At the Trust for Developing Communities we tackle inequality in Brighton and Hove through community-led solutions. We practice Asset Based Community Development, an approach that empowers communities to drive development themselves by identifying and utilising the assets and strengths they already possess.
Communities are connected individuals; these connections occur around places, interests, and aspects of identity. Our trained staff team works across a variety of neighbourhoods and citywide, supporting communities and individuals to develop and flourish.
We start where communities naturally coalesce, whether that is in local neighbourhoods or citywide, in what’s known as a community of identity group. When we begin working with them, communities will often already have some existing infrastructure, community-led activities and resources. We then bring our own skills and resources in consultation, group development, project planning, governance and fundraising to help build on these existing assets and enable them to flourish, whilst remaining under the direction of the communities we work with.
We encourage participatory leadership and offer informal and formal training on community development.
We work across Brighton & Hove in neighbourhoods and citywide
What does a community development worker do?
A community development worker works alongside people in a neighbourhood, supporting them, empowering them and offering them guidance to be able to make improvements to their own community.
Depending on what is already in place when they enter a community, workers will get involved with the following processes. Most stages will get touched upon over a 2-3 year delivery period.
Discover community: Host conversations and gather stories – go to venues and shared spaces, door knock and host open events on and offline.
Include everyone: identify gaps in representative participation and work with partners in those communities to address them. (see our Inclusive Communities page for more information)
Understand community: Create shared understanding through community led asset mapping and priority setting.
Nurture Community: support community associations and grassroots groups to bring in resources and services, develop peer networks and shared learning.
Bridge Community: Support communities to co-design and collaborate with services through community led action plan
Evaluate & Celebrate: Create new shared stories though events and case studies.