Category: collaboration

camelon, coach, collaboration, community, development, Our Place, resilience, Support, tamfourhill

Looking Back to Move Forwards

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill

This blog marks 6 months since John and I started in our posts and Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill was reborn. For my part, as a local resident as well, I came with hopes and plans as to the things I could bring to this new and exciting role as Community Coach. However, starting a new job during a national pandemic and lockdown really threw most of those plans up in the air! But, undeterred, I have pushed on as much as possible through mainly online contact and phone calls and have been grateful to the willingness of local groups to get on board with what I can bring – especially those who came to me for help. That has been especially helpful during these restrictions as I don’t necessarily know what help is needed unless people tell me.

There is still a lot of work to do and I’ve in no way been able to give all the groups what they need or even make significant contact with some. That does not mean I won’t keep trying though! Contact with individuals has also been hard as I can’t get out to meet you! But I’m working on how I can do this through the restrictions we face just now and would just again encourage anyone who wants any support with training and personal development to do as some have already and give me a shout. Even if you’re not sure what you need – often chatting it through with someone else can be a big help. My contact details are below.

I’d also like to thank everyone who has got on board with what we’re trying to achieve here. Those who have supported me, shared our social media posts and blogs, informed others about what we’re doing and basically cheered us on. Sincerely – thank you.

For now, this seemed a good chance to review what I’ve been able to do so far. I record this not to show off in any way – that’s not my style. But simply to try to show how Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill, and especially my role as a Community Coach, can be of benefit in this amazing community.

  • 26 Local Organisations have been supported with information, guidance or training on:
    • Funding
    • Governance
    • Marketing
    • Local Contacts
    • Covid Guidance
    • Development
    • Project Related
    • General Chat
  • 4 Individuals have been supported with:
    • Access to training
    • Idea development
    • Relevant Contacts
  • 34 External Organisations have been linked up with for:
    • Information and Support for Local Organisations
    • Networking
    • Training
    • General Links and Wider Support
    • Information and Guidance
    • Collaboration Opportunities
    • Project Support
  • 6 Organisations and 2 Individuals have been identified for delivering Free or Low Cost Training:
    • I am combining my search for various courses together with working to find out the kinds of courses people are needing.
    • The list is too long to put on this blog, and really is endless depending on what you, the people and organisations of this area, actually want and need.
    • Courses include Personal Development, Employability, Organisational Development and Skills Based subjects.
    • I have been building my own skills to enable me to deliver this training online as it looks like it might be a little while before we can have groups together for this.
  • I have taken part in 11 Training Sessions or Courses:
    • Managing Change
    • Rebuilding Income Streams
    • Wellbeing Economy
    • Asset Transfer
    • Community Right to Buy
    • Community Wealth Building
    • Asset Based Community Development
    • Digital Champion
    • Taking your Training Online
    • Delivering Effective Online Learning
    • Human Centred Design
  • Working on Developing 6 Projects in the area:
    • Creative Communities Fund – Behind the Labels Project
      • Collaborative funding application unsuccessful but working with groups involved to discuss alternative options.
    • Cycle Repair Pop Up Workshops
      • Thanks to work with Cycling UK, these are happening over the next 2 weeks.
    • Easter Carmuirs Park
      • Early work on planning for Phase 2 consultation which will include forming a new group of local people to help the process.
    • Community Growing/Gardening
      • Formation and support of new group to develop growing sites across the area.
    • Cycling Events
      • Potential partnership with Cycling Scotland and Falkirk Active Travel Hub to include the area in some events.
    • Coaching
      • I am developing a programme of 1-1 coaching for individuals to enable personal and organisational growth.

It’s been quite a fun and rewarding process putting this list together and I’m sure there’s things I’ve missed and there’s more in the pipeline as well. In any area of development – whether that is personal or organisational – it’s good to look back on where you’ve come from as, no matter how low we may feel on the odd occasion, recognising achievements to date is a real boost. This process can really help you move forwards. I hope to be able to help others do the same locally as we go through the next 6 months and beyond.

Look back to learn how to look forward

Joe Girard

If you want to know more about how I can support you or your organisation, please get in touch either by email to communitycoach@tamfourhilltro.co.uk or call 07444 873151.

camelon, coach, collaboration, community, development, gardening, growing, Our Place, Support, tamfourhill

Digging the Dirt

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill

A couple of weeks ago I introduced Community Gardening/Growing to you and we’ve had a great response. So this week for something a bit different, I’m going to take you on a video tour of some of the sites that have been highlighted to us. If you don’t want to watch the video, the text is written out below. Plus, if you want to keep up to date with this new Gardening/Growing group, click the link immediately below the video to register your details. We’ll call a meeting very soon.

