Community Action Plans



 “A healthy community is a form of living democracy: people working together to address what matters to them”.

The community action plan is one of the participatory tools used to build the capacity of community members in taking action in accordance with the problems, needs, and potential of the community. It is a road map for implementing community change and delivery of essential services by clarifying what will be done, who will do it and how it will be done. The plan describes what the community wants to achieve, what activities are required during a specified time period, what resources (money, people and materials) are needed to be successful.

A community action plan becomes a framework for implementing the activities that are decided by the community itself. The focus is more on the process of understanding and overcoming problems in order to rebuild people's lives rather than just physical development such as building houses, providing health services or recreational facilities for example. It is important to understand that the community should be the main actors in preparing their own community action plan. Producing the action plan helps people to take realistic and concrete steps toward participatory development planning in order to improve the services important to them. By bringing everyone together to think and discuss about resources and group involvement, this tool increases awareness about the skills and resources already available in the community.

Aberdeenshire Community Action Plans

 

Related Resources

Community Action Plans : An Approach to Place Based Strategic Planning

Community led action planning is a tried and tested way of setting out a vision for a community with an accompanying set of actions to be delivered over time.

The purpose of this document, having reflected on the history of community action planning, is to set out an ideal process that is effective and will achieve impact, but is also affordable and accessible to local people.

PDF icon Community-Action-Planning-a-process-CE-0920.pdf

Neilston Development Trust - Town Charter

This report describes and illustrates the process of creating a charter for Scotland’s first renaissance town. The town charter was created by the people of Neilston, for the people of Neilston. It illustrates their 20-year vision for the village.

PDF icon neilston town charter.pdf