cover of guidance on anti-racism education and practice in AIEB endorsed programmes

Guidance on Anti-Racism Education and Practice in AIEB Endorsed Programmes

AIEB has developed a resource to support providers of endorsed community work education programmes or those seeking endorsement to embed am anti-racism approach in community work education and training programmes.

This guidance has been developed in consultation with community work educators and community work practitioners working on the issue. This guidance demonstrates AIEB’s ongoing commitment to providing those involved in the education field with advice aimed at enhancing the overall quality of community work education and training.

The purpose of the guidance is to:
• Articulate AIEB’s and endorsed programme providers ongoing commitment to addressing key issues of the day, in this instance racism;
• Support the work of providers of endorsed professional community work education by signposting best practice approaches to ensuring that their programmes can adequately address the complexities of racism in both theory and practice and as it effects groups experiencing racism;
• Enhance current advice and guidance for new programmes seeking endorsement.

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Maria Joyce

Maria Joyce

Coordinator, National Traveller Womens Forum

Graduate of BA Community Work and Youth Work

My job as coordinator of the National Traveller Womens Forum a membership organisation with a human rights and equality ethos is varied and diverse.  We have a strong policy focus and representational role with government Departments on key areas of Traveller policy particularly accommodation, education and health all major issues for Traveller women. 

Professional community work education has been important for me and other Travellers.  It was especially important for those of us who have had very negative experiences of school and were predominately at that time in the 90s early school leavers.  The insights and knowledge I got on issues such as racism helps with the challenges this work brings.  I knew about and experienced racism long before I went to Maynooth but the tools and strategies to address it that I developed from there remain with me.

I encourage Travellers of all ages who are interested in community work to promote and realise our rights, to consider third level education and I encourage colleagues from other minority ethnic groups to do also. I also think that Higher level education institutions need to be more ambitious for and supportive of Travellers and others who continue to experience exclusion and inequality of outcomes from education.

Sinead Taylor

Sinead Taylor

Promoting Wellbeing Manager, Southern Health and Social Care Trust

Graduate of BSc. (Hons.) In Community Development, School of Applied Social and Policy Sciences, Ulster University 

I started working for the Southern Health and Social Care Trust in 2018, as a Community Development Worker, supporting disadvantaged communities to work together to address health inequalities.  I am now the Promoting Wellbeing Manager for the Armagh and Dungannon area.

I manage a team of 12 staff, including 2 community development workers and other community facing health and wellbeing staff. I love this post as it’s an opportunity for me to make a difference at local level. I grew up in Armagh, as one of nine children, in a neighbourhood that experiences significant disadvantage. I still live here and I am passionate about it and being able to give something back.

 

I have been involved in community development most of my adult life and the values are a core part of who I am. Some years ago I did the level 3 Certificate in Community Development with Supporting Communities NI and that is how I heard about the Community Development degree at Ulster University.  While I was studying I continued to work full-time with Craigavon Traveller Support Committee and the Community Family Support Programme.  I was also doing voluntary work, and sitting on the local Police and Community Safety Partnership. And I became a grandmother at the age of 38!  So it was challenging, but I don’t regret it for a minute. Having the degree has helped me fully embed the values in my work, to support the communities I work with.  And it enabled me to move into a more senior position working at a strategic level where I can bring the values to the table to inform and influence discussion and decisions. I believe having a  professional Community Development Degree elevates what I can speak to.

 

I would definitely recommend professional community development education. I would not be where I am today without the Community Development degree. It consolidated and validated my experience and introduced me to new connections and perspectives on theory and practice. It gave me confidence, helped me to fulfil a lifetime ambition to graduate from university, and it renewed my passion for learning.  After graduating, I signed up for the BTEC Level 7 Extended Diploma in Strategic Management and Leadership. It was graduate entry so I needed my degree to do it. It, and my degree, combined with my practice experience has made me a better manager.

 

I am continuing my professional development with further leadership training through the Southern Trust. I believe it’s important to continuously improve skills and keep professional knowledge up to date and I encourage and support my team to engage with learning opportunities too.

 

Aine Deely

Áine Deely,

Coordinator Loughrea Family Resource Centre

Higher Diploma in Community Work and Youth Work 1990, Maynooth University

Masters of Applied Social Studies, 2013

On completion of my professional education, initially I worked for what is now Youth Work Ireland , subsequently moving to the Ballybane/Mervue Community Development Project in Galway and finally to my current role as Coordinator of the Loughrea Family Resource Centre (FRC) where I have been since it began 16 years ago.

My role has evolved from being responsible for developing and establishing the FRC to managing an organisation of 4 staff, a large body of volunteers requiring support and a board of management, all to ensure that we run effectively and address community needs in inclusive and empowering ways.

