Skill Ing Up For Stronger Voices

Skilling Up for Stronger Voices A skills framework for third sector representatives Summary of recent research from the Improving Local Partnerships project at NAVCA

Steve Skinner and Linda Joy Mitchell October 2008

The research In 2007 NAVCA commissioned research on identifying skills and abilities needed for effective participation by third sector representatives on the executive boards of LSPs. The work involved telephone interviews with 21 representatives across the country and the report Skilling Up for LSPs was published in the summer of 2007. The Skilling Up for LSPs research also involved examining relevant job descriptions and personal specifications and included a brief search of literature on the specific skills and abilities needed to be an effective representative on executive boards of LSPs. It found most of the existing written material discussed policy issues or described the knowledge needed, rather than the skills involved. Desk research was also carried out into national occupational standards, as well as other sources. In 2008 further research called Stronger Voices was carried out, this time to gather information from third sector representatives on thematic partnerships within LSPs. 26 people were interviewed by telephone in Yorkshire, the Humber and the North East, and asked about core purpose, tasks and skills as well as other issues, including barriers to participation. Drawing on these different sources, the two research projects produced a combined set of 15 main headings for skills and abilities; the similarities in findings are discussed in the Stronger Voices report. The combined set of 15 headings is designed to replace the more limited set given in Skilling Up for LSPs and intended to be used as a flexible resource for supporting both types of representatives. Both research reports – Skilling Up for LSPs and Stronger Voices – used the term ‘competencies’; in this short publication written to summarise the work, we use the more accessible term ‘skills and abilities’. Some of the original terms for the roles, tasks and skills headings have been amended to improve clarity. The research also provided some insights that may be useful in the design of future learning provision for representatives. The Skilling Up for LSPs research was carried out by two consultants, Steve Skinner and Linda Joy Mitchell; the Stronger Voices research was carried out by Steve Skinner.

www.steveskinnerassociates.org.uk www.lindajoymitchell.org.uk

Skilling Up for Stronger Voices

Contents Introduction................................................................................................ 1 Key roles................................................................................................... 2 Tasks......................................................................................................... 2 Skills and abilities...................................................................................... 4 Using the framework................................................................................. 4 The skills framework for third sector representatives

Partnership skills.............................................................................. 6



People skills..................................................................................... 7



Practical skills.................................................................................. 8

Conclusions.............................................................................................. 9



Skilling Up for Stronger Voices

Introduction Across the country many people from the third sector are involved in partnerships. They bring a tremendous range of talents, knowledge, skills and experience – and equally many are requesting support to further develop their skills and abilities. Local strategic partnerships are complex environments where third sector representatives face a variety of challenges and opportunities. Based on recent research, this publication describes the range of roles, tasks and skills involved. It proposes a skills framework which divides skills and abilities being used by representatives into three simple themes: ● Partnership skills – such as joint working with different organisations, representing and feeding back to networks and groups. ● People skills – such as acting assertively, solving problems and supporting others. ● Practical skills – such as communicating well, using information and being organised. The material comes from two research projects carried out for NAVCA in 2007 and 2008. The main part of the research involved telephone interviews with 47 people who are third sector representatives on executive boards of local strategic partnerships, or on thematic partnerships within local strategic partnerships (LSPs), such as a health partnership. Skilling Up for Stronger Voices combines the work from these two research projects. The sample size can only give some insights into current practice and a limited ‘snapshot’ view. To see the full research reports,

please access the NAVCA website www.navca.org.uk This publication looks in turn at: ● the roles that representatives have in LSPs ● the range of key tasks that they carry out ● the types of skills and abilities they are using. We hope the material will be useful in supporting representatives and the organisations working with them, and that it will be used in a flexible way, adapted to different needs, and be seen as a set of working proposals for further exploration. Skilling Up for Stronger Voices is part of a wider range of resources that NAVCA has produced to support representatives. Other material focuses on the structures that representatives work within and the knowledge they may need to have; these complement the skills framework which focuses on the skills and abilities that representatives are using. New government initiatives are promoting active citizenship, community empowerment and the role of the third sector. NAVCA hopes this publication will help to give greater recognition to the roles that third sector representatives carry out on LSPs and the importance of training and support to further strengthen their capacity and voice.

Skilling Up for Stronger Voices

Key roles

Tasks

What are the key roles that third sector representatives carry out within the framework of an LSP? Looking at this can help people to be clear about what they are doing and why. The research asked about the core purpose underlying representatives’ involvement, and can best be described through the following roles:

What are the tasks that third sector representatives are likely to be involved in? The research identified a wide range of tasks being carried out with varying levels of frequency adding to the recognition that representatives are often carrying out demanding roles in their involvement in LSPs.

Being a voice – taking issues of concern to the partnership; acting as a bridge and ensuring many voices are heard; feeding back to third sector groups and communities and involving them in consultation.

