Co-host a workshop on participation requests

Would you like to co-host a workshop on participation requests focusing on inequality?

Participation requests are part of the Community Empowerment Act. Over the last two years, community groups across Scotland have been using them to start discussions with local planners and decision makers about everything from how services are delivered to big planning developments.

We are providing some support and awareness raising around using participation requests, with a focus on making the legislation work better for disadvantaged and marginalised communities. We’d like to hear from any organisations that could help to organise a workshop in their area.

Who is making participation requests?

Fewer participation requests have been made by groups from postcodes with high levels of poverty or from a groups facing barriers related to protected characteristics (as set out in the Equality Act 2010). This raises the issue of whether participation requests are effectively addressing inequality. Support and guidance is needed to make sure that people from all groups in Scotland are able to have their voice heard.

Co-host a workshop

From September 2019 until March 2010, we plan to co-host a limited number of workshops introducing participation requests. The workshops will take people through the process of making, or supporting, a participation request, from deciding whether they are the right approach to designing and taking part in collaborative processes to improve services.

The workshops are aimed at community groups/local partnerships in disadvantaged areas or who work with people with protected characteristics. We are therefore looking for partner organisations to host workshops with these groups and partnerships.

Please use the short form below to express an interest in co-hosting a workshop. We will accept expresssions of interest until 16th September 2019.