My community work education gave me the knowledge and skills to challenge inequality and poverty.  It provided me with a framework and a critical analysis for understanding the world and really brought home the need to work to bring about social change.  It helped me to recognise that individuals and groups experiencing the issues are experts in their own situation and we as community workers need to facilitate them to be involved in the work for change.  My education gave me a clear understanding of the need to treat people equally while remaining professional.

For anyone interested in community work having a professional education gives you a theoretical framework and the knowledge and skills to challenge the status quo and work to make change happen.  I have supported student placements from a variety of programmes over the years and this has really brought home to me the need to look at things with a more critical eye, to ask what is possible here.  I think a professional community work education gives you that.

Joe Donohoe

Joe Donohoe

Project Manager, Fatima Groups United

Diploma in Community Work and Youth Work, 1989

Masters of Applied Social Studies, 2012

Being from Dolphin House, third level education was for others, not for us. Before college, l was involved in the Rialto Youth Project, where Jim Lawlor believing in me encouraged me to go to college. 

After graduation l worked in Youthreach and Blanchardstown which particularly grounded my practice, before returning to Fatima in 1997.  This return, coinciding with the birth of my eldest child had a profound effect on me.  I saw Fatima as an insular community with a huge drugs issue, the most problematic housing situation in the country and that for young people to have a chance, things needed to change.

 

I became manager of the Family Resource Centre in 2001 and being from the community I got a lot of access.  The initial focus was on building foundations and ensuring the regeneration of Fatima happened successfully. We had the freedom to use a community development approach which, given the context, was very important.  Now we offer a wide range of services and programmes but it is community work that underpins our work, gives us a framework for thinking critically and addressing the issues on the ground.

 

Going to college gave me the chance to get a job as a community worker.  I got a lens for understanding the world, the local context and the importance of collective action informed by the values and principles of community work.  I met a lot of great individuals with very different life experiences to me and we learned a lot from each other.  One of my placements in Ballymurphy, West Belfast was a real revelation. A professional community work education provides you with a framework for understanding the issues and a collective community work approach for working with communities to bring about change.

 

Megan Berry

Megan Berry

Maynooth University Access Programme and Pavee Point Traveller & Roma Centre

Masters of Social Science in Community Work and Youth Work Maynooth University, 2021

I graduated last year and now have 2 part-time jobs with working on the Maynooth University Access Programme (MAP) and with Pavee Point Traveller and Roma Centre. My work in MAP includes outreach to prospective Traveller students in schools and community organisations, providing information and supporting them to navigate the higher education system and the supports available. 

In Pavee Point, I am a development worker on the Violence Against Women Programme which involves policy work, developing and delivering training, supporting our Traveller Women Awareness Worker project and addressing barriers for Traveller women accessing domestic violence services, also supporting Pavee Points education initiatives.

My professional education prepared me to work professionally in areas that I am passionate about. We did two 14-week placements in the area of community development and youth work which showed me the importance of linking theory to practice and gave me the opportunity to reflect on my values, ensuring they were congruent with community work.

It gave me a strong analysis of the structural & systemic issues affecting communities in Ireland and how as community workers we can work collectively and collaboratively to bring about social change. The most important thing for me is using what I have learned to work with my own community, in Pavee Point and in MU.

I strongly encourage all from marginalised and minority groups including Travellers and Roma who are interested in rights and justice for our communities to think about doing professional community work education.  A professional community work education offers a unique way of learning.   Through critical dialogue and experiential learning you can develop the knowledge and skills to work in diverse community work roles.

Siphiwe Moyo

Siphiwe Moyo

 

Community Development Worker, Empower Local Development Company

BA in Community Development and Youth Work, Technological University of Dublin, Blanchardstown Campus

My first job after graduation is as Community Development worker at Empower Local Development Company I work with people seeking international protection living in direct provision, and refugees.

My role is focussed on empowering them through supporting access to a range of programmes and services from English language and employment supports, mental health support programmes, providing access to information about rights and entitlements, advocating on their behalf and tackling issues such as racism and discrimination.

My professional education informs my practice and ensures that it is centred on the values and principles of community work.  I use the knowledge and skills developed during my time in TU Dublin to support the communities we work with.  The opportunity I was given to analyse and reflect on my own biases, now supports me in my work with the diverse range of marginalised groups in the community.  My experience in TU Dublin has encouraged me to continue with my professional development and I am currently undertaking a Masters in Refugee Integration.

A professional Community Work Education gives you the opportunity to learn the knowledge and skills to support your community work practice. It provides you with the opportunity to explore your values and biases, to reflect on your practice and to plan and review your work effectively.   It really helps to prepare you to become a professional community work practitioner.

 

 

For further information, please contact:

+353 (0) 87 1308273

enquiries@aieb.ie

AIEB is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development.

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For further information, please contact:

+353 (0) 87 2998619

enquiries@aieb.ie

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AIEB is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development.