Community Development Courses: Help People Take Action
Considering a Community Development Course?
If you want to get involved in a field where people come together and take action to ensure fairness to all groups and communities, a community development course would be ideal for you. Community development courses will teach you all you need to know about helping communities to access health, wellbeing, justice, wealth and opportunity. The good news is there are tons of community development courses currently available and part-time options are available too, making it easy to fit your dream course into your busy schedule.
About Community Development
Community development is a process whereby people come together to take action on what is important to them. At its heart, community development is rooted in the belief that all individuals should have access to wellbeing, health, justice, wealth and opportunity.
It recognises that some groups, some people and some communities are oppressed and excluded by the way structures and societies are organised. Community development seeks to challenge this and make sure all citizens get fair treatment.
In practice, community development supports communities, of identity and place, to use their own assets to enhance the quality of community life and helps communities and public agencies to work with each other to improve services and the way in which decisions are made. Community development is based fundamentally on the values of social justice, equality, human rights and respect for diversity.
The principles which underpin its practice are empowerment, self-determination, collective action and learning and working together. People and communities have the right to make their own decisions and choices and they should be able to control and use their own means and assets to influence. Coming together in organisations or groups strengthens peoples’ voices and sharing experiences and collaboration is essential to good community activity.
Why Study Community Development?
Community development courses equip students with the range of skills and knowledge required to deliver and implement community development programmes that adhere to the key community development principles of empowerment, participation and collective decision making in a co-ordinated and structured way. Community development organisations make a valuable contribution to the achievement of equality, social justice and social change.
Community development workers have been presented with numerous challenges and opportunities over the last number of years by the rapidly changing social context of countries including work with new communities, refugees and migrant workers; combating racism; and challenging the persistence of other economic and social inequalities.
Community development looks to empower communities and works across a range of services including counselling, advocacy, information and advice and support and targets an equally diverse range of people and areas of interest. Courses introduce students to the practice and theory of community development and enables students to develop leadership skills to facilitate community groups. They will gain an understanding of working in a multicultural society and making sure there is diversity and equality in the community sector.
What Will I Learn?
You will explore community development practice and theory, social analysis and group work, communication and leadership skills. Students will learn about public policy, project development, planning and evaluation. Understanding community development, word processing and communications will also be covered. The course will teach intercultural studies and equality and disability studies.
Career Opportunities
There are tons of career opportunities open to graduates of community development courses since they offer solid practical and theoretical understanding of the community development sector. There is also the opportunity to progress by doing a level 8 course in community development or family studies or community development practice. This will greatly enhance your CV and improve your job prospects.
If you’re serious about doing a community development course, check out courses near you in the Nightcourses.co.uk national course finder.
