Light years from command and control

 ...this one is from 2013 when I'd been at CCT for ten years.

Light years from command and control: how can national organisations support local groups and communities effectively in the 21st century?

A couple of weeks ago I visited Clapton-in-Gordano, where CCT’s St Michael’s church sits in a Somerset valley which could be a rural idyll but for the relentless soundtrack of the M5.  It’s an area which also has its fair share of social challenges spilling over from nearby Portishead, and the community some time ago found it could not keep up with the demands of keeping their Grade I historic church going: Complete list of churches

After several years of standing empty in their midst, historic St Michael’s is now the focus for a group of people with the vision of building a stronger community.  They have the energy and a range of skills, but they can’t do it alone.

So how does a national charity with limited resources help - at a local level - to improve the lives of individuals and communities? 

In the old days it was straightforward command and control.  At CCT we would sit in London and plan the repair of hundreds of churches around the country and then carve up the funding accordingly.  Top-down and expert-led, it was a model which worked.  At least in terms of bricks and mortar.

Now resources are much tighter and our aspirations – to help more people in many different ways – are greater.  Projects are multi-faceted and rely on partnership, local support and complex match-funding.  People expect to have control, but need and disadvantage remains and some communities need help from outside. 

In the era of localism, national organisations have had to change to be able to intervene effectively at local level.

National charities can’t do it alone either, so we must look together with the communities at what they want to achieve and where the gaps lie – whether it’s a skill, a pot of money, confidence or a business plan.  Then we need to broker a solution by working together – looking at who is best placed to support which aspects of the project.  A typical project might involve the community group itself, a trust, Lottery or statutory funder, a delivery organisation like CCT providing project management and business help, and any number of local partners.  It’s about putting together the right package to get the community to where they need to go, to be flexible and free of territorial pride and organisational competitiveness.

In Benington, Lincolnshire, we’ve  helped a divided and disadvantaged community come together around the rescue of their Grade I church: A thriving heart for a village - Benington.  We played the role of broker, communicator, expert adviser.  We helped people see the possibilities, find the resources and bring in the right support from a range of agencies.  CCT’s regeneration team rolled up their sleeves and ran a consultation, provided expert advice on conservation and business-planning and helped raise the money which the new community project will need.  The right amount of careful and responsive help has taken the village from downward spiral to being able to do it themselves.

Once we had ‘Command and Control’, now we need a new term for a new era.  ‘Define and Refine’ has been suggested to me: national organisations define a direction of travel, local communities fill in the detail and utilise a range of national and local support to put it into practice.

Define and Refine?  What do you think?