1. HELPING LOCAL PEOPLE DO
EXTRAORDINARY THINGS.
James Hampson
Connecting Communities
Co-ordinator
Forever Manchester and Trafford Partnership
Asset Based Community Development and Community
Builder Training
2. Overview of the Session
• Introductions
• Locality Working Principle andWhyWe’re Here
• Forever Manchester and Community Building
• Needs Assessment andThe Deficit Model
• What is ABCD
• TheWe Can Game
• The Role of Service Providers in ABCD
• Co-Production
• ABCD Methodology
• LUNCH
3. Overview of the Session
• Community BuildingTools
• Asset Mapping
• Appreciative Inquiry
• Learning Conversations and Bumping Spaces
• Connecting and Connectors Clubs
• Community Led Initiatives
• Stories
• Questions and Evaluation
4. Ground Rules
• Have Fun
• Keep an Open Mind
• Be Positive but don’t be afraid to challenge
• Get to know each other
• Laugh
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions and share your
thoughts if you have them
• Tweeters!!
• @4EverManchester
• @TPAction
• #BeBoldTrafford
5. Introductions
• Write down 1 thing you could teach and 1 thing you
would like to learn
• Stick them under the headings at the back of the
room
• Tell us who you are and something that you are good
at
• What brings you to the session
• Each table to agree a spokesperson/spokespersons
• Spokesperson feedback any interesting findings
– Does anyone have any skills in common?
– Any interesting skills/interests?
– What types of things bring people here?
6. LocalityWorking
Principles of LocalityWorking are set out in the refreshed Community
Strategy:
• See residents, communities, businesses and organisations as equal
partners
• Bring people together to achieve things we cannot do alone
• Share power with local people, and add value to their local activity
• Align strategic priorities with local communities to deliver joint action
• Provide the tools and support to local people to take action
• Share information, skills and resources and collaborate with partners and
people
• Be creative, dynamic, supportive and challenging in order to achieve our
shared ambitions
7. Forever Manchester
• Community Foundation for Greater Manchester
• Been active for 25 Years
• Raise and distribute funds to communities of Greater
Manchester
• 2011 We discovered a different way of working
• Developed the UK’s first dedicated ABCD Community
Building Team
• Now apply the ethos of ABCD to all aspects of our business
including grant making
• We work with Communities to help them do “Extraordinary
things together”
8. Our Traditional Grant Making Approach
Deficiency
Dependency
Needs
Bureaucratic
Panel Driven
Restricted
Competitive
Tell us what’s wrong not what’s strong
in your community….
Find It,
Fund it &
Fix it….
9. Classic Needs Map
Racial tension/hate crimes High crime rates. Significant
fear among older people
High levels of ADHD
Smoking
related
Heart disease
Respiratory
difficulties
Obesity across
The life course
High levels of drug and
Alcohol use.
High unemployment Poor educational attainment
Poor housing/environmental issues
High
morbidity
Anti social
behaviour
Gender
inequality
10. Classic Needs Map
Racial tension/hate crimes High crime rates. Significant
fear among older people
High levels of Debt
Smoking
related
Heart disease
Respiratory
difficulties
Obesity across
The life course
High levels of drug and
Alcohol use.
High unemployment Poor educational attainment
Poor housing/environmental issues
High
morbidity
Anti social
behaviour
Gender
inequality
11. Thoughts?
• Would you want to live in this area?
• Is the needs assessment a true picture?
• What problems do you think can be caused by looking at
a community via its deficiencies?
• What are the problems for providers?
• What are the problems for residents?
• How would where you live stand up to this scrutiny?
12. Problems with this approach?
The consultation on the joint strategic needs assessment (JSNA) in Barrow-in-Furness in
Cumbria concluded that “improving self-worth is at the heart of issues related to healthy
lifestyles. If people value themselves, then other behaviours like healthy eating and giving
up smoking will follow. Whilst many communities recognise that their health is worse than
the average, reinforcing these negative images could have a negative impact on people’s
self-worth.”
• Apathy
• “Its not for me”
• Suspicion
• Communities become passive recipients of services
• Isolation
• Creates Competition for funding
• “Ugly Contest”
13. About Asset Based Community
Development
• Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) Institute
was founded in 1995 after 3 decades of community
development research
• Formalised by Professor John McKnight and Professor
Jodi Kretzman at Northwestern University, Chicago
“When people have been mapped by their deficiencies, it
is often difficult to pinpoint what they care about enough
to act upon”
Kretzmann and McKnight, 1993
14. Asset Based Community
Development
ABCD is a different way of thinking about how to work for
change – starting from a place of possibilities, strengths and
capacities as opposed to problems and deficiencies.