Click here to register your interest in Community Gardening/Growing

Thanks for your interest in getting involved in your community. More from me next week!

Transcript of Video (without the ‘ums’ and ‘ers’!)

Introduction
Hiya.  Its Dan here, your Community Coach.  As John teased in his blog on Tuesday, I want to expand a little bit more about the Community Gardening/Growing options in this area as part of our Tidy Clean and Green campaign.  But rather than just write about it, I thought it would be a lot better to go and take a walk around the area and look at some of the sites that have been identified to us by interested locals.  There’s a lot of chat to be had and planning to be done about what’s most appropriate for each of these sites.  It may be seed bombing, meadow creation, formal planting, community food growing, even allotment space.  The key is that it’s what YOU the local people want to see and get involved with as well.  Our job here at Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill is to support you in that, whether that’s for accessing funding, supplies, promotion and whatever else might be needed.  I’ll even lend a hand with the digging too!  Plus we’ll be working with the relevant people at the council to make sure this is all done right and in line with their “Dig In” strategy.  It’s all potentially very exciting so, as the sun is shining really brightly just now, lets go and have a look at some of the sites.

Rowan Crescent
We’ve come up to Tamfourhill and we’re just off Rowan Crescent, so let’s have a little look at the site up here.  So, this lovely little site has been identified as a potential one for doing something in. Our problem is it’s quite wet! Water doesn’t seem to be draining away anywhere. Just up the back you have the railway line.  It has some stones and it’s kind of stuck here in between the houses.  It would be good to see something in here  – who knows what.  What do you fancy?

Tamfourhill Community Hub
Our next site is up here at Tamfourhill Community Hub.  We’ve got a wee potting shed in here, and there’s potential for some raised bed growing to build on the amazing veg on the ledge kits. Brilliant stuff that we can replicate in some way.  That’s another option for developing this bit here from the potting shed at Tamfourhill Community Hub.

Camelon Public Park
For our next site, we’ve come down to Camelon and just off the main street this is Camelon Public Park.  The lighter area has been grown as a meadow/wildflower area which is something we can develop and locals are interested in keeping as part of this beautiful park that looks absolutely amazing – of course it’s always sunny in Camelon!  Camelon Public Park – one of the other areas being shown to us.

Telford Square / Nailer Park
Next up we’re down here at Telford Square, next to Nailer Park and this gives you an idea of something that can be achieved when people come together.  This has been developed by the community over the last couple of years with support from CATCA.  Various different bits of veg and fruit growing in these homemade containers made out of leftover bits of wood, shows the potential of what can be achieved.

Carmuirs Park / Fairlie Drive
Next on our tour we’ve come to the back of Carmuirs Park and this area that we’ve mentioned quite a bit over the last couple of weeks that was a huge area for anti-social behaviour – a shooting gallery and all sorts of things.  We’re just down from the Forth and Clyde Canal.  Now with thanks to Falkirk Council Environment Services this has been cleared up.  The hiding areas have gone and now it’s a chance to turn this into something beautiful.  Had a few suggestions already.  What can this bit be at Carmuirs Park?

Brown Street Park
Next up on our whirlwind tour around the area is this patch of land that is between Brown Street (Hamilton Street section) through to Wall Street at the other end.  It used to be a park ages ago and has been identified to us by a few people now as having great potential for various kinds of growing.  What kind of thing would that be? Would you like to get involved? So that’s the Brown Street Park.

Easter Carmuirs Park
Next part of our tour has brought us to Easter Carmuirs Park where obviously there was some work done last year. There were some meadow areas planted up in the distance behind the goalposts and just the other side of the railings.  There’s scope for things up towards the Ochiltree (Camelon Community Hub) and around the rest of the park.  People have spoken to us about different options even all the way around the corner towards Ochiltree Terrace.  So another bit – what would you like to see here at Easter Carmuirs Park.

