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From Norfolk RCC

WELCOME TO THE SENSE OF PLACE TOOLKIT A Site Map Glossary Index STEP 1: GET ORGANISED Step 1a: Form a Steering Group Step 1b: Tell people what you're up to Step 1c:Explore the options for recording, communicating and sharing Step 1d: Bringing it all together STEP 2: GET TO KNOW YOUR PLACE Step 2a: What's on your patch and why is it important Step 2b: Working with the wider community Step 2c: Drawing it together STEP 3: IDENTIFY ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES Step 3a: Investigate issues, threats and existing efforts to protect and enhance Step 3b: Identify your opportunities Step 3c: Refine your options STEP 4: GET PEOPLE ACTIVE

Contents 1 Introduction 2 Finding people to help 3 Set up a steering group 4 Roles and responsibilities 5 Working Groups 6 Estimate your resources (money, time and other things too)

Introduction

Most projects are best carried out by a group, to share the work and provide a range of skills, ideas and enthusiasm.

If you are starting as an individual it is best to approach your Parish Council for their support in setting up such a group - although it is possible to carry out this project independently.

You may not wish to give yourselves the formal title of a Steering Group, you can call yourselves what you wish, but you will need to set up a group to do the detailed planning and co-ordination of the project -the role of a steering group is to steer the project.

Finding people to help

You can find volunters for the Steering Group through:

• your Parish Council
• a public meeting
• village newsletter
• word of mouth
• friends and family

Step 1b: Tell people what you're up to tells you how to go about this, both when forming a Steering Group and later in the process.

Ask for volunteers through village newsletters, and through clubs and organisations - the "How to involve people" section of Step 2b includes a variety of hints and tips on events, meetings and other means of engaging people in your community.

Set up a steering group

When setting up your steering group the following are useful principles to adopt:

• involve the wider community as much as possible
• limit the size of the group to between 8 and 15 members, two or three of whom might be parish councillors
• appoint a Chair, Secretary and Treasurer (if relevant). You might also consider allocating other tasks such as publicity, or volunteer coordinator, to individuals
• as much as possible, make sure the group is a representative cross-section of the people in your community
• involve people with a range of skills and experience
• be prepared to bring in new people and ideas as the project evolves

You may find that once word gets round you are generating a lot of interest. A very important management principle is to find a task for anyone who volunteers help rather than turn them down - you need to cultivate and maintain interest. One of the ways to do this may be to give people a role in 'working groups' (see below) that you may establish later to look into specific issues.

Roles and responsibilities

To make sure that everyone knows what they are supposed to be doing and have agreed to. It is a good idea to write down agreed roles and responsibilities for the steering group.

As with Parish Planning, this could be in the form of a constitution, or a 'terms of reference'. It should clarify what is expected of, and offered to, volunteers and, when relevant, how money will be spent. This will help everyone to understand the nature of the task and the role that they have to play. Be sure also to clarify the relationship with the Parish Council.

Working Groups

The steering committee should not have to do everything themselves!

At some point in the process you may find it useful to set up working groups to look in detail at particular issues, habitats or distinctive areas that the process identifies. The working groups need to be given a clear terms of reference if you are to get the best out of them.

Estimate your resources (money, time and other things too)

Whilst it will be very difficult for you to judge at this stage, it may be important to at least be aware of the person-power and money needed for things including:

• publicising and promoting your ideas and activities to the community
• carrying out the search for places
• organising meetings and events aimed at getting everybody involved
• administrative support costs, stationery, postage, telephone calls
• printing and distributing the final action plan [if required].

The aim of this toolkit is, as much as possible, to give you the information resources and point you in the direction of tools that will help you achieve these aims.

You don't have to buy special equipment or buy special computer software to use the toolkit and produce an action plan, but you will need a computer with access to broadband - you are likely to learn quite a bit on the way but nothing onerous and all of it useful for other things.

Next ...

Tell people what you're up to

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