Scottish Community Alliance
- Local People Leading
In 2011, a number of Scotland’s community sector networks came together to form the Scottish Community Alliance. Our purpose is to campaign collectively for a stronger and more cohesive community sector in Scotland.
SCA has two main functions – to promote the work of local people in their communities and to influence national policy in order to reflect the best interests of the sector.
A guiding principle for SCA as an organisation is that it should seek to add value to the work of the individual networks within its membership. To this end, as an organisation it has remained ‘light touch’, employing a minimum of staff, and directly investing whenever possible in activities that compliment and support the work of its membership.
In 2023, we published Our Vision for Scotland . It is a bold and ambitious plan that requires radical action to deliver it
Our Manifesto for Action contains over 80 recommendations for action by the Scottish Government and our local authorities that would deliver our vision.
Consultation responses
The Scottish Government frequently consults on matters of policy and new legislation. SCA will occasionally respond to these consultations on behalf of its members either to amplify the views of individual members or to represent a collective position that the members have agreed to.
The most recent consultations that SCA has submitted a response to are :
Building Community Wealth in Scotland
Land Reform in a Net Zero Nation
Delivering our Vision for Scottish Agriculture – Proposals for a new Agriculture Bill
The most clicked on article from our most recent Briefing – 29th November 2023
A fascinating conversation hosted recently by Community Land Scotland explored some of the many ways in which communities might celebrate their cultural heritage and to what extent that complex relationship between land and the people is truly understood – not just by those who live there but by the policy makers whose work can have such an impact on their lives. The flipside of this powerful portrayal of ‘community’ was articulated recently in an article by Rhoda Meek which might serve as a note of caution to anyone who feels tempted to take on a leadership role in their community.
Community Anchor Organisations
Those communities that are the most effective in terms of organising themselves to address whatever challenges they face, appear to have certain characteristics in common. In particular, these communities tend to organise themselves around a local organisation (sometimes more than one working in partnership) which is under the control and ownership of local people.
These organisations have come to be known as Community Anchor Organisations (CAOs). Since its formation, SCA has consistently advocated that the presence of a community anchor organisation is a prerequisite of effective and sustained community empowerment.
Our fortnightly briefing - LOCAL PEOPLE LEADING
Once a fortnight, we publish LOCAL PEOPLE LEADING - a compendium of comment and coverage of relevant policy and stories of community action from across the spectrum. Currently going out to just over 4,900 subscribers - a readership which include community activists, journalists, academics, politicians (national, local and community), civil servants and local government officers. Anyone with even a passing interest in Scotland's community sector should subscribe - and it's free!
(29th November 2023)