Summary
Well I hope you enjoyed your little walk around Camelon and Tamfourhill looking at some of the sites that have been shown to us, potentially for growing or gardening.  There’ll be loads more, I’m sure, and even some of the sites that we’ve shown you today might have confused you as to what could be done there.  Best thing to do is get involved.  If you follow the link, it’ll take you to a little Survey Monkey thing that simply is getting your details so you’ll be on a mailing list specifically for gardening and growing.  We won’t bombard you with other stuff.  Follow that link, fill in your details, and we’ll set a meeting up, probably by Zoom because we can’t meet each other unfortunately.  We’ll do that meeting just to get an idea of where your skills are, what kind of interests there are, what the potential is, and where we can take this project.  Hope that’s been fun. Have a good rest of day and we’ll see you soon.  Bye!

camelon, collaboration, community, development, gardening, growing, litter, Our Place, Support, tamfourhill

Community Growing

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill

For my blog this week, I’m mainly speaking to those of you out there who have an interest in gardening, although the rest of you can read on as well if you wish!

My colleague John is gaining good traction in community litter picking as part of the campaign to Keep Camelon and Tamfourhill Tidy Clean and Green. His blog on Tuesday highlighted one group of litter pickers, and we’ve seen and heard of other such groups or individuals cropping up around the area too. This is great as people are taking a pride in their area.

On the back of that activity, we now wish to look at how we can turn some local sites – either local litter hotspots or just unused areas – into something beautiful. We can do this by undertaking community gardening that may be as simple as “seed bombing” or spreading some wildflower seeds, but could be as involved as growing food that could ultimately benefit local food pantry’s as well. We may just develop a very small area, or work on a larger plot over a longer period of time. Basically, the opportunities are endless and hopefully will give a fresh outlet for all those of you who developed green fingers during lockdown in your own garden or balcony, or took part in the ‘veg on a ledge’ scheme, as well as those for whom this kind of thing is second nature.

We have identified a few possible sites and have opened discussions with Falkirk Council and also the local Community Food Consortium to ensure we do things right but also feed into local planning, support and maybe even some funding.

So if this is of interest to you, please take 2 minutes of your time to complete the information on the link below. I’ll then set up a meeting for those who are interested to discuss options. Due to current restrictions this will be an online meeting, but if you know of anyone who is not online who may be interested, please let them know and help them keep informed until we can actually physically get together again.

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/TBZQ9SG

We’ll aim to start this as simply as possible by allowing you to do what you want to do – gardening! In time, this may evolve into a formal organisation but not until we have the right skills around. All that will come in time. For now, lets focus on the plants! I look forward to supporting you in making this happen. Any questions, comments, suggestions or need for help – give me a shout.

Dan Rous, Community Coach. 07444 873151 or communitycoach@tamfourhilltro.co.uk

camelon, coach, collaboration, community, development, Our Place, resilience, Support, tamfourhill

The trouble with groups

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill

Steering Group.
Committee.
Board.
Working Group.

Apologies – those may be swear words to some people! To others, you may not even know what some of them are. And then there will be some of you who absolutely get these words, understand the need behind them, and will engage in their outworking.

The joy and challenge of my role is that all of those responses are completely fine! This makes for interesting times but it’s part of what I enjoy about this role. You don’t need me to tell you that Camelon and Tamfourhill is a diverse area. You just need to take a short walk around to see the differences in areas and people, often just within a stones throw of each other. So, how do we deal with this – and I do mean ‘we’!

When we plant a rose seed in the earth, we notice that it is small, but we do not criticise it as rootless and stemless. We treat it as a seed giving it the water and nourishment required of a seed. When it first shoots up out of the earth, we don’t condemn it as immature and underdeveloped; nor do we criticise the buds for not being open when they appear. We stand in wonder at the process taking place and give the plant the care it needs at each stage of its development.

Timothy Gallway, The Inner Game of Tennis

I completely understand that people want to get involved at different levels. Some of you will have no problem joining in with an activity or event and would be happy to ‘get your hands dirty’ with whatever is going on. However, you would run a mile if you were asked to be on an organising committee or do some paperwork linked to that activity. That is perfectly okay. We need all sorts of people to get involved. Leaders, helpers, organisers, planners, supporters etc. Just like the rose in the quote above, all are needed and all are welcome. (I wrote more on this in one of my earlier blogs back in July)

So when I’m helping form a new group or developing an existing one, the biggest potential difficulty comes when you assemble people from different walks of life. When they gather for the first time and don’t necessarily know each other, there will be feelings of uncertainty about each others motives and this usually leads to a hesitance to make strong commitments right away. Some may be a bit puzzled about the purpose and goals of the group. Others may not be sure whether they will have anything in common with the other members and might be reluctant to even find out.

