people!work!together!to! address!issues!that!matter!to!them.! ! •! As!citizens,!we!have!a!duty!to!shape!the!basic!conditions!that!affect!our!lives! with!others.! ! •! If!we!are!to!get!to!the!root!causes!of!problems,!power!must!be!more! effectively!shared:!local!communities!must!have!access!to!tools,!support!and! opportunities!to!engage!powerfully,!voluntarily!and!appropriately!in!designing,! shaping!and!delivering!public!services!effectively.! ! •! The!country!needs!to!embrace!approaches!like!Root!Solution!^‘Listening! Matters’!that!can!support!communities!to!unearth!and!unleash!hidden!skills!and! talents!to!be!stronger!socially,!economically,!politically,!culturally!and! environmentally.! ! Our!organising!strategy!and!process!involves!building!trust,!respect!and!relationships! within!and!between!individuals!and!communities!at!every!level!that!leads!to!the! development!of!an!active!digital!and!physical!network.! ! Root!Solution!–!‘Listening!Matters’!fosters!forms!of!participatory!leadership!that! enable!individuals!and!communities!to!grow!in!trust,!openness!and!confidence;!to! identify!and!empower!them!to!act!purposefully!on!their!hopes!and!synergies;!to! facilitate!processes!of!analysis!of!root!causes!of!issues!or!problems;!and!to!plan!for! solutions!and!policies!with!people’s!active!participation;!to!build!connections! between!community!members!and!with!relevant!institutions.!! ! The,strategy,will,make,a,key,contribution,to,helping,Local,Authorities,to,fulfil,their, new,obligations,and,aspirations,under,the,Localism,Bill.,, ! We!will!train!people!in!all!walks!of!life!to!build!trust,!relationships!and!active! networks!in!communities!that!will!take!action!to!transform.! ! , , , , ,
Change,Outcomes, ! The!achievement!of!power!balance!^!shifting!and!sharing!power!intelligently!and! responsibly!between!the!individual!citizen!and!accountable!local!and!community! institutions!^!is!the!central!tenet!and!purpose!of!the!process.!! ! RE:generate’s!work!ensures!that!shifts!in!a!balance!of!power!are!appropriately! facilitated.! ! Root!Solution^‘Listening!Matters’!wakes!people!up!to!their!potential.!It!encourages! and!catalyses!individuals!to!take!creative!and!enterprising!networked!action!to!seek,! find!and!develop!collaborative!solutions!to!deep!seated!problems.!It!supports!people! to!make!positive!changes!happen!in!their!communities!and!their!lives.!Individuals,! communities,!agencies!and!authorities!experience!transformed!working! relationships!that!deliver!better!public!services.! ! The!Coalition!Government’s!aims!and!objectives!in!relation!to!supporting!the! development!of!community!animators!and!organisers!in!England!are!welcome.!At! every!level!and!in!whatever!role!citizens!need!to!reflect!on!the!part!we!play!in!the! continuation!of!poverty!and!disadvantage!–!and!the!part!we!could!play!in!finding! solutions.!! ! Root,Solution,E,Listening,Matters,is,a,framework,any,individual,or,organisation,can, apply,to,bring,about,transformation,that,challenges,cultures,of,dependency,and, silence,,and,disabling,structures,and,systems., ! , Example:,A,letter,from,a,Ward,Councillor, , “The!RE:generate!system!is!more!than!just!a!process.!It!is!a!life!changing!programme! that!gets!individuals,!families,!agencies,!politicians,!authorities!and!communities! working!together!to!arrive!at!shared!solutions!to!improve!their!own!neighbourhoods! and!lives.! The!work!shifts!power!away!from!the!state!to!the!people!and!the!Institutions.! Apathy!dissolves!as!people!develop!new!relationships!with!their!politicians!that!alter! the!balance!of!power!in!a!very!healthy!way.! By!bringing!people!together!Root!Solution!breaks!down!social!barriers.!By!getting! people!to!identify!what!they!love!as!well!as!what!they!want!to!change!or!improve!it! improves!pride!in!place!and!self^!respect!within!individuals.!It!ensures!that!people! act!in!big!ways!and!little!ways.! Root!Solution!Listening!Matters!enables!individuals!and!groups!to!grow!in! confidence!and!ability.!By!not!being!a!quick!fix!but!a!project!for!the!long!term!people! know!that!it!is!for!real!and!is!worth!working!together!to!achieve.!It!creates!a!very! powerful!cohesion!that!cannot!be!ignored.! In!the!Whiteway!Estate!where!I!am!a!Councillor!we!have!been!working!with!this! approach!for!two!years!now!and!the!impact!has!been!impressive.!The!community!is! much!more!confident,!individuals!and!teams!have!developed!the!skills!to!meet!with!
agencies!and!be!confident!and!assertive.!They!are!well!prepared!having!listened!to! the!views!of!600!people!and!analyzed!their!data.!They!have!a!list!of!300!people!that! are!taking!action!and!they!work!on!the!politicians!and!structure!with!power!to! support!them!in!their!endeavours.! Some!are!developing!enterprises!like!the!Proud!of!your!Doorstep!–!an!environmental! business,!some!want!to!run!the!new!centre!for!children!and!young!people,!some! have!set!up!a!theatre!community,!a!political!action!to!reduce!speed!limits,!some! want!to!set!up!a!free!school!to!replace!a!school!the!council!want!to!close,!some!are! working!with!young!people!to!turn!them!away!from!crime...!this!team!have!reduced! offending!by!90%.! As!politicians!we!tap!into!the!energies!and!talents!that!hitherto!have!not!being! tapped!into!and!the!results!are!unprecedented.!The!targets!set!for!this!piece!of!work! have!been!met!and!exceeded!beyond!our!wildest!expectations.! The!social!impact!is!incredible.!Families!are!helping!each!other!more!and!the! agencies!have!a!better!understanding!of!the!dynamics!of!the!community!and!are! learning!how!to!target!public!services!more!effectively!and!with!the!cooperation!of! the!community,!which!makes!delivery!much!easier.! It!is!challenging!for!the!status!quo!and!power!bases!that!have!been!there!for!an! eternity!^!but!this!is!precisely!the!positive!challenge!power!structures!need.!I!will! continue!to!welcome!the!work!of!RE:generate!because!they!have!sown!the!seeds!for! changing!the!way!we!function.!They!have!positively,!quietly!and!assertively! challenged!our!whole!approach!to!the!delivery!of!public!services!and!that!has!to!be!a! good!thing,!especially!in!the!current!climate.! The!next!two!years!are!going!to!be!as!big!a!journey!as!the!last!two.!However!we!can! only!set!off!on!the!next!part!because!of!the!in!depth!work!of!RE:generate!during!the! first!phase.!Community!transformation!is!not!a!quick!fix.!It!is!a!long!term!process!and! Listening!Matters!and!RE:generate!are!the!ideal!root!solution!to!enable!the! transformation!to!start!and!grow.�! ! Cllr!Paul!Crossley! Leader!Bath!&!NE!Somerset!Council!Liberal!Democrat!Council!group!Orchard!Rise! Sham!Castle!Lane!Bath!BA2!6JL!