developing meaningful engagement


reviewing your community engagement


Community engagement is a two-way process. A process where not only do strengths act as a driver to connect with new and different groups but also where overcoming obstacles and challenges also brings people together. Engagement aims to improve and develop the ‘wider’ community.

top tips for meaningful engagement


There are a variety of reasons why you may want to engage with local individuals and the wider community. It maybe to gather thoughts and views on a new initiative or project. It could be to better connect with the community to see how you can contribute to the collective community assets. Perhaps it is to gain a better understanding of who is on your doorstep and who may have different skill sets that you are missing or could benefit from in the future. Or may simply be to remain as transparent as possible about who you are as a club and what you do.

Whatever your reason, understanding how to create an environment where open mindedness and opportunities to ask questions forms the basis of your engagement, will put you on a good footing with your local community.

technology


Time is precious, and people place a huge value on their own time – technology has allowed us to be in control of that. By having the ability to access information quickly, and allow engagement and conversation to be had at a time and date that is most convenient for them, makes the coming together of people more efficient and effective. Covid-19 has played a helpful role in the use of technology for digital engagement and in many cases has enabled the novice user to increase their confidence and become more connected.

This method of community engagement is beginning to supersede the more traditional ways of connecting with individuals, community groups and organisations, not only for the speed of connection and sharing of information but the power it can have in reaching a more diverse and wider audience.

how to share your story


People become connected through storytelling, particularly ones which reveal their own motives and what they care about. It can prompt a positive level of curiosity with people wanting to find out more. It can also help uncover people, places, skills and assets within the community that might not otherwise have been known about.

Not only can it enable you to showcase to your members, the local community, and wider stakeholders that you are more than just a club, it is also powerful in demonstrating what impact has been experienced by local people and the wider community.

DEVELOPING MEANINGFUL ENGAGEMENT CASE STUDIES

All clubs have a story. It is about connecting and learning how they interact with their audiences.