To get going, the group needs to understand and/or shape their purposes and tasks in ways that make sense to them and are meaningful. As the members express what will undoubtedly be differing viewpoints, some areas of conflict may occur. There may also be some ill-feelings toward the person taking the lead if they are not seen as being fair or are siding more with one side or another. Whilst I’m here to enable people to have the skills to take on responsibility, I’m aware that the ‘lead’ person initially might be me. Rest assured I will always be impartial, fair and focused on the tasks at hand but am prepared to handle ill-feelings should they come my way! I’m also here to mediate if needed.

It is essential in any group that all perspectives are given serious consideration, and that efforts are made to accommodate the differences. If this is not easily achieved, the best thing to do is go back to the vision, mission and goals of the group. (Another previous blog talks more about this). If it then remains clear that not all members share the same basic vision and sense of mission, it may actually be better to split into smaller groups who can lead on different activities. In other words, rather than trying to dilute what you’re doing or waste time trying to work on differences in priorities, enabling two groups to work side by side on different projects can reduce the tensions and potentially enable even more people to get involved.

Bringing about large scale change is difficult and is achieved through relationships, championships, legitimacy, purpose, passion and patience.

Anon

Having successfully resolved any disagreements, the group will hopefully have a sense of togetherness with members being accepting of each other. In this situation, members should be able to make a stronger, perhaps longer term commitment to the group and would hopefully also be willing to take on greater responsibilities.  I’ll be there to support and train them as appropriate and support for as long as it takes. The result is that decision-making is easier and more effective with all group members empowered to focus on the vision, mission and goals. This all leads to the group developing a strong identity because they are much more than just a collection of individuals now.

That’s the plan anyway!

I could write loads more on this but I’ll save that for another blog or better still when I’m actually working with groups directly. For now though, I’ll leave you with these 5 core elements that apply to forming or developing any group and really, for any effective community to thrive:

  • Connection (We all need a sense of belonging)
  • Participation (We all need to be engaged in some kind of community)
  • Nature (We all need a safe natural world to live in)
  • Fairness (We all need to see justice in all its dimensions)
  • Dignity (We all need enough to live in comfort, safety and happiness)

If you want help forming, fixing or developing a group in the Camelon and Tamfourhill area, please do not hesitate to email me on communitycoach@tamfourhilltro.co.uk or call 07444 873151. Until next time…. Dan.

camelon, coach, collaboration, community, development, lottery, Our Place, resilience, safety, Support, tamfourhill

Busting the Myths

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill

Since John and I started in post, we have tried to make clear why we’re hear and what our role is. But there are still some people who don’t know about us, don’t quite get what we’re doing, or think we are something that we’re not! Some of this is understandable with the current restrictions and our limitation to mostly online communication, but there is still some misinterpretation or misinformation around. So today, let me try to put right some myths that are out there about our roles, and try to get us all on the same page. To save you just scrolling through, here’s a list of the questions or comments made. Click any one to get my take on it:

Are you from Falkirk Council?
Are you just going to gather information and do little or nothing with it?
You’re part of Tamfourhill TRA so you’re not there for all of us.
Our Place hasn’t done anything for us yet, what’s different now?
This place will never change!
The problems are just too big
Why should I get involved?
How do I get involved?

Are you from Falkirk Council?
With all due respect to the Council, NO WE ARE NOT!! We are locally employed and will work only for the interests of local people. We will liaise with Falkirk Council and local councillors as needed, and we are doing that already, but we are completely independent of them, sitting within the Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill project hosted by Tamfourhill Tenants and Residents Organisation.

Are you just going to gather information and do little or nothing with it?
Absolutely NOT! Yes we will need to gather fresh information, as John has already done with the Community Safety Survey, but this is because it’s been a little while since relevant information was gathered and we want to be working with as up to date knowledge as possible. We will then use any information to inform positive action or developments and can promise you that it will not just sit in a file and gather dust. We are not researchers. We are people of action (where’s my cape!)

You’re part of Tamfourhill TRA so you’re not there for all of us.
Yes, the funding for the Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill Project is hosted by Tamfourhill Tenants and Residents Association. That is true and was done that way as they were deemed by The National Lottery Community Fund to be best placed to host two employees and oversee the project. BUT…… that DOES NOT mean that we are only here for their benefit. We are here to work for the whole of Camelon and Tamfourhill – for all groups and individuals – for all positive and negative things. There are people needing coaching support across the whole area. There are organisations needing a bit of advice or guidance as they work across the whole area. There are community safety issues everywhere. Sometimes we will work with a specific group or location and other times we will work for the benefit of the whole area. It’s project dependant but ultimately and quite simply, we are HERE FOR EVERYONE.

