Tag: Social Action Inquiry

Conversations with the Social Action Inquiry

The Social Action Inquiry was set-up to explore what helps and what hinders Social Action in Scotland.

Our first steps are a series of participatory and thought-provoking conversations to connect people taking practical, socially driven action in the service of others, our shared spaces and our natural environments.

The conversation is two hours long and divided into 3 parts. Each part will invite participation from attendees to contribute through dialogue, written words and images.

The structure of the conversation will:

  • Provide space to share the stories of social action that need heard
  • Begin to develop the network of allies involved in social action
  • Explain the intention and life cycle of the Inquiry
  • Identify who else we need to speak to
  • Shape the next steps of the Inquiry

At the end of the sessions there will be information and offers from the Inquiry Team of how people can stay connected with the Inquiry.

Dates and Times of Conversations

Thursday the 24th of November 7-9p.m

Tuesday the 30th of November 4-6p.m

Tuesday the 7th of December 2-4p.m

Wednesday the 8th of December 7-9p.m

Book your place here and select your preferred Date and Time.

These conversations will take place on the Zoom platform. Once you have registered, we will send you the Zoom link and materials that you can use during the session.

For more information about the event you can email us at hello@socialaction.scot

I wanted to drop you a message to update you on our engagement activities for this phase of the Social Action Inquiry (writes DARRYL).

We are hosting 3 weeks of Conversations with the Social Action Inquiry.

Tickets can be reserved through Eventbrite here. We have scheduled BSL interpreters for the event on the 7th of December (7-9 p.m.).

We have also scheduled additional conversations with allied initiatives and organisations such as #Iwill21 and Inspirealba.  

Each conversation is two hours in length and are designed with liberating structures in mind, enabling attendees to contribute regularly and evenly to the conversations. The conversations are divided into three parts and the aims for these sessions are to:

  • Provide space to share the stories of social action that need heard
  • Begin to develop the network of allies involved in social action
  • Explain the intention and life cycle of the Inquiry
  • Identify who else we need to speak to
  • Shape the next steps of the Inquiry

We would be grateful if you could share information about these events through your networks ,social media, and perhaps more importantly, nudge one or two people that spring to mind that need to know about these conversations.

We find that the personal touch often has the greatest influence.

You can find us on Twitter and Instagram we invite you to follow us, both platforms have embedded a short animation describing the events which can be shared.

Finally, please do get in touch if you would like to connect. Alternatively if you would like to be removed from our mailing list please let us know as well.

Best wishes

Darryl

Social Action Inquiry Scotland

Phone: 07867 181 040

Website: www.socialaction.scot

Twitter: @Soc_Act_Scot

Instagram: @Social_Action_Scotland

Community led action Inquiry appoints independent Co-chairs

A new Scotland wide inquiry into how communities can hold the power to lead on change from within has appointed two independent Co-Chairs with extensive experience of supporting people who are most excluded in society.

The Social Action Inquiry will support communities to take action together, create change and share power, whilst working alongside them to understand what helps and what gets in the way of progress.

Led by people living and working in Scottish communities, this three-year independent inquiry will:

  • Provide money and power to communities to undertake activity, which they direct and lead on.
  • Support people to find their voices, take action and use what they learn to create wider change.
  • Try to make change as it goes along, partly by bringing together people who hold power, and those currently furthest from it.
  • Build evidence for longer term change in Scotland.

Sam Anderson and Catherine-Rose Stocks-Rankin join the Inquiry as the newly appointed Co-Chairs. They will be passionate advocates for participation, collaboration and shifting power so that change is led by the knowledge held by communities.

Sam is the Founder of The Junction (Young People, Health & Wellbeing), an award-winning charity based in Edinburgh which works with and for young people on a range of health issues. 

She brings extensive experience as a coach, mentor and facilitator supporting people furthest from power to feel understood and heard amongst systems that might otherwise exclude them.

Sam said: “Social Action has been a significant part of my life journey. I am therefore delighted the need for an Independent Social Action Inquiry for Scotland has been recognised and invested in.

“I feel honoured to be able to contribute to this important Inquiry through the role of Co-Chair and to see the potential of Social Action unleashed in our journey towards an equitable Scotland.”

Catherine-Rose is a social researcher with a wealth of professional, research and personal experience of care. Her experiences of kinship care and as an informal carer have inspired her to build a career that explores how the systems we live within could be reimagined.

Catherine-Rose said: “I am honoured to take up the role of Co-chair of the Social Action Inquiry. As someone who has tried to build community around every significant challenge in my life, I’m thrilled to contribute to an Inquiry that will help us galvanize the ways we take action together.

“I’m particularly delighted that we can shine a light on the work that people and communities are already doing in Scotland, to have the resource to strengthen that activity and the support to think about where power can be redistributed to making meaningful change.”

Catherine-Rose and Sam will shortly be recruiting an Inquiry Panel, along with an Inquiry Lead. If you’d like to apply to join the Inquiry Panel to help direct the Inquiry’s activity, or be part of the team as the Inquiry Led, please keep an eye on our website for announcements: https://socialaction.scot/

The Inquiry will also build on the findings and recommendations from the Together We Help research that explored social action in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Find out more about the Social Action Inquiry vision and background here:

 https://socialaction.scot/about/

Speaking on behalf of the partners who have founded the Inquiry – Carnegie UK Trust, Corra Foundation, Foundation Scotland, the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE), Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), The National Lottery Community Fund, and The Robertson Trust – Fiona Duncan (CEO of Corra Foundation) said: “This inquiry starts from the idea that social action is a vital part of the solution to the challenges we face as a society – now and in the future.

“The issue is not whether community-led action should be at the heart of creating lasting change, but how everyone can help create the conditions for this to happen, and to flourish.

Collaboration is at the heart of this, and it’s down to the collective efforts of the partners that we’ve reached this point. The partners are delighted to welcome Sam and Catherine-Rose and look forward to the Inquiry taking shape and beginning to help bring about change.”

Together We Help: report highlights community support during the pandemic

When Scotland first went into lockdown in March 2020, a wave of uncertainty and fear was felt throughout society as people were told to stay at home, to save lives.

But as schools, shops and offices closed, communities did not.

Local people and grassroots groups were quick to come up with innovative ways to help during the crisis. Social action accelerated and became a central feature of Scotland’s response to the lockdown and ongoing challenges of coronavirus.

In July 2020 Social Action Inquiry partners commissioned The Collective to lead on a short-term piece of research to capture the stories and lessons learned from communities coming together to help.

From food drop offs to phone calls to isolated neighbours, volunteering and wellbeing support, the research brings to life the ways people developed creative approaches to make a difference.

The final research report Together We Help is now available and shines a light on the power of communities to mobilise and initiate social action in response to the issues that matter to them.

Eighteen community researchers gathered insights from 367 people involved in social action in their local areas, asking what inspired them to be involved and what lessons can be learned to build a fairer Scotland.

The research suggested that the stigma associated with accessing support such as food banks in times of need may have reduced as demand for these vital services increased dramatically throughout lockdown in 2020.

Community researchers also found that offering support and participating in local responses to the coronavirus crisis was both a ‘blessing and a curse’ as while it helped people to feel more connected to their community it also increased awareness and feelings of frustration at the growing levels of inequality on their doorstep.

The findings from the Together We Help research will help inform the Social Action Inquiry.

This independent inquiry will look at how communities take action and will try to contribute to a Scotland where social action is valued and is able to make change happen in communities.

Read the final report online here