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Supporting Residents to working in their community.

This presentation gives some guidance on how to work with residents in Community groups.

+Community involvement

Many residents get involved with community activities, and many will sit on boards and work closely with paid workers.

Good guidelines need to be in place for the protection of unpaid community workers.

Residents working in their communities can be empowered, while others become the main spokesperson for the whole community.

By using good guidance from the beginning, you can work to keep a balanced and equal voice of the community.

+Induction

Residents working within a community group need to understand the role of the group, their role within the group and what the group is trying to achieve. This can be done with good induction – before anyone formally joining the group.

An induction session will allow the resident to be open about their reasons for joining the group, raise issues that may affect them (health, relationships etc.) and allow you to understand what support they will need.

This session will also allow you to explain ‘Codes of Conduct’, what is expected of them, how they are expected to represent their community and anything else they may need to know.

+Confidentiality

All residents working within a community group should have initial training on ‘understanding and maintaining confidentiality’.

Residents within the group also need to understand the consequences of not adhering to the confidentiality policy.

All residents within the group should be reminded on a regular basis of understanding and maintaining confidentiality.

The confidentiality policy should be in a prominent place for residents to access. Ensuring it is accessible for all.

+Divided Loyalties

When working with residents of a community, you will come across divided loyalties at times. This could be because many resident workers, volunteer for many different groups. It could be a cultural or family issue.

Training is needed to ensure that residents working in their community, know which hat they are wearing at any one time.

Residents should be encouraged to share any potential conflicts of interest at the induction session.

Residents need to understand that about the issues of conflict and how to avoid it.

+Incidents outside office hours.

One of the main issues for residents working in their communities is that people know where they live, and often their lives become an open book or people expect them to be available 24 hours a day.

You need to support residents in understanding the boundaries of work and pleasure.

You need to ensure that residents working within their communities are treated according to facts not rumours.

You will need to assess if any incident will have an impact on the community group you are working with, and if it does, what action to take.

+Residents as board members

A full introduction to the full board is a way to avoid residents feeling the odd one out.

Ensure that your notes, agenda and minutes are in simple English. Avoid jargon and industry speak.

Make sure all residents understand what the board is there to do, the goals of the board and how the resident can help.

Make them feel welcome

Give them the opportunity to speak, however do not make them feel they have to.

+Enhancing their skills

The skills residents learn when working with community groups should be captured and used to help them get into work

The confidence of residents working in their communities will rise according to the level of trust and support you give them.

You should develop relationships with education providers to allow residents to enhance their skills.

You should encourage your residents to volunteer with other groups and organisations so they get a broader view of the working world.

+Relationship between residents and other workers

It can be a difficult relationship between the resident and other workers within a group. The resident will always see things in terms of the good of the community. While other workers often have a different agenda.

Ensure that residents fully understand what other workers are bringing to the group.

Honest and open dialogue should be encouraged and other workers should avoid industry speak.

Have a ‘code of conduct’ policy so that things do not get to heated and out of hand at meetings.

+‘A right to a private life’.

What people said.

Sometimes I park my car in the next road so people think I’m not in.

Being a resident can put more pressure on you as you cannot drive away to your home.

People don’t believe that you don’t know what is happening in the organisation that you work for – but you cannot know everything.

You are instantly recognised for the work you do in the area.