Our Place hasn’t done anything for us yet, what’s different now?
There’s something a bit Monty Python about this question/comment (what have the Romans ever done for us…. look it up in YouTube!!) The Our Place programme first ran from 2014 to 2019. During that time, support was officially here for a couple of days a month and enabled a direct link to The National Lottery Community Fund (Big Lottery as it was then) through the support staff. This brought in £1.5m of funding directly to projects in the area – find out more here – and supported additional applications, particularly to Awards for All, in the region of £150,000. That wasn’t shouted about much so you’ll be forgiven for thinking there was no local benefit, but there WAS and STILL IS! The previous programme also identified key areas of concern and so it earmarked further funding for longer term direct support in the form of the jobs that John and I are privileged to be in for the next 3 years, along with a small pot of operational funding around that. What that means is that we are both here 35 hours a week until at least April 2023 to work with local people and organisations and bring genuine help and development. We will not just float in and out again, creating something that might or might not last. We are in this for the long haul and for me especially, I’m here to ensure people have the skills, support and connections necessary to be able to do things themselves so that they don’t need external help – to encourage, motivate and develop you as needed, walking with you every step of the way. John is determined to enable positive change to the variety of Community Safety issues with your engagement. Hopefully in April 2023 (or ideally before) you’ll be able to say with confidence exactly what Our Place has done for you.

This place will never change!
With all due respect, if we think like that then no it won’t. But if we take some time to work together and plan properly, then YES IT CAN! It is true that statistically we have various levels of deprivation in the area. But we have a shed load of assets – THE PEOPLE! Deprivation stats are only good for getting funding. The skills and passions of local people are perfect for effecting positive change. A couple of years ago a resident described this as the land that time forgot. Lack of development, investment, support etc. Carry on like that and yes it will change, but for the worse. John and I, together with many others (including hopefully you), are determined to reverse this trend, build on the £1.5m invested in the last 5 years, and bring more funding, development, support and positive COMMUNITY LED change.

The problems are just too big
True. There are big issues to tackle. But THEY CAN BE TACKLED. As a whole it can look too huge. But, broken down into individual issues, we can work out some themes, trends and causes. That will enable us to develop ways to tackle the issue and engage with local people and support bodies. John and I can’t do this on our own and even with your involvement this still might be difficult. But ignoring the issues, or just accepting them, is not the answer. Nor is invoking mob rule! So, include us. Inform us. Allow us to work with you. It will take time but we can bring an end to many of these problems that we face today.

So, how can we do this? Two more questions to consider…

Why should I get involved?
Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill is here for people living in, or organisations working for the benefit of, LOCAL PEOPLE. This is all about helping you to be a part of creating a positive change for this area and for yourselves. This is not about doing things for you or to you any more. This is about either doing things with you, or putting you in a position so you can do it yourselves. So if you want to make and be a part of a positive future for Camelon and Tamfourhill – you should get involved. If you want to make a better future for yourself and your friends/family – you should get involved. We can’t and won’t force you – what would be the point in that? You are free to carry on as you are and enjoy whatever development happens around you. But where’s the fun in that? Getting involved, at whatever level works for you – behind the scenes or upfront – will really help to bring communities closer together and truly show people what Camelon and Tamfourhill are made of. TOGETHER WE ARE STRONGER.

How do I get involved?
Ah – this is a joy to our hearts when someone asks this question. There are MANY WAYS to get involved and at VARIOUS LEVELS. One group is the Kemlin Kin group that is made up of local residents and organisations working in the area who are passionate about bringing positive development to Camelon and Tamfourhill and improving local Community Safety. This is a great way in to finding out what is going on and meeting other people. It will also introduce you to other groups that might be good for you to get more involved with. But don’t worry, I know that not everyone wants to be on a committee but they would be more than happy to get their hands dirty with practical work. So if a group of this nature isn’t for you then there are plenty of other more practical ways you can get involved too. Really, the best thing to do is to stick your head above the parapet and get in touch with us. We can then discuss the options with you and also see what support you might need to get involved.

Hopefully this has helped. But if you have any further concerns, questions or comments, please give me a shout and I’ll happily discuss this further with you.

camelon, coach, collaboration, community, development, Our Place, resilience, Support, tamfourhill

Turning enthusiasm into action

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill

Clever people tell me of the ancient Greek word “enthos” which means “from within”. Literally, it has religious connotations, but from this ancient word we get todays word enthusiasm. So what is your ‘enthos’? What enthuses you? What gets you out of bed in the morning? Is it money? A necessity? Or a passion to do, be or create something? Or maybe you don’t know what to do with this dream inside you. Maybe you have an idea, a passion, a goal that is burning within you and you don’t know what to do with it. Maybe life – those around you – your own mind – is telling you that you can’t do anything with it.