The list of possible tasks, printed overleaf, can be used as a resource in training and support work to help identify those areas representatives are most often involved in. This may vary with different settings, and it is unlikely any one representative would be doing them all. The range of tasks may change over time, and there may be others not unearthed by the research. One representative also said a key task was to smile a lot!

Influencing decisions – challenging and supporting proposals; acting as ‘critical friend’; influencing the thinking of people who make decisions. Building the partnership – supporting the development of the partnership, its arrangements and overall quality of work; helping to direct resources to greatest effect. Promoting the sector – ensuring partners are aware of the particular contribution of the third sector; advocating the role of the third sector; bringing knowledge of community groups and what they have to offer. These roles were common to both types of representatives interviewed. Out of the four, the representatives on thematic partnerships have been more involved in the first two roles. This reflects that representatives on executive boards will probably have more opportunities to get involved in the wider development of the partnership. The roles can be used in training and support work with third sector representatives to help them review and be clear on the particular roles that they play and the reasons why they might get involved.

The research also showed all 47 people thought the main tasks central to being an effective representative were: ● Feeding back information to voluntary and community groups ● Standing up for the sector whilst maintaining good relationships ● Reading papers and analysing complex documents ● Influencing decisions Representatives on thematic partnerships also prioritised Collecting information on community needs, while representatives on executive boards instead prioritised Building relationships within the partnership.





Skilling Up for Stronger Voices

The tasks The range of tasks that third sector representatives can be involved in: Building relationships within the partnership Developing a view Standing up for the sector whilst maintaining good relationships Influencing discussions Presenting a good case Feeding back information to voluntary and community groups Reading papers and analysing complex documents Bridging differences in cultures between communities and organisations Enabling and facilitating others to be involved in the process Promoting the LSP and being accountable for collective decisions Influencing the agenda Making decisions about funding and resources Working with partners to deliver on programmes and projects Monitoring and evaluation of projects Reflecting on ways of doing things Collecting information on needs Taking part in negotiations Writing reports Presenting information and reports Resolving conflict Engaging with officers, sounding out opinions and views Representing the LSP on other strategic partnerships and boards Chairing and attending related meetings Developing a particular piece of follow-up work Bringing the strands together Coming up with other ways of doing the work

Skilling Up for Stronger Voices

Skills and abilities

Using the framework

What are the main skills and abilities that third sector representatives are using? The research work produced 15 different headings that have been divided into three main themes; in combination this creates the skills framework.

In using the skills framework, please note: ● Appreciating people’s existing skills and abilities is very important – recognising the strengths people already have is a good place to start. ● The skills and abilities in the framework can be seen as a resource to draw on and used appropriately, rather than being a rigid check list.

The skills framework contains a wide range of material – it needs to be used carefully and creatively with people, rather than just presented as a set of demands! The framework could be used in the design of learning programmes for representatives, including, for example, workshops, training courses and mentoring. The material could also help to identify people’s learning needs, either with individual third sector representatives, with groups of representatives or with members of a partnership board from different sectors.

● Some skills and abilities may be more demanding than others, for example, Political skills and Being strategic. ● In practice, there may be overlaps between different headings and the three themes – they are being used just to help make the material more accessible.

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Practical Skills

Skilling Up for Stronger Voices

The range of skills and abilities given in the framework is extensive and can be especially daunting for new recruits. There are a number of possibilities for the material to be used in user-friendly ways, such as: ● At first just use the headings, as given above, without the more detailed statements. ● In training sessions, focus on one theme at a time. ● Invite people to work on a limited number of headings and come back to others later. ● Help people to identify the ones they are already strong in as well as the ones they want some support with. The framework can be used flexibly in ways that help to build the confidence of those engaged in representation work. The headings are not intended as a definition of what representatives ‘should’ be doing, but more as a resource to support people that can be adapted to different settings and different needs.

There will be learning and training organisations that can provide learning that directly addresses the identified needs in most areas of the skills and abilities framework. However, some, for example Political skills, may require specialist training providers and the development of new learning materials targeted for the particular context of representation and LSPs. The research indicated that much of the existing training material on representation focuses on acquiring knowledge, understanding policy issues or the local context in which representation takes place. While this is very useful, there is a need to complement it with material on skills and abilities which explore the ‘how’ as well as the ‘what’.

The framework can be used flexibly in ways that help to build the confidence of those engaged in representation work.

