LGBT Communities
Intercom's Community Development Team
- What is Community Development and how can we help?
- Starting a new group
- Support for existing groups
- Group networking
- LGBT Collective
- Groups testimonials
- Achievements
- Special projects and reports
- Our Funders
What is Community Development and how can we help?
Community development seeks to support and empower individuals and groups of people by providing these groups with the skills they need to affect change in their own communities.
Here at Intercom's LGBT Communities we pride ourselves on working with LGBT groups to build stronger LGBT Communities across the South West peninsula; from working with individuals to set up new groups to practical support and training for existing groups.
Good community development helps people to recognise and develop their own ability and potential and to organise themselves to respond to problems and needs which they share. With this in mind – we don’t ‘run’ or ‘take over’ groups but work with their members to ensure that they can access the resources that enable them to fulfil thier groups aims.
We support the establishment of strong and sustainable LGBT communities and provide excellent networking opportunities for all the groups we work with to share good practice and experience with one another.
We also work with groups to ensure that they have their voices heard by community and public agencies to ensure that they can have positive influence over what happens to them and their lives!
Our confidential services
If you are starting up a new group, we can discuss and provide information about:
- The structure of your group e.g. an unicorporated group
- how best to publicise a group and where you want it to be publicised
- how to find and retain members / supporters / volunteers - read more
- where helpful funding/fundraising advice might be found
- protecting the group's independence
- insurance for the group and whether you actually need it!
- how to choose and maintain the right level of security for the group's contact details
- how to protect the personal privacy of the organisers
- financial stuff (e.g. does it need a bank account, if so what kind) - read more
- becoming a registered charity if this is appropriate
- finding and training a management committee if needed
- finding a venue if needed
- policies and safety-nets if the group is going to involve people who are under 18 years old, or vulnerable adults
- and other things --- just ask!
All such services to the independent groups and projects are free of charge, thanks to our funders.
Independent groups approach us on more or less a daily basis for a very wide range of services: local problems of many kinds, designing leaflets and fliers, managing publicity (sometimes bad, sometimes good), difficulties amongst the trustees or management committee, finding new supporters or volunteers or new members for the management committee, sorting out banking or insurance problems, finding emergency funding, working out whether there are legal requirements they need to comply with, choosing a name or a logo, or just getting some photocopying done... you name the question, we've been asked to help! Have a look at the list above: would any of these be useful to your group now?
We can't promise to be able to pull a rabbit out of every hat every time, but we can look back and say there are lots of satisfied rabbits around.
One of the services that we offer is to link groups in with each other and external agencies. The LGBT groups spoke and we listened when they told us that they wanted a resource which put them in touch with each other and prospective group members. Thus, the LGBT Collective was born!
The LGBT Collective is a networking body that operates over the South West peninsula. It is made up of LGBT groups and projects that operate within the region and is community led and community owned. The regional body acts as a collective but is is also split into County Collective groups operating in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Dorset. Each on of these County Collective has Leads on specific areas such as Womens groups, mens groups, faith groups, disability groups etc - for a full list of Lead officers in each county see the website www.lgbtcollective.org.uk.
The LGBT Collective can act as a louder collective voice for LGBT groups who are facing issues or want to run campaigns. Over the last 2 years the Collective has run high profile campaigns over the general election, comabting apathy
Over the last three years alone we have worked a diverse range of LGBT Communtity group with very different needs. From help with legal situations to organising a launch event - click here to see what they have to say about the support they have received.
Document charting Intercoms shared skills and achievements in community development over the last thirteen years
Document charting Intercoms LGBT Communities achievements in a simple yet effective pictorial fashion
Lets Get Back Together Community Conference
LGBT10 - coming soon!
Funded by the Big Lottery -(BASIS) untill October 2010.