Everyone has a different ‘enthos’. And everyone has a right to bring that to a reality yet so many miss out because they never took that first step. Or worse, that someone stopped them taking that first step. If you’re enthusiastic about something, now is the time to put things into action.

I should add at this point that there are those who don’t like the word enthusiasm or enthusiast. They change it for ‘fanatic’ or say the person is literally ‘possessed’ by the topic or activity in question. Okay, that may be a very literal translation of the word but we are not going anywhere near that kind of description – it is not helpful and stops some people with a genuine enthusiasm for something from actually going through with it.

It is said that the wealthiest place on the planet is a graveyard, because of all the ideas, dreams and passions that lay unfulfilled. That enthusiasm someone had for something but never went through with it for various reasons. That idea to create something that never came through because someone told them it would never work. That passion to develop a local activity that never got off the ground because of lack of support.

Let’s not allow this kind of history to repeat itself. Whatever it is that is burning within you, we’d love to chat with you about it. We can help you work through the processes you’d need to go through to make it a reality. Through our direct support, and signposting you to the support of others, your ‘enthos’ can come out from within your mind and become a reality.

In closing, have a watch of this short video that asks what drives you. It uses a lot of sporting imagery but take note of the dialogue. Now is your time.

camelon, collaboration, community, litter, lockdown, Our Place, safety, tamfourhill

The Community Safety Road Ahead

bighosie

Hello and welcome to my third article for the Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill Community Safety blog. Time seems to be flying past at a very fast rate and hopefully we are getting closer to the Scottish Government restrictions being lifted and we are now entering a period of life which is more familiar to all of us. It has been frustrating for myself since coming into post at the start of May as I have been unable to meet people in person and I haven’t had the ability to get to know our  communities and the facilities and Groups which are thriving throughout Camelon and Tamfourhill. I would like to thank my colleague Dan Rous for his continued insight and local knowledge, and the support I have been receiving from Shona and Lynne at the Tamfourhill TRO. I was also glad to be formally introduced to the Kemlin Kin group this week and I look forward to working closely with this group as we develop the local community safety strategy. One benefit of the working from home approach has been the time and space that I have had to carry out research and prepare myself for the work ahead and look at other good practice examples from around Scotland in relation to community safety.

My initial task has been to implement a consultation process and my intention is for this to be a dynamic process and for it to be inclusive. I want to ensure that all the different interests and groups within the community have a voice and an input with identifying and confirming the local community safety priorities. This until now has only involved the survey which has been circulated and is available at https://tinyurl.com/ycbes5qw (Remember if you complete a survey by the 7th August you can win yourself a Tablet in the prize draw). Due to the lockdown,  I have as yet been unable to take the survey out in hard copy version so that people who don’t  use social media etc can also get an opportunity to complete a survey.  

In my previous blogs I have been publishing some of the preliminary findings and I have highlighted the most significant local issues which include: concerns about Substance misuse, various types of anti-social behaviour and the problems of littering, fly-tipping and dog fouling. Roads and traffic matters have also scored very highly, and it appears that specific locations have problems with speeding cars.  I have already been researching into anti-litter campaigns and I hope to link our own local initiatives in with the Keep Scotland Beautiful and their clean up Scotland campaign. Please look for opportunities to get involved with this campaign. It will be more than just cleaning up specific areas, although that will form a significant part of our activities, but in addition there will also be creative arts to get involved with, family based activity, a media and publicity campaign and the redevelopment of specific areas through encouraging greater bio diversity. I am using the working title of “Keep Camelon and Tamfourhill clean, tidy & green”

The survey is manly about identifying broad areas of importance and over the next few months the consultation will move into a more interactive and participative phase. I will be organising Focus Groups and also activity-based workshops for the younger members of our community. I have also been meeting on Zoom with other stakeholders and I have received a very positive response for the Community Police officers, the local Fire and Rescue Service, the Neighbourhood watch scheme, and services within Falkirk Council. It is absolutely essential that all our local groups are involved, and if they are willing, I will be keen to facilitate Focus groups with our Tenants and Resident Organisations, Community Hubs, Social Clubs, the Nailer Park groups and the Camelon Community Centre. I have also received an incredibly positive and encouraging commitment to the local strategy form the: Camelon Arts Project, The Conservation Volunteers, the Community Sports Hub, and the Cyrenians Navigators Project. Once I have been able to collate all the consultation materials and Focus Group feedback, I will be holding a community action planning day. The aim of this will be to work in partnership with all of these before-mentioned groups and agencies and other stakeholders to put together the local strategy and agree a programme of activities which will make a positive contribution to making Camelon and Tamfourhill a safer, happier and more attractive place to live.  