ABCD operates on the assumption that people, regardless of
their behaviour, their families and their communities have
valid and valuable resources for their own empowerment.
It also assumes that people have internal motivations to act
which can release these resources for the good of
themselves and their wider community.
15. Asset Based Community
Development
The asset approach values the capacity, skills, knowledge,
connections and potential in a community…the more
familiar ‘deficit’ approach focuses on the problems, needs
and deficiencies in a community. It designs services to fill
the gaps and fix the problems.
As a result, a community can feel disempowered and
dependent; people can become passive recipients of
expensive services rather than active agents in their own
and their families’ lives.”
Improvement and Development Agency, www.idea.gov.uk
16. About Asset Based Community
Development?
• It should be noted that ABCD does not say that
there isn’t a need for services or professional
interventions but that these should first seek to
identify what the individual and the community
can do for themselves and together
• More on this later!
17. About Asset Based Community
Development
• This is not ‘Big Society’, or a call for more volunteering; it is a
set of approaches that starts with the positive as a basis for
developing innovative and sustainable solutions
• It’s not an approach that just looks on the bright side, but
instead uses knowledge of ‘assets’ to make new connections
and enhance social capital
• A strength-based approach focuses on what works and how
to generate more of it, rather than focussing on the deficits
and problems
18. About Asset Based Community
Development
• Strength-based approaches focus on developing the
capacities of individuals and communities and
connecting them in new ways
• It supports and celebrates the contribution of those who
are vulnerable and marginalised, whilst developing the
capacity of the community to become more hospitable
and inclusive
20. Needs to Strengths
Transaction Why not also have a model that…Transforms
Focus on Deficiencies Focus on Assets
Problem Response Identify Opportunities
Charity Orientation Investment Orientation
Grants to Agencies Grants, Loans, Investments, Leverage
More Services Fewer Services
High Emphasis on Agencies Emphasis on Associations
Focus on Individuals Focus on communities/neighbourhoods
Maintenance Development
See People as Clients See People as Citizens and
Co-producers
‘Fix People’ Develop Potential
Programmes are the Answer People are the Answer
21. Classic Needs Map
Racial tension/hate crimes High crime rates. Significant
fear among older people
High levels of Debt
Smoking
related
Heart disease
Respiratory
difficulties
Obesity across
The life course
High levels of drug and
Alcohol use.
High unemployment Poor educational attainment
Poor housing/environmental issues
High
morbidity
Anti social
behaviour
Gender
inequality
22. Neighbourhood Asset Map
Physical Space
Local Economy
StoriesInstitutions
Associations
Individuals
My
Community
Institutions
Schools
Universities
Community Colleges
Police Departments
Hospitals
Libraries
Social Service Agencies
Not for Profits
Museums
Fire Brigades
Media
Foundations
Individuals
Gifts, Skills, Knowledge,
and traits of:
Youth
Older Adults
Artists
Welfare Recipients
People with disabilities
Students
Parents
Entrepreneurs
Activists
Veterans
Ex-offenders
Local Economy
For-profit business
Consumer Expenditure
Merchants
Chamber of Commerce
Business Associations
Banks
Credit Unions
Foundations
Institutional - purchasing
power and personnel
Barter and Exchange
Micro-Business
Corporations and Branches
Physical Space
Gardens
Parks
Playgrounds
Bike Paths
Walking Paths
Forest/forest Preserves
Picnic Areas
Campsites
Fishing Spots
Duck Ponds
Zoos
Wildlife Centre
Natural Habitats
Housing
Vacant Land & Buildings
Streets
Associations
Animal Care Groups
Anti-Crime Groups
Business Organisations
Charitable Groups
Cultural groups
Disability Groups
Education Groups
Elderly Groups
Environmental Groups
Family Support Groups
Health Advocacy
Heritage Groups Hobby
Groups
Interest Groups
Men’s Groups
Mentoring Groups
Neighbourhood Groups
Political Organisations
Recreation Groups
Religious Groups
Service Clubs
Social Groups
Women’s Groups
Youth Groups
Stories From Manchester
Alt Community Challenge
Team
Lostock Men’s Shed
Cool 2 B Kind
Great Lever Idea Works
Lostock Allotment
The ALTernative News
Cash 4 Graft
From Needs to Strengths
23. We Can Game
Credit - Cormac Russell of Nurture Development and Inclusion Press
24. TheWe Can Game
• The 100 Capacities are based on the work of Jodi
Kretzman and John McKnight of the ABCD Institute
• The game can be used to get people thinking
differently about their capacities/assets
• Can begin the process of asset mapping individuals
• It can start to identify people to invite in to our
Community Building efforts
25. What are Assets?
There are 5 key Assets in every community…
1) Individuals
2) Associations
3) Institutions
4) Physical Assets
5) Connections
26. What are Assets?
1) Individuals
• At the centre of ABCD are residents of the
community that have gifts and skills.
• Everyone has assets and gifts.
• Individual gifts and assets need to be recognized and
identified.
27. What are Assets?
2) Associations
• Small formal and informal groups of people
• Clubs working with a common interest as volunteers
are called associations in ABCD and are critical to
community mobilization
• They are coming together around a common
interest by their individual choice
28. What are Assets?
3) Institutions
• Paid groups of people who generally are professionals
who are structurally organized are called institutions.
• They include government agencies and private business,
as well as schools, etc.
• The assets of these institutions help the community
capture valuable resources and establish a sense of civic
responsibility.
29. What are Assets?
4) Physical Assets
• Physical assets such as land, buildings, space, and
funds are other assets that can be used
• How a space is viewed can sometimes determine its
worth as an Asset e.g.Waste ground
30. What are Assets?
5) Connections
• Assets become stronger when they are connected
together
• Connections between people based on strengths
build healthy relationships
31. The Role of Service Providers
“A growing body of evidence shows that when
practitioners begin with a focus on what communities
have (their assets) as opposed to what they don’t have
(their needs) a community’s efficacy in addressing its
own needs increases, as does its capacity to lever in
external support.”
Improvement and Development Agency,
www.idea.gov.uk
32. A Recap from Earlier
• It should be noted that ABCD does not say that
there isn’t a need for services or professional
interventions but that these should first seek to
identify what the individual and the community can
do for themselves and together.
33. The Role of Service Providers
• Services should seek to support individuals and
communities to display their assets
• They should be ready to offer the assets of the
service as and when they are needed to co-produce
a service user experience which utilises the skills,
gifts and passions of all involved for mutual benefit
• In community development you cannot do anything
with people’s needs, only their assets
• Deficits or needs are only useful to institutions
34. The Role of Service Providers
“We can’t do well serving communities… if we believe
that we, the givers, are the only ones that are half-full,
and that everybody we’re serving is half-empty… there
are assets and gifts out there in communities, and our
job as good servants and as good leaders is having the
ability to recognise those gifts in others, and help them
put those gifts into action”
First Lady Michelle Obama
35. Your Organisation
• What does your organisation/service do well?
• What could it allow the community to do for
themselves?
• What could your service do with the help of the
community?
• What are its assets to the community that they may
not have themselves?
• Does it own any physical assets?
• What skills/gifts and talents of staff could be
utilised? Professional and private
36. The Assets of Service Providers
• Catalyst
• Organisational Structure
• Finances
• Staff time
• Infrastructure
• Buildings
• Systems
• Resources
40. ShareYour Stories
• Share a story that you think shows a time ABCD
principles have been used whether you realised it
at the time or not?
• It can be from home or work
45. Discovering Strengths
The focus of this stage of the methodology is
focused on answering these 4 questions
• What Assets/Capacities exist in the
neighbourhood?
• What can community residents do by
themselves?
• What can community residents do with help
from service providers?
• What can only be done by service providers?
46. Asset Mapping
Asset Mapping allows us to build up a picture of what is
available to use and mobilise and so we can begin to
make connections. We can map:
• Institutions
• Physical Assets
• Associations
47.
48.
49.
