Frequently asked questions

In many of the workshops that we have conducted over the years two questions are often raised. Here are some answers. Let us know if you have more answers or questions.

‘We don’t have the time’

·                  If, because of limited consultation your programmes and activities are not addressing the needs of the local people you are targeting, your wasted efforts will be extremely time consuming and wasteful of resources.

·                  Our role is to meet the needs of community members (in the example of local authorities). To be able to find out what people’s needs are we must consult. It should be recognized as an essential part of our work.

·                  Community consultation exercises may not necessarily result in increased work. Through taking part in the exercise some local people may realize that they are able to take action for themselves, with minimal input from yourself.

·                  While conducting community consultations we are listening to ideas from lots of different people. This may provide us with ideas that we have never before thought of and ideas, which, may lead us to being able to run projects more effectively in the future, so saving time.

·                  Community consultation can lead to improved relationships between providers (local authorities, NGOs etc) and community members. These improved community relationships can be vital in the future when project managers need to publicise activities and identify local resources (facilities, key people, volunteers, local skills etc). Such relationships can actually save you time. 

‘'We can’t meaningfully consult because most initiatives we get funding from are decided upon centrally.'’

·                  By using consultation methods we can still find out from local people themselves how projects can be run within their non-negotiable parameters.

·                  The results of effective community consultation can be used to show that centrally organized top down prescriptive approaches to work are not addressing the needs of local people.

·                  We should act to try and tackle this wrong.