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PROGRAMME DIRECTOR: PATRICK STOAKES. LGBT DIVERSITY. An Irish Programme to Build Capacity of the LGBTI Sector. Background. The Building Sustainable LGBT Communities Programme established in 2009. A Transgender Strand (TENI) and LGBT Strand (LGBT Diversity)
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LGBT DIVERSITY An Irish Programme to Build Capacity of the LGBTI Sector
Background • The Building Sustainable LGBT Communities Programme established in 2009. A Transgender Strand (TENI) and LGBT Strand (LGBT Diversity) • LGBT Diversity a joint programme of 12 LGBT groups- national advocacy bodies (GLEN,LGBT Noise, Marriage Equality, NLGF, TENI) services with national remit (BelongTo) and local services (Cork Gay Project, Dundalk Outcomers, LinC, Outwest, Rainbow Support Services.) • Five staff members and Independent Chair
Programme Outcomes • Outcome 1: Existing services, groups, organisations, and centres that work with LGBT people have increased capacity • Outcome 2: People living in parts of Ireland that currently have little or no supports for LGBT people will have greater access to safe spaces/groups • Outcome 3: The LGBT sector in Ireland is more cohesive, with greater opportunities for shared experiences, shared learning and collaboration.
Classic Growth Model • Aims to increase the overall size of the sector. • Get more people involved. • Create more groups • Move people up the hierarchy of influence • Move groups up the hierarchy of influence
Strategic Refocus • The programme was conceived in the boom years, and its aspirations for growth fitted in to that time • The economic crisis made those aspirations much more challenging and the logic of the programme was shaken • A lot of the targets for the programme were met very early on, but keeping the momentum going for new developments is difficult • But needed to remember that what we trying to do was still needed
Sustainability Approach to Sector Building • Less interest in growth • Capacity is therefore defined as a combination of: the social capital of the sector (how different organisations relate); the quality of the service provided; the demonstrable need that is being met; and the broader social agenda that it is framed within.
Lessons Learnt • The advocacy gap is not a lack of local activists engaged with the big, national issues; but is rather lack of activists who can influence local and regional decision makers, or decision makers within specific fields • Capacity building should be aspirational, progressive and shouldn’t be afraid of having an agenda. But some groups will neither want nor need that kind of directional support • “Lone Ranger” community development doesn’t work
Successes • Leadership programme; creating networks of activists, shared vision, and mentor relationship with the major agencies • Joint development of regional strategies; the success being the process, collectively agreeing priorities and creating working relationships between community and mainstream • Follow through (research → seminar → action group → funded initiative)