The new revised National Standards for Community Engagement were launched on Thursday 29^th September in Fife by Kevin Stewart MSP, Minister for Housing and Local Government.

The Minister spoke of communities across Scotland becoming involved in every aspect of decision making, and how engaging with communities leads to better decisions. He welcomed the revised National Standards for Community Engagement as a framework for supporting the participation and empowerment of communities.

First developed in 2005, the Standards are key principles for effective practice which support community engagement and user involvement in Scotland, in areas ranging from community planning to health and social care. In doing so, they are intended to complement and support Scotland’s developing community empowerment landscape and, in particular, the implementation of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015.

In 2015 and 2016, the Scottish Community Development Centre (SCDC) and What Works Scotland were commissioned by the Scottish Government to undertake a participatory process to review and update the Standards. The review aimed to reflect the developing policy and legislation relating to community empowerment in Scotland, and build on the growing range of practice. The process itself aimed to be as inclusive as possible, and drew on contributions from a wide range of community organisations, third sector organisations and public sector bodies.

For further information on the Standards and the recent review, please visit the VOiCE Scotland website.