50. Asset Mapping
• This exercise is especially effective with small groups of residents
• Residents will usually know of much more going on than any workers
• Asset Mapping is a good engagement tool
• An Asset Map can be useful in inspiring community action and
involvement
• Informal groups who regularly meet are worth adding and connecting
• Make sure that the map is visible and accessible by the community
• Always review and add to the map
54. Assets of the Head
• Take 3 Post–It Notes
• Write your name on each note
• Write down 3 Gifts of the Head, one on each note
– Things I know something about and would enjoy
talking about with others
55. Assets of the Heart
• Take 3 more Post–It Notes
• Write your name on each note
• Write down 3 Gifts of the Heart, one on each note
-Things I am passionate about, things that
make me take action
56. Assets of the Hands
• Take 3 more Post–It Notes
• Write your name on each note
• Write down 3 Gifts of the Hands, one on each note
– Things or skills I know how to do and could
potentially share with others
57. Head, Heart, Hands
• This is a good exercise to do with groups
• Can start a conversation about ideas
• Start connections around mutual gifts
• Creates Conversation
• Fun way to discover individuals community assets
• Can be used to make connections between people
(more on this later)
58. The Power of Two
• If one person spent one day having a conversation to
two people about what they could create (1+2)
• If the next day, those two people each had a
conversation with two different people (1+2+2+2)
• And so forth
• Then in 10 days, 2047 people would be having a
conversation
• In 15 days, 65,536 people would be in conversation
• In 20 days, 2 million people would be in conversation
Asset Based Community Development Institute
59. Appreciative Inquiry
• Appreciative inquiry (AI) is a model for analysis,
decision-making and the creation of strategic change
• Appreciative Inquiry advocates collective inquiry into the
best of what is, in order to imagine what could be,
followed by collective design of a desired future state
• Appreciative Inquiry Initiates change via positive
questioning to illicit positive responses and solutions
62. Appreciative Inquiry
• What type of questions might we ask when using
Appreciative Inquiry?
• Where and when would we ask these questions?
• Who would we ask these questions?
63. Appreciative Inquiry
• Tell me about a time when your community came
together and did something good?
• What are you good at?
• What do you enjoy doing?
• What would you like to see happening where you
live?
• How could you contribute to its success?
64. Learning Conversations
• Conversations building on the principles of Asset
Mapping and Appreciative Inquiry
• Designed to learn about the person as a whole
• Build a picture of a communities past and present
• Identify and analyse a communities past successes
and uses this shared history as a starting point for
change
65. Learning Conversations
• Start a 2 way communication – both engaged are
learning about each other
• Different/new line of questioning…positive
• Shift the focus of responsibility – “What can we do
for you” to “What can we do together”
66. Bumping Spaces
• Meet and talk to people in spaces they
naturally meet (Bumping Spaces)
• Start a different conversation about
themselves and community life
• Map the assets instead of identifying
the needs
• Shift the conversation from what’s
wrong to what’s strong
• Utilise Appreciative Inquiry techniques
• Engaged with 3000+ residents
• Identified and utilised 1000’s assets
• Found that 70% of people not involved
in traditional community structures
67. Bumping Spaces
• Active community engagement
• Promotes events and activities
• Starts conversation
• Increases participation
• Builds relationships
• Engage with individuals not involved in
traditional structures
68. Asset Role Call in Lostock
I just wanted to share some of the amazing gifts of the people of Lostock that we have already
discovered.
It is a long and interesting list and doesn’t include everything, remember this list has been
gathered in just under 4 Months, so here goes we’ve got:
Gardeners, Cleaners, Bee Keepers, Bakers, Skaters, Jewelers Makers, Carpenters, Builders,
Knitters, Radio Entrepreneurs, Fishermen, Chefs, Teachers, Card Makers, Jam Makers, Wine
Makers, Recyclers, Quiz Masters, Veg Growers, Plumbers, Zumba Instructors, Shop Keepers,
Party Organisers, Bike Riders, Child Minders, Computer Wizards, Cartoonists, Graffiti Artists,
Dancers, Actors, Talkers, Dog Walkers, Spiritual Leaders, Healthy Eaters, Readers, Roofers,
Hairdressers, Make Up Artists, Singers, Comedians, DJs, Support Workers, Carers, BMXers,
Footballers, Campers, Out Doors Explorers, Mountain Climbers, Hikers and Bikers…..
What happens next with this information is up to the Residents to decide, the list is growing
every day and people are beginning to gather around ideas which utilise the skills they have
that they can share with other people in engaging, practical and imaginative ways. The
possibilities seem endless as does the list of assets waiting to be found.