The skills framework for third sector representatives



Skilling Up for Stronger Voices



Partnership skills Joint working

Being strategic

● Seeks to understand partner organisations’ needs, resources and motivations

● Develops understanding of the partnership’s vision, aims and resources

● Keeps promises and delivers on commitments ● Develops an overview across sectors to achieve common goals ● Constructively challenges proposals and seeks better alternatives ● Builds trust and credibility in relationships with partners and the third sector

● Applies understanding of community and economic processes ● Balances long-term goals with short-term activities to achieve aims ● Promotes use of resources and joint working to achieve long-term objectives ● Displays understanding of the big picture and the long term

● Develops understanding of the local strategic partnership’s structures and processes

Feeding back

Representing

● Maintains close contact and links with grassroots third sector groups and networks

● Keeps up-to-date with third sector issues, drawing information and resources from a range of national and local sources

● Ensures systematic feedback to third sector networks and groups

● Consults with groups and networks on key issues and decisions

● Builds understanding of the role, diversity and value of the third sector across the partnership

● Ensures minorities are part of the feedback communication networks

● Maintains clarity on the scope and accountability of own role as representative

Using values

● Supports third sector to identify infrastructure development needs and interests ● Supports communities to develop plans for collective action and capacity building ● Promotes the interests of stronger communities and the whole third sector

● Ensures diversity and equality of opportunity are addressed in policies and programmes ● Ensures social inclusion in the development of the partnership ● Models behaviour that shows respect, assertiveness, openness and cooperation

Partnership ● Promotes inclusive and empowering ways of working within communities



Skilling Up for Stronger Voices

People skills Enabling others

Being self aware

● Builds understanding in groups and networks of the roles of representatives

● Understands impact of personal communication style on others

● Encourages others to become representatives

● Reviews own practice

● Seeks to reduce barriers to participation

● Seeks opportunities for personal and professional development

● Helps to develop others’ confidence and skills in representation

● Maintains openness and ability to change

● Seeks to understand other people’s needs and motivations

● Displays honesty about not being informed on all issues

Acting assertively

Problem solving

● Presents self and own views confidently and directly in ways that maintain effective relationships

● Identifies and works around blocks to achieve progress

● Displays calmness, courage and persistence in standing up for third sector interests

● Uses creative approaches to generate new ideas and solutions

● Proposes and challenges in ways that persuade and inspire others ● Says no to unreasonable requests ● Encourages assertiveness in others and as part of the partnership culture ● Displays belief in own role and contributions

● Aware of when out of depth on issues

● Learns quickly in new situations

● Adopts a positive attitude to change ● Translates theory into practice

Using political skills ● Anticipates the impact of own views and actions on others ● Employs tact and diplomacy while maintaining integrity and honesty ● Maintains balance between challenging and co-operating to achieve goals ● Chooses right approach for the right moment ● Recognises and works with the power bases within the partnership

People

● Displays awareness of political structures and personal agendas

Skilling Up for Stronger Voices



Practical skills Being organised

Negotiating

● Manages own time as a resource

● Develops productive working relationships with partners

● Plans ahead for key meetings and deadlines ● Uses IT to support preparation work ● Displays reliability and consistency in keeping to practical arrangements

Communicating ● Presents information clearly, concisely, accurately and in ways that promote understanding

● Identifies desired outcomes in negotiating processes ● Uses planning and tactics effectively ● Achieves objectives and desired outcomes

Mediating ● Seeks understanding of opposing positions

● Ensures own advice and views are supported by reasoned argument and appropriate evidence

● Reduces tensions between parties

● Ensures formal and informal presentations are informed and creative

● Encourages win-win solutions

● Facilitates fairly and constructively between people with conflicting needs

● Relates effectively to people from diverse backgrounds and sectors ● Uses listening skills to develop effective relationships

Accessing and using knowledge ● Manages and uses different forms of information and data ● Scans and selects from large amounts of information ● Analyses information to identify useful points and key findings ● Applies specialist subject knowledge to different situations and contexts ● Uses opportunities appropriately to share own knowledge with others

Practical

Conclusions The research has produced an outline of the range of roles and tasks being carried out by third sector representatives and proposes a framework that describes the skills and abilities they are using. The material may also be of interest to representatives on LSPs from other sectors – learning opportunities bringing together representatives from different sectors is currently being explored. Additional research, piloting and critical feedback is needed to further test the skills framework with a larger number of third sector representatives and with different groups of third sector representatives. Refining the descriptions of the skills to identify the level of skill involved in each case would be a useful area of development.

NAVCA is developing a range of capacitybuilding activities to support infrastructure organisations to better support representatives from frontline voluntary and community groups with the skills and knowledge necessary for effective representation. We hope the findings from this research have the potential to strengthen the significant and demanding work being carried out by third sector representatives and the organisations that support them.

The authors and NAVCA wish to thank all the individuals and organisations that contributed to this research.

NAVCA The Tower 2 Furnival Square Sheffield S1 4QL Tel 0114 278 6636 Fax 0114 278 7004 Textphone 0114 278 7025 Email [email protected] www.navca.org.uk Registered charity no. 1001635 Company registration no. 2575206

Published November 2008 © NAVCA

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