1. NHS Lothian Health Inequalities Seminar The Community Empowerment Approach in Scotland

2. Community-led Health
Creating the conditions with an approach to improve
health that supports communities experiencing
disadvantage and poor health outcomes to:
identify and define what is important to them about their health
identify the factors that impact on wellbeing
take the lead in identifying and implementing solutions

3. Underpinning principles
The most powerful agents of change are people themselves, everyone has something to give
Our citizens, our communities, are our greatest assets, everyone has potential to make change
Change through collective action is powerful and engagement in community life leads to more positive personal outcomes
But, in terms of addressing health inequalities, direct intervention is required in communities experiencing long term disadvantage

4. In practice this means..
Addressing needs, assets, priorities and agenda for change led by community and agreed with others
Working with people as community members not as individual members of the public
Focusing on disadvantage, exclusion and inequality
Promoting an empowerment approach to change
Promoting agency-community partnership
Promoting social model of health – especially the interaction with the medical model

5. The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015
Royal Assent on 24th July 2015
‘Engaging, listening and responding to communities’
Greater influence over community planning, local service provision, land and buildings
Participation in local decision-making
Control over assets and resources
The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 received Royal Assent on 24th July 2015.
The Act is highly ambitious and sets out a series of measures aimed at committing government and public services to engage with, listen to and respond to communities
Easing the way towards communities having greater influence over community planning, local service provision, and the management/ownership of land and buildings.
It sets out many opportunities for communities to participate in local decision-making, and to take more control over assets and resources that will help to achieve positive outcomes for communities across the country.

6. The Scottish Approach Prevention in communities before problems arise
Coordination within and between services
Rooted in tacking inequality
Co-production – with communities for better services
Partnership with communities – of “place” & of “interest or identity”
Christie commission on public services
Health and Social Care, Children's Act - emphasis on localities and primary prevention
Assets based approaches to health and co-production of services
Fairer Scotland dialogue & the Social Justice Action plan which will be in the Governments Manifesto
Empowerment key to delivering the duties in the Equalities Act & Scottish Human Rights Action Plan – equal emphasis on Communities of place, interests and identity
A major mechanism for Democratic Renewal & dialogue about Constitutional Reform
A major policy framework which strengthens other policy and practice levers designed to support communities eg Assets for Health, Community Learning and Development plans

7. Key parts of the Act Community Planning
New duties on CPPs - tackling inequalities
Local Outcomes Improvement Plans & Locality plans
Participation Requests
Right to participate in outcomes improvement processes
Focus on reducing inequalities of outcome
Community right to buy land
Extension of rights in this area to include urban areas, derelict land, etc.
Asset transfer
Right to use, lease or own community facilities/amenities
Community Planning
New duties on CPPs, focus on tackling inequalities
Local Outcomes Improvement Plans to replace Single Outcome Agreements
Locality plans
Participation Requests
Right to request to participate in outcomes improvement processes
Focus on reducing inequalities of outcome
Apply in a wide variety of contexts
Community right to buy and asset transfer
Extension of rights in this area to include urban areas, derelict land, etc.
Incorporates changes to the Land Reform Act
Common good allotments / part duty

8. Purpose of Participation Requests
Highlighting community needs, issues or opportunities
Involve people in change or improvement
Not intended to replace good engagement or participation
Opportunity for communities to establish a formal dialogue
For communities to pro-actively influence the agenda.
Participation Requests are potentially of great value for communities that have identified a need, issue or opportunity that they wish to pursue.
They also give communities the opportunity to set out how they can be involved in helping to achieve the desired changes or improvements.
They should not be viewed as a replacement for engagement and participation processes which already work well, but as an opportunity for communities to establish a formal dialogue where they find it difficult to be heard, or where they pro-actively want to influence the agenda.
A process with reporting requirements for each OIP– people have additional opportunities for influence

9. The Act - real opportunities
Community participation enshrined in legislation
Can no longer be dismissed as “non – statutory”
Addressing disadvantage and inequality – explicit within the Act
Support to communities to participate effectively
Specific duties on public bodies to deliver new rights to:
participation requests
shaping outcomes
extension of community right to buy
asset transfer
Addressing disadvantage and inequality – explicit within the Act
Emphasis on support being made available to communities (especially the disadvantaged and unequal ones) Recognition that communities (especially disadvantaged and unequal ones) will need advice, support and information
Community participation enshrined in legislation – more accountability and collaboration between public bodies and communities
Specifically we welcome the new rights in relation to: participation requests, shaping outcomes, extension of community right to buy, and asset transfer
Breadth of participation opportunities – No immediate obvious limits on requests - addresses some key institutional and attitudinal blockages to empowerment in a potentially wide range of contexts.

10. …and challenges Act should augment not replace other engagement
Communities - evidence - mandate & contribution
Support required – particularly to disadvantaged communities
Expectations – of communities and agencies
Broader definitions of community – harder to deliver
Appeals & Enforcement – varies across the Act
Danger of only using the Act provisions negatively to address conflict with agencies rather than positively or pro-actively to make proposals – the act should be seen as part of a process which builds on, not replaces pro-active good quality engagement with communities – or of legitimate engagement with elected members lobbying etc
Evidencing mandate - Constituted groups / Development Trusts / SCIO’s
Although the Act is flexible with Communities requiring different levels of governance evidence for different things. The draft guidance does provide information about constituting as a group – important to ensure that form follows function and that helpful advice on constituting for example doesn’t create a hierarchy of perceive representativeness.
Many communities (and community organisations) will need significant levels of support to make use of the provisions of the Act (resources?) – particularly those in disadvantaged communities. Will the opportunities be taken up by these groups? This is against the backdrop of an existing CCB crisis locally which is getting worse
Expectations - communities & public agencies
Are often in tension
Need good relationships and trust to flourish – cant legislate for that
With participation - conflict sometimes part of the process
Broader definitions of community – harder to deliver
Need new alliances
Could surface some tensions
Will need to be thought through if to avoid tokenism
Appeals mechanisms – different diff parts of the Act.
Enforcement regime is still unclear
Recognition of need for good planned part approaches
PRs focus attention on need for these as a consensual option

11. Making it work Most supportive participation framework to date
Part of a process of democratic renewal
Will need a huge culture change in agencies and services
And independent support for equal citizen participation
Without support resources – inequality could be worse
And now its up to all of us to make it
happen!
Participation Requests are potentially of great value for communities that have identified a need, issue or opportunity that they wish to pursue.
They also give communities the opportunity to set out how they can be involved in helping to achieve the desired changes or improvements.
They should not be viewed as a replacement for engagement and participation processes which already work well, but as an opportunity for communities to establish a formal dialogue where they find it difficult to be heard, or where they pro-actively want to influence the agenda.
A process with reporting requirements for each OIP– people have additional opportunities for influence

12. Useful information For further information about SCDC or CHEX contact:
Susan Paxton at
For further information about the full range of SCDC & CHEX programmes and activities visit our website at
Latest briefing on the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act -
Briefing on Participation Requests -
Updated information on the implementation of the Act at