Hundreds of voluntary organisations, community groups and faith groups active in Dudley Borough come together in a range of networks led by this sector for the sector. The networks come in all shapes and sizes, have vastly different structures and feel different when you get involved in them. However the have all been developed because of a perceived benefit in bringing people and groups together around a shared interest or concern.
Dosti is a 'network of networks' and works with over 15 networks embracing around 1000 different community groups, voluntary organisations and faith groups. Networks who become members of Dosti must be a collective of a majority of community groups and/or voluntary organisations with shared aims and objectives based on a common interest.
Organisational Purpose
Purpose
Dosti’s vision is that Dudley Borough has a Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector (VCFS) engaged in the development of stronger communities. Dosti is recognised by the Dudley Community Partnership as a key vehicle through which community issues and interests of the sector are voiced within DCP structures and processes. Around 50 individuals from the VCFS reflect issues and interests from networks within the DCP, and are supported by Dosti staff to feedback and be accountable to their networks.
Dosti has three key strands of work, which are provided below along with examples of the activities which occur in relation to them.
1. Preparing and supporting people within communities for engagement. In practice this involves:
- the range of activities which networks undertake in their own spheres of interest to engage;
- developing and maintaining communications channels, including a Dosti newsletter, network newsletters, meetings and events, e-news mailings and an interactive website;
- providing opportunities and support for people to become active critical citizens – through the Black Country Take Part Pathfinder (www.blackcountrypathfinder.co.uk);
- providing support and training for representatives to the Dudley Community Partnership, and promoting representative roles;
- providing support and tailored training to member networks around collective influence, using Voice – an influence tool developed with Dosti networks.
2. Preparing and supporting public authorities for engaging communities. In practice this work includes:
- co-ordination of the development of ‘in it together: an empowering approach to engaging’, a community engagement strategy for the DCP;
- the development of cross-agency training and support for officers who have community engagement roles or responsibilities;
- the promotion of Echo – a tool being developed which enables public sector agencies and partnerships to assess and improve their openness to influence;
3. Ensuring that engagement is empowering for the people who get involved. In practice this means ensuring an empowering approach in all of Dosti’s work, and helping colleagues to understand what this means and how to do it.
Structure
- Dosti has an Executive Board of up to 12 people elected from Dosti’s member networks.
- A member of the Executive Board is nominated to the Dudley Community Partnership Board.
- Dudley CVS act as a Responsible Body for Dosti, administering Dosti’s funding and employing Dosti’s two staff members: a Senior Development Officer (Lorna Prescott) and Community Development Officer (Katherine Rogers).
- Dosti’s member networks vary greatly in size, capacity and formality, but each has a vote at Dosti’s AGM, and any number of Executive nominations may be put forward by any network.
The National and Regional Picture
Community Empowerment Networks (CENs) are partnerships of VCS organisations and groups. They have no formal legal status. Most CENs have representatives from a range of groups, across neighbourhoods and communities of interest (e.g. faith groups, disabled people). They may be supported by an umbrella body, such as the Council for Voluntary Service, which may act as the ‘responsible body’.
All LSPs and CENs in neighbourhood renewal areas are required to agree a protocol governing their relationship. CENs are represented on the board of most of these LSPs, normally through a formal electoral system. One role for CENs is provide support to community representatives, as this may be their first opportunity to participate in decision making alongside professionals and politicians. CENs can also support them in consulting and providing feedback to their members
Common Purpose with LSPs
Dosti has represented the VCFS on the Board of the Dudley Community Partnership (DCP) since 2001, and has been developing Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector (VCFS) representation and involvement across the DCP’s Theme Partnerships. Linking VCFS representatives through networks enables them to be accountable and bring forward a wider range of views than they could if just operating within an individual organisation or group. This work is far from complete, as many Theme Partnerships have a multitude of working groups, and their structures are constantly evolving and changing, as are the demands placed on them by national government.
Some Dosti members have a focus on service delivery issues, and bring informed grassroots perspectives to strategic and operational partnerships. Voluntary, Community and Faith organisations provide services and activities for the people of Dudley Borough, and are keen to work with partners in the DCP to deliver on local objectives.
The skills and knowledge of the Dosti staff, especially in community development and empowerment and participatory involvement techniques uniquely place Dosti to lead on community engagement and develop work around activities described in the Empowerment White Paper and in the Duty to Involve on behalf of the Dudley Community Partnership.
Dosti has been leading on cross-sector work to develop the DCP’s Community Engagement Strategy, and in 2008 co-ordinated extensive consultation on the ideas included in ‘in it together: an empowering a approach to engaging’ discussion and consultation document. With officers from partner agencies, Dosti staff continue to lead the development of community engagement approaches, support and training for the DCP.
The Drivers
The Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector (VCFS) has a strong interest in influencing local priorities and service delivery.
There are opportunities for VCFS organisations to play a larger role in the delivery of public services and in decision-making as a result of government policy.
The VCFS is actively meeting community needs every day in all corners of the Borough, but much of this work isn’t linked to or supported by partnership plans and activities.
The Empowerment White Paper and Duty to Involve signpost clearly the direction which Government wants community engagement to develop in.
Benefits and Constraints from LSP Engagement
Benefits
- The CEN’s reason for being exists in its contribution to the LSP.
- CEN members can learn about the possibilities and limitations faced by agencies providing services, and how they can best influence and play more of a role in local service delivery.
- The CEN provides a vehicle for community representatives to challenge decision makers, put their views, and feed back information to the local voluntary and community groups.
- CENs are expected to help bring about coherence and direction across all community participation activities in an area.
- Community representatives bring a different kind of expertise to the partnership which contrasts to the expertise of professionals working in public agencies.
Constraints
Constraints which small to medium groups in the VCFS face include a constant battle to secure funds for their core activities, to pay for spaces to meet and so on. Small groups have no staff, so are reliant entirely on volunteer time, and operate on incomes of between nothing and few thousand pounds a year.
Constraints which larger organisations in the sector face include the ongoing work involved in securing funding for their work, which includes funding for the costs incurred by hosting volunteers (volunteer time is free, but hosting volunteers requires resource). Some funding regimes are inaccessible to the sector due to the fact that they pay out at the end of delivery periods rather than in advance. Voluntary organisations don’t have the reserves or cashflow to pay out in advance for activity.
Constraints to engagement with the DCP and public sector, identified through Dosti’s work on community influence and through the ‘in it together’ consultation in 2008 include:
- Lack of resources to support engagement and lack of time to engage
- The attitudes and behaviours of public sector officers
- Organisational structures:
- In particular the DCP structure is seen as confusing, too big, too many meetings resulting, and a lack of information about what each bit does has been highlighted;
- The DCP structure has the unintended effect of excluding geographically or neighbourhood based representation and involvement;
- There is a perceived lack of synergy and connection between DCP agendas and work and community agendas and work.
More Information
Other things you need to know
Established in 2001 under a government programme, Dosti is one of few remaining Community Empowerment Networks in the country. This is due to support from local partners for the activities which Dosti has undertaken for the DCP, and activities which have helped to build the strength of networks in the sector. Support is now also provided to Dosti from the DCP in the form of financial resource, as the government ceased to fund Dosti in 2007.
Websites where people can find out more
www.dosti.org.uk
