Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 1/19 - Local Trust Research paper #20
![Local Trust Research paper #20](pages/page-0001-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 2/19 - ˇ Updated data on the number of Big Loca…
![ˇ Updated data on the number of Big Local workers and the tasks they deliver gathered via a survey completed by Big Local reps in summer 2021.2](pages/page-0002-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 3/19 - Table 1: What are the main roles of Big …
![Table 1: What are the main roles of Big Local workers?](pages/page-0003-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 4/19 - "Proactive and empowered to make change,…
!["Proactive and empowered to make change, open, inclusive and welcoming and having a voice that is heard" (Wilson et al, 2022a: p.1) and "groups working together for the benefit of the community [to tackle] challenges together." (Wilson et al, 2022a: p.6).](pages/page-0004-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 5/19 - and years to build this relationship up …
![and years to build this relationship up and get the message out there." - Big Local partnership member.](pages/page-0005-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 6/19 - particular projects or concerns [they] a…
![particular projects or concerns [they] are being addressed because it is very open." - Big Local worker.](pages/page-0006-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 7/19 - to the individuals involved, beyond the …
![to the individuals involved, beyond the creation of a new volunteer-led group in the community.](pages/page-0007-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 8/19 - Trust a way in which local residents c…
![Trust a way in which local residents can be relieved of the burdens of key tasks and processes, allowing them to focus primarily on decision-making in their community (Dobson et al, 2022). The next section looks at ways in which Big Local workers can further enable resident-led decision-making or make it more difficult through their support of Big Local partnerships.](pages/page-0008-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 9/19 - While there may be clear expectations fr…
![While there may be clear expectations from the partnership that paid workers take on a large delivery role recognising their lack of capacity to do so at that time, research as part of the Our Bigger Story project found that, in some areas, "power and responsibility has shifted to paid workers with partnership members trusting that "they can let the worker get on with it," (McCabe et al, 2021: p.20). Workers taking on more decision-making can create an almost spiral effect that leads to partnership members beginning to expect the worker to play a bigger role in strategic decisions about what the Big Local delivers and how it does this. This can particularly be the case if there are existing challenges to resident-led decision-making such as a partnership that is low on capacity to meet and make decisions, or a partnership that is dealing with internal conflicts.](pages/page-0009-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 10/19 - and able to adopt a coaching or mentorin…
![and able to adopt a coaching or mentoring to suit and support the chair and resident partnership members". However, partnership members themselves can be a barrier to Big Local workers building the knowledge, skills and capacity of the partnership and wider community, as they may not see it as an important role for their Big Local worker or would simply prefer the worker to focus on other responsibilities.](pages/page-0010-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 11/19 - and building relationships and networks …
![and building relationships and networks with stakeholders are the two most common tasks Big Local workers perform in their roles (Local Trust: 2021). When done well, this includes sharing Big Local values about residents taking the lead and encouraging local organisations or bodies to adopt a similar approach. For the community, communicating Big Local values can play a really important role in increasing resident engagement in decision-making or other forms of community involvement, such as volunteering.](pages/page-0011-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 12/19 - their local area. Considering the ways i…
![their local area. Considering the ways in which Big Local workers best enable resident-led decision-making as highlighted above, the next section looks at the skills, attributes and values that workers need to do this.](pages/page-0012-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 13/19 - project management, administration and r…
![project management, administration and relationship building are commonly required of Big Local workers. These allow newly recruited staff to hit the ground running with supporting the partnership which in turn means partnership members are better able to focus on their decision-making role and areas of delivery that interest them. This is even more the case where workers with specific technical skills are required by the partnership, such as youth workers or staff to run community cafés. There are often key aspects of a Big Local partnerships projects and activities that it would be unfeasible to expect partnership members to be able to deliver as a volunteer. By bringing in paid staff to ensure these projects are delivered well, partnership members are able to focus on more strategic decisions, rather than day-to-day decisions, as well as developing skills around delegation and project oversight.](pages/page-0013-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 14/19 - The fieldwork also uncovered how residen…
![The fieldwork also uncovered how resident workers were also seen as an example of how skill and capacity had been built in the community, and a way to show the community the assets that can exist in their local area.](pages/page-0014-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 15/19 - Most Big Local partnerships have recogni…
![Most Big Local partnerships have recognised the limits to their own capacity and have chosen to use their grant to employ paid staff to support their delivery of the Big Local programme. From this, it can be said that the Big Local programme has contributed to a new generation of the community development workforce by providing an opportunity for many to gain skills and experience in this field. This is particularly the case for the 27% who were in their first community development role, as captured in Local Trusts survey of Big Local workers in 2018 (Local Trust: 2019). Recognising the findings in the fieldwork of how previous community development experience meant that Big Local workers were more likely to support and encourage resident-led decision-making and community power, this new generation of community development workers could be a powerful legacy of the Big Local programme in the future.](pages/page-0015-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 16/19 - Bibliography
![Bibliography](pages/page-0016-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 17/19 - Appendix Methodology for 2021/22 field…
![Appendix Methodology for 2021/22 fieldwork](pages/page-0017-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 18/19 - ˇ Workers (sometimes multiple where an a…
![ˇ Workers (sometimes multiple where an area has multiple workers)](pages/page-0018-small.png)
Role-of-the-workers.pdf - page 19/19 - About Local Trust
![About Local Trust](pages/page-0019-small.png)