Learning – real skills for Sustainable Communities

Knowledge is power and if we spread the knowledge of good ideas and ways of doing regeneration and renewal we spread the power to change things for the better and create sustainable communities.

Creating Excellence runs themed events to address practical knowledge needs and to encourage debate. See our Events South West database for forthcoming events.

In 2006 our 'real ways of learning' programme will be offering some exciting opportunities for you to learn through trying something new. We'll be running action learning sets, multi-disciplinary learning and mentoring amongst a number of other activities.

We are scouring new publications and web sites to make sure you get the information you need to negotiate with other organisations or within your own organisation to do things differently. See our news south west page for some of the latest news.

Our Case Studies section brings you examples of where a project or initiative has worked well and changed an area, and enables learning from some that haven't worked so well.

Today there is a vast range of know-how about regeneration and how to build thriving communities. Many colleges and universities provide courses, whilst other organisations run events and produce publications to help share knowledge. We are working with the Academy for Sustainable Communities to provide a database of all courses available across the country.

The aim of sustainable communities is to improve the well-being of people and places and to engender the sense of community that we all say we want to feel around us. Understanding what makes a community thrive or what can send it spiralling into decline should mean we start doing more of the right things and less of the wrong things. Learning new skills, techniques and processes should help us to change the way things have been done in the past.

Creating Excellence's learning programme is run by Cherida Fletcher, our Head of Learning. For more information contact Cherida.fletcher@creatingexcellence.org.uk.

Creating Excellence is advised on all aspects of learning by a learning advisory group. The group's membership reflects key stakeholder groupings (practitioners, providers, funders, and researchers) together with the geographic, urban and rural spread of the South West.