About the Task and Finish Working Groups

hat is the Community Plan?

The new Community Plan will develop and implement a shared vision for promoting the well-being of our area, community cohesion and improving the quality of life of its citizens.  The Plan will set out the priorities for the Mid and East Antrim area under key themes.

Context

The final Community Plan will focus on the major strategic outcomes for Mid and East Antrim and in particular on the outcomes which can best be achieved by partnership working amongst the partners. It is not about duplicating or replacing the plans of the individual organisations but is instead about focusing on working together. The role of the TFWG therefore is to focus on outcomes and actions which can best be achieved through collaborative working.

Structure of the Working Group

The TFWG will be recruited by open call, ie via the local press, Council website, social media and through our community planning partners.

The TFWG will have a Chair and a Vice Chair, together with a facilitator who will assist each group to identify those actions which are high priority and should therefore be recommended for inclusion in the Community Plan.

It is hoped that those interested in being members would be representative of all sectors and S.75 groupings; however, there would remain opportunities to recruit additional members if necessary.

The TFWG will be time limited and will run for a period of 3-4 months after which they will report to the Community Planning Partnership and disband.  Work is expected to commence in September 2016 and finish in early November 2016.

Outputs from the TFWG

The report from the TFWG will be expected to include the following:

1. A short statement (one or two sentences) setting out an ambitious aspiration for the theme which is consistent with the Vision for Community Planning in Mid and East Antrim. This should set out the strategic direction for the theme over the next 5 to 10 years.
2. The strategies and objectives required to deliver the vision in this theme:
   1. Initial objectives for the first 5 years
   2. Longer term objectives to be achieved over the next 10-15 years
   3. The top three priority strategic actions identified for implementation or significant advancement in the next 5 years.
3. A summary of how this theme can contribute towards other cross-cutting themes such as good relations, infrastructure, sustainable development, rural development and communications etc.
4. In line with the DoE Guidance on the Operation of Community Planning* the TFWG will utilise an outcomes based approach in the development of their action plan. The facilitator for the TFWG will guide the working group members in this approach. At the end of the process the Chair of the TFWG will provide the Strategic Alliance with an action plan.
5. Recommendations for performance targets and key result areas including recommendations on how these will be measured.
6. A list of key stakeholders and other beneficiaries.
7. Any outstanding issues are not addressed within the action plan which have been identified as important within the Mid and East Antrim area and are needed for delivery of the Community Plan.

* Department of the Environment Statutory Guidance for the Operation of Community Planning - October 2015

Task and Finish Working Group Timeframe

The Groups will undertake a series of workshops during their time.  The content of each Workshop is still to be finalised but is anticipated to follow the outline below:

• Workshop One will take place in late August/early September 2016.  Its main purpose will be to define the terms of reference for the Group and agree the principles of engagement.  The Group will be presented with the key findings from the Baseline Report and discuss what success would look like in that thematic area and what additional information the Group needs in order to make informed decisions on this.  The dates, venues and duration of the following workshops will be agreed at this workshop.
• Workshop Two will take place mid-September 2016.  It will consider the outcomes from workshop one, identify what actions are already being planned through the analysis of existing strategies and plans and agree on key strategic Borough-wide priorities and needs.
• Workshop Three will take place in the latter half of October 2016.  This workshop will require participants to identify how we will measure success.  It will revisit the outcomes from Workshop Two and identify those which present challenges in measuring their success.  The Group will agree long, medium and short-term outcomes and the actions associated with achieving each.  This will involve identifying who should benefit from the actions, what actions are currently planned and what additional actions need to be taken to achieve the outcomes.
• The final workshop, Workshop Four, will take place early November 2016.  It will review progress to date by the Group and note any amendments required.  The Group will also assess the actions identified and rank these in terms of priority and level of partnership working.  The Group will also identify one statutory partner to lead each long-term outcome.

 

For further information please contact:

Community Planning on T: 028 2563 5036 or E: communityplanning@midandeastantrim.gov.uk