Regeneration & Community-based
learning
Community-based learning
involves creating new learning opportunities within local communities but
generally outside traditional learning institutions (e.g. school, college,
university). However, it can involve these traditional institutions
particularly when it is addressing widening participation to learning.
Increasingly, this can involve
taking advantage of new technologies to make available increased learning
opportunities in the home or in local learning centres (community-learning
utilities) based in a local shopping centre, a community, leisure or sports
centre, attached to childcare facilities or attached to social of sheltered
housing run by housing associations.
Having access to learning
opportunities through the Internet or through digital interactive TV
particularly utilising broadband is increasingly becoming an important means
of developing such facilities that are self-sustaining and replicable over a
large number of communities.
When widening participation to
learning, sustainability is a key factor and might need to be linked to
other agendas like e-government, e-healthcare, e-commerce, urban and rural
renewal, regeneration and development. Thus a multi-agency approach is
required. Social housing associations particularly have an important role to
play in this area and need to move beyond.
pjb Associates has had
experience in setting up a network of community learning utilities for a
regional training and enterprise agency. We have also conducted an
evaluation of learning centres and a study on learning centre modelling that
aimed to identify the factors for sustainability.
In addition we have also
provided interim project management for the Kent and Medway LearnDirect Hub.
At the time this consisted of a network of more than 25 learning centres
based in traditional and non-traditional learning environments and formed
part of the national LearnDirect
network establish by Ufi Ltd as a major UK
government initiative.
We continue to monitor
developments through our newsclip service - Community-based learning and in
particular developments concerning broadband in the home and
t-learning.
We are happy to work with social
housing associations, regional development agencies and urban and rural
renewal and regeneration agencies in order to tackle the various multiple
agendas through a jointed-up approach.
Please contact Peter Bates via
email pjb@pjb.co.uk or telephone +44 1353
667973.
