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New debates on capacity building in England - 02/12/2009

A number of initiatives have taken place, or are planned, to bring people together to discuss experiences and ideas on voluntary sector capacity building in England. Framework member Brenda Lipson has been participating in these, and is keen to explore the scope for some more sustained opportunities to share expereinces with those working in this field in the international development sector.

A number of agencies who are involved in voluntary sector capacity building in England  recently met to discuss their experiences and thoughts about the future. Framework member Brenda Lipson attended this half-day roundtable,  hosted by the Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR) and the Centre for Charity Effectiveness at Cass Business School. Brenda has also been involved in some recent research on the international experiences of capacity building which may be of interest to the domestic voluntary sector. This research was commissioned by Capacitybuilders and there will be a one-day event in January which will present some of the case studies.

It is interesting to hear some of the discussions taking place here in the UK. It would appear that there has been little investment in bringing together the practitioners and the funders of capacity building in England to discuss the emerging issues. Unlike the international development sector, which has held many conferences and is investing in learning communities and other knowledge based initiatives to share reflections across the sector.

Maybe there is some scope for more sustained south-north exchange on capacity building and some sharing of the lessons learnt about good practice principles? If any readers of this article are interested in this topic, then do get in touch with Brenda Lipson.  We may also open out a page on this subject in the new Framework Community Ning website planned for early 2010, so watch this space!

Author : Brenda Lipson

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