Rungs of real influence
Community and the Participation Ladder.
- Level
- Bitesize
- Learning time
- 1 hour 30 minutes
- Where
- Working with Communities and Partnerships
- Price
- £39
When you step up to a higher level, what you paid in the last 12 months for lower-level courses inside the bigger course comes off its price, in proportion to how much of each is inside it, whichever topic it's from. Courses at the same or a lower level don't give credit against each other. A Focus course or above always costs at least £15. Read the full terms
Certificate of Completion
Overview and Outcomes.
Overview
Community is a word public services use every day and rarely examine. This module offers a shared vocabulary: MacQueen's definition, four lenses on community including Wenger's communities of practice, Putnam's social capital with its bonding, bridging and linking forms, and Chaskin's community capacity framework. It matters because a leader who sees only one kind of community will miss the people who matter most. Not every engagement exercise gives people real influence, and communities can tell the difference quickly. This module works through Sherry Arnstein's ladder of citizen participation, the IAP2 spectrum of public participation and the difference between consultation and collaboration, then tests them against the Sheffield street trees dispute. It helps you choose the right rung honestly, close the loop afterwards and keep asking who actually decides.
What you'll develop
In this Bitesize, you will develop the ability to:
- Apply the four lenses of geographic, interest, identity and practice communities to a real place, naming the communities your work is likely to miss.
- Distinguish bonding, bridging and linking social capital and explain why many engagement failures are linking capital failures.
- Use Chaskin's four dimensions of community capacity to assess whether a piece of work builds or erodes a community's capacity to act.
- Describe Arnstein's eight rungs and three tiers and identify which rung a piece of engagement is actually operating on.
- Compare the promises made at each level of the IAP2 spectrum and check delivered participation against what was promised.
The Modules.
1 hour 30 minutes of learning.
- 01Foundations: What We Mean by CommunityCommunity is a word public services use every day and rarely examine. This module offers a shared vocabulary: MacQueen's definition, four lenses on community including Wenger's communities of practice, Putnam's social capital with its bonding, bridging and linking forms, and Chaskin's community capacity framework. It matters because a leader who sees only one kind of community will miss the people who matter most.41 min
- 02The Participation Ladder: From Informing to EmpoweringNot every engagement exercise gives people real influence, and communities can tell the difference quickly. This module works through Sherry Arnstein's ladder of citizen participation, the IAP2 spectrum of public participation and the difference between consultation and collaboration, then tests them against the Sheffield street trees dispute. It helps you choose the right rung honestly, close the loop afterwards and keep asking who actually decides.40 min
Keep going.
Part of the Working with Communities and Partnerships topic, also sold whole as Common cause.
Go deeper, and pay only the difference
- You are hereBitesize, 1 hour 30 minutes, £39
- Next stepFocus, Communities first, 2 hours 30 minutes, £69. Already own the Bitesize? You pay £30.
- The whole topicExplore, Common cause, 6 hours, £129. Already own the Bitesize? You pay £90.
When you step up to a higher level, what you paid in the last 12 months for lower-level courses inside the bigger course comes off its price, in proportion to how much of each is inside it, whichever topic it's from. Courses at the same or a lower level don't give credit against each other. A Focus course or above always costs at least £15. Prices per person. Read the full terms
Also part of: Serving your community well, Voices that shape the work, Stronger together
Other Bitesize in the Working with Communities and Partnerships topic
- Building on what is strongAsset-based community development (ABCD)1 hour 30 minutes£39
- Better togetherPartnership working and collaborative leadership1 hour 30 minutes£39
- Making it work across boundariesCo-production and cross-organisational working1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Partnership in the real worldCommunity and partnership case studies30 minutes£39