  

camelon, coach, collaboration, community, development, funding, Our Place, resilience, Support, tamfourhill

How you can make a difference

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill

Hi. Welcome to my second Community Coach blog. This week, to further highlight why my role exists, I’m going to talk about how I can help you or your organisation to make a positive difference in the area. Before I say more, please take 3 minutes to watch this TED talk from musician and entrepreneur, Derek Sivers.

I love this video because it shows how simple it can be to get a group of people together to work towards a common goal. Okay, the people in this video are just dancing on a hillside (nothing wrong in that of course!) but as the speaker points out, it teaches us some important lessons about how groups of people work. This can really help us as we look to bring more positive change to Camelon and Tamfourhill. So, which type of person described in the video are you? Or which would you like to be but don’t know where to start? Let’s explore further.

Leader
The person running the group or cause – the maverick – the lone nut – the one with the vision – the one who can’t sit back and do nothing – the one who’s often frustrated at the lack of action – the one needing others to get involved but not knowing where to find them.

Is this you? Are you running something that’s going pretty well but needs a fresh injection of life? Are you plodding away with something that’s been going a while but just seem to go over the same ground all the time? Are you trying to get something started but can’t get others to join you? Or do you simply have a dream of something that could be, but don’t know where to start?

How can I help you to make your dream a reality? What do you need? People – funding – general guidance – a venue – visibility – training? I can help you with all of this so just get in touch.

First Follower
Often just one person joining in on the journey can make life easier. Are you that person? You saw in the video how just one person joining in slowly started a flood of helpers. Is there a cause that you want to get involved with and you’ve either seen/heard of someone wanting to do something about it but don’t know how to make the first move? Or are you passionate about something like the leader above, but would rather not be the one to lead it? Maybe you want to be that first follower but don’t think you’ve got the necessary skills or abilities to do so. I can help! You may be the key that unlocks the potential of someone’s dream!

The Crowd
Are you waiting for the momentum to get going on something before you jump on board? Will you jump once you’ve seen positive results? That’s all fair enough but you need to be ready to jump at some point! What do you need to help you do that? Self-confidence – skills based training – more information – networking skills – signposting? Again, I can help! Don’t be the one who sits back and just lets others jump forwards to help. The only barrier to you getting involved and being included in order to bring positive change, is you!

Why bother?
Its a fair point. You may have lived here for a huge part of your life and just see the same old things happening with the same results. You may be new into the area and finding it difficult to integrate or worried even that what you suggest has been tried before and failed – but has anyone asked why it failed?! Or you may be somewhere in the middle but still don’t know what to do, where to go, or even why to do it.

As people, we are made to live and work with others in a positive community where we can thrive. We are social beings that have evolved to exist within communities. American politician Paul Ryan said “every successful individual knows that his or her achievement depends on a community of persons working together.” To grow and develop, we need to create a working team around us that is not necessarily all in agreement all the time, but that will work together for a common goal. Stephanie Caldow says in her article ’10 Traits That Make a Good Community’ that: “Involvement in a positive and encouraging community has a tangible impact on individual self-awareness and fulfilment. Positive experiences with communities allow individuals to feel more connected to their environment and the people in it. This form of connection also provides a support system for people when they are in need of encouragement or sympathy. Strong feelings of connection to the group also work to combat any mental illness that can arise from alienation in the form of anxiety and depression. Positive community experiences provide members with a sense of belonging and the feeling of being able to express themselves without feeling judged. Communities that excel at promoting this feeling of belonging encourage members to speak up about their ideas and opinions, which, in turn, leads to members considering their positions from a deeper perspective.” *

I see so much great stuff that is being done already but there is still so much more that can be done. Some ideas start well and then fall down very quickly or just drag along – often because people don’t get involved, but also because people do get involved and are not fully embraced or included by the leaders or even by the first followers, so they drift away again. Let’s work together to continue making Camelon and Tamfourhill a thriving, positive and encouraging community for all people that live here and not just those that are visible.

Summary
I’ll leave you with some quotes from the video that started this piece off, but before I do, let me reiterate that I am here to coach you – to work with you. This is not like previous support activity when people do everything for you but equally you will not be left to struggle on your own. Let me work with you to support, train, encourage, guide or whatever! And so to these final words from Derek Sivers, taken from his video above:

“If you are the type [of person] that is standing alone, remember the importance of nurturing your first few followers as equals so it’s clearly about the [cause], not you.”