James Hampson - Asset Based Community Builder
69. Community Asset Questionnaire
• Designed to record Learning Conversations
• Use to start and record new, positive conversations
in the community
• Honed and perfected wording over thousands of
uses
• Can record baseline information
• The ordering of the questions is important
• Is a tool designed to capture some information that
is useful
• Context and tone are difficult to capture
70. Activity
• Move around the room
• Introduce yourself to someone you don’t know
• Find out about them using the questionnaire
• Ask any other questions you think would be helpful
to your inquiry
72. Organising and Mapping
• Information needs to be quickly and easily available
• ComplementaryAssets need to be linked easily
• Organised in a way that works for you and the
community
• A variety of questions can be answered “Where?”
“Who?”
• Begins to make assets visible
• Easily shared and built upon
• A “Living” document
• Can be used for monitoring and evaluation purposes
73. What can we use?
• Google Maps
• Y-Ed
• Salesforce
• In House Systems
• Spreadsheet
• Drop Box
• Social Media
• Paper Maps
75. Connecting
• Connecting Community Assets is the key to ABCD
• Quite simply it is the building of relationships
between different members of the community for
shared benefits
• Relationships are built on shared and compatible
strengths
• Connections should be made between all
members and organisations in the community
• Ideas and Community Projects are perfect arenas
for people to build connections
79. Creating Space
• Refers to creating a space where people can discuss
ideas and share skills
• Success relies on the skill of the “Host”
• Introductions can be made around shared
interests/skills/goals
• Questions are asked to allow people to explore their
own solutions
• Space can be created in many ways and places
• “Why have a meeting when you can have a party”
80. Connectors Clubs
• Connectors are invaluable members of the community
• Typically know 50+ people by name in the local area
• Build relationships easily
• Often work in the background
• Naturals
• Can be called “nosey”
• Well liked
• Connectors club is a space for a number of Connectors to share
their knowledge
• They can make new connections
• Ideas are brought into the space and suggestions made
• Living library of local assets
83. Small Awards
• Small grants
• Kick start community
activity
• Motivating
• Matched to community
time and skills
• Unrestricted by need for
constitution
• Award for good ideas that
bring people together
• Application encourages
further community linking
84. Ideas Events
• A space created for community members to share
Ideas
• Recruit and identify assets for new ideas
• Make Connections and build relationships
• Carry out Asset Mapping of individuals,
organisations and areas
• Make Assets visible
• Use Appreciative Enquiry
89. Stories
• Community Stories can help to create a
shared history and sense of belonging
• Stories can motivate and inspire others
• Tell of a time when people came
together and achieved something
extraordinary
• Sharing success continues and builds
community momentum
90. Our M32 Breakfast Club
Stretford Summer Breakfast Club
More than 3,000 breakfasts served
98. LocalityWorking
Principles of LocalityWorking are set out in the refreshed Community Strategy:
• See residents, communities, businesses and organisations as equal partners
– ABCD
• Bring people together to achieve things we cannot do alone
– ABCD, Community Building,Appreciative Inquiry
• Share power with local people, and add value to their local activity
– ABCD,Appreciative Inquiry
• Align strategic priorities with local communities to deliver joint action
– Appreciative Inquiry
• Provide the tools and support to local people to take action
– Community Building
• Share information, skills and resources and collaborate with partners and people
– Community Building,Connecting,ABCD,Appreciative Inquiry
• Be creative, dynamic, supportive and challenging in order to achieve our shared
ambitions.
– AllYou!!!
Explain how this relates to why they are here.
Be Bold Be the Difference
Trafford Partnership Working
Explain how as a funder over the past decade we focused on deficiencies rather than assets before organisations could access the funds we managed usually on behalf of governments, local authorities and private businesses
Remind people that we’re not saying some good work hasn’t been done or that it’s not needed but that if we look through that prism it could become damaging and doesn’t tell the whole story
Do story of our street in Wythenshawe
It’s not a new approach and doesn’t claim to be
Academics were led by the Community and taught by the Community
Formalised rather than formulated
In a nutshell we are moving from a transactional way of doing business where we find problems, fund them, in the hope that we might fix them, to a transformative way that sees people as citizens with resources as equally important as our, real partners for durable citizen led change…
Explain what different assets can be
Explain what different assets can be
Explain what different assets can be
Explain what different assets can be
Explain what different assets can be connected
Last Bullet Point – That’s not a bad thing, this could be used to attract funding which can then be used to mobilse assets
Linked to questions we asked earlier about our organisations