24 C O N T E X T 1 3 1 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 3 S C Annual School nual School 2012 chool 2013 IHBC An 011 IHBC Annual IHBC Annual School School 2013 IHBC IHBC Annual Scho It was all rather awe inspiring and slightly frightening. Scottish Ten has now carried out surveys on the Orkneys (as well as Mount Rushmore and the Sydney Opera House), so in Scotland it is just the Antonine Wall, Edinburgh New Town and St Kilda to go. It will be fascinating watching the project develop. Paul Butler Skills in community engagement The talk by David Lovie, IHBC past president, provided a valuable and entertaining summary of the varied skills he had found necessary in working with community groups. He reminded the audience that ‘community’ could mean different things. There could be communities of representation, such as local councillors; voluntary groups; or self-help groups, such as residents associations. He pointed out that the IHBC was itself a community, committed to a particular aim – in the present instance a commitment to sitting and listening. Similarly, engagement meant different things to different people and took different forms. It could be consultation, liaising or assisting, such as providing resources and advice. What was needed in all aspects was ‘profound engagement’. Lovie referred to his experience working in the professional sector (in the widest sense of the term) and the range of skills used. In working with local government, engagement might revolve around liaising and consulting, whereas in private practice it was more about advising and informing. There was often a common theme of drawing out consensus and explaining process. Working with the voluntary sector was, he said, a whole different ball game. One needed to be enthusiastic and inspirational, and to have an optimistic outlook. Particularly striking was Lovie’s phrase ‘a user of silences’, recognising the need to be dedicated to listening to the groups one worked with. It was important to remember that you worked ‘with’, not ‘for’ the community group. Sensitivity to group dynamics was crucial – identifying the perennial complainers and the ones beaten down by the perennial complainers. Similarly, sensitivity to political differences (such as the differences between Church of England and Roman Catholic groups) was essential. Finally, one needed to have very technical skills in funding and, perhaps particularly pertinent at the moment, place-making. Lovie mentioned how localism was beginning to change the framework for engagement, requiring the questions ‘what do you want?’ and ‘what matters?’ Like it or not, Lovie challenged us to work within a framework of town teams and neighbourhood plans, with binding referendums. Sometimes, community engagement was ‘ordinary people doing extraordinary things’; one could simply get people together and things would start to change. But, as Lovie acknowledged, sometimes nothing much would change. This could happen if people expected you to do it for them, or if they thought you an interloper. The trick was to recognise valid limitations, but not to let them hold a group back. This was true of negative past experiences, no matter how distant they seemed – ‘we tried this in 1973 and it didn’t work’. In engaging with groups, we needed to be aware of our baggage as well as theirs, and to work with groups to overcome the barriers to engaging. Ultimately, we needed to become aware of how the landscape had changed, and how working with community groups had changed. Charlotte Dodgeon Saturday tours Carlisle city: the historic quarter We were still glowing from the previous night’s revelry when we gathered in the foyer of the Crown and Mitre on the Saturday morning after the Day School, keen to discover more about our host city. Our guide, James Innerdale, conservation architect and SPAB Lethaby scholar, seemed more equipped for fellrunning than architectural history (we soon found out why – unlike me, he had read the weather forecast). For the next few hours he ably led us as we weaved and ducked through Carlisle’s medieval streets and rain showers for a thoroughly engaging morning. We started by heading behind the hotel to St Cuthbert’s, Carlisle’s main church after the cathedral. Founded at least 1,200 years ago, the current 1779 building has a wealth of distinctive architectural features, including some beautiful art-deco light fittings and a sliding pulpit, which allows sermons to be delivered from the central axis of the church when the galleries are full, without permanently blocking access David Lovie: ordinary people doing extraordinary things.
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