“Leadership is over glorified. Yes [someone has to be] first and they’ll get all the credit, but it was really the first follower that transformed the lone nut into a leader.”

“If you really care about starting [something], have the courage to follow and show others how to follow. And when you find the lone nut doing something great, have the guts to be the first one to stand up and join in.”

* Stephanie Caldow quote taken from https://positivepsychology.com/10-traits-positive-community/

camelon, coach, collaboration, community, development, funding, lottery, Our Place, resilience, safety, tamfourhill

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill begins next stage of support

Our Place Camelon and Tamfourhill

“Our Place” was a place-based initiative from the Big Lottery Fund (now the National Lottery Community Fund) that aimed to build stronger connections and relationships in communities, empowering local people and organisations to bring about positive and lasting changes in their neighbourhood.  The Camelon/Tamfourhill area of Falkirk was one of 7 areas in Scotland and the community has been working together on this vision since 2014.  Various projects were developed, funded and delivered through the scheme with £1.2m being distributed locally. 

The final successful application was for the Kemlin Kin project, established to support the community to create a legacy for the work that had taken place.  The project aimed to engage two development workers to lead two separate but linked workstreams, one around capacity-building to ensure that community groups in Camelon and Tamfourhill continue to flourish past the end of the Our Place programme, and one around the theme of Community Safety, which has been repeatedly highlighted as a local priority.

These two workers have now commenced in post with John Hosie taking on the role of Community Safety Engager and Dan Rous becoming the Community Coach.  They are employed and managed by Tamfourhill Tenants and Residents Organisation and the organisation will work closely with a  steering group made up of local people and organisations to enhance community empowerment and ensure local people have a voice within the local area.

Quote from John

My Post will ensure that Community Safety is put firmly onto the local agenda and my overarching aim will be to support the development of a community led strategy. The intended outcomes will be to achieve a community that feels safe, keeps safe and one which builds mutual respect and greater community cohesion.  The initial phase of this project will be concerned with highlighting and promoting both myself and my remit and to engage with  an active listening exercise, where the local community will be supported and encouraged to share their experiences and  views  about Community Safety.   Priorities require to be identified and agreed, which are relevant and appropriate to all interests within the community. This approach will necessitate implementing a multi-faceted approach and a consultation process that is inclusive and dynamic.

Quote from Dan

My post will ensure that people working with or for the communities of Camelon and Tamfourhill can be supported, developed and encouraged to make them stronger and resilient for the future.  I will be providing training and support for things that will help them in their roles, including how and where to access funding, operational issues, property matters, marketing, development and much more.  It’s an interesting time to start a new role but I will be using this time of lockdown to collate peoples needs and develop a programme of support that will be both individual and collective.  Through this project we aim to ensure that all local support will continue and grow in the future as well as encouraging new activities to take place as well.  This is a great area with so much potential and I am eager to do my part to harness and develop the potential within.

Quote from Tamfourhill Tenants and Residents Organisation

The Tamfourhill tenants and residents are delighted to be managing this project within our local area. The project was a long time in the development with a number of hurdles to overcome before the project could get off the ground. We are excited to be in the next steps of the project and look forward to the final piece of the  jigsaw which is to provide a capacity building support project within the area that will support local people to have more of a say in the delivery of future project activity and empower local people to be active in community safety projects.

Press Release Notes

  • Tamfourhill Tenants and Residents Organisation is a Scottish Registered Charity SC049783.  They are a group of local people who work together to represent the views of all tenants and homeowners within the area and help make the are they live in a better place.  They work in partnership with other community and statutory organisations to help create positive change within the local area.

More information is available from Shona Craig/Lynne Boslem at  ttra@live.co.uk

His background has been in detached youth work and community development work and he has been involved with supporting a wide array of local community-based Projects and initiatives.  The essential features have been to facilitate local ownership and empowerment and to ensure these projects have been developed in accordance with local people’s aspirations and vision.  John is new to this area and arrives with an open mind, a blank canvas, and an enthusiasm to have a positive and effective impact upon the local community.

His background is in Social Enterprise and Community Development and he specialises in developing projects that enable people and communities to be developed.  He has worked with numerous projects across Scotland for the last 17 years and has gathered a wide range of support and contacts to bring to the area to help people reach their potential.  Dan lives in the area but knows he still has much to find out about everything that is happening so that collectively the area can be made even better than it is.