Scotland’s communities are the cornerstone of national wellbeing – places where people live, work, connect and contribute. However, communities and places that function well and that people want to live in depend upon having core building blocks in place. What are these and how do we ensure every community has them? The introduction of the Scottish Government’s new Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Bill, means that answering that question is critical to its success and to the viability of our communities. This conference explores the relationship between the aspirations of the new legislation and the practical, everyday realities and needs of Scottish communities.
The Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Bill is designed to reshape how Scotland uses public investment, assets and services to promote fairer local economies and empower communities. How will that interact with longstanding community priorities – clean streets, safety, strong public transport, local activism, and a sense of place? The Bill's aim is to bring economic transformation and to create empowered, resilient, local communities. Therefore, change is coming which will affect current decision makers in the public sector and their other sectoral partners. Who will lead decision making in the future and how will communities be involved in that process? What is in the Bill? How will this affect your organisation and your community?
Tom Arthur MSP, Minister for Employment and Investment, Scottish Government, has said "To create jobs and support thriving communities we want to ensure that more money spent in Scotland stays in Scotland. This unique legislation will help to increase investment in local economies so that they become fairer, greener and more prosperous." The Scottish Government sees community wealth building as central to its economic development agenda, so how will the Bill develop in parliament and how will it affect the issues that govern community well-being and viability?
Communities, community involvement and locality based decision-making are at the heart of a whole range of current policy initiatives. Community wealth building legislation. Proposals for a General Power of Competence for Scottish local government, Review of the Community Empowerment Act. Placemaking policy and ongoing discussion and models of community ownership and asset transfer. These are just some of the intersecting areas of current activity. This conference looks at core challenges and opportunities in delivering community wealth building and associated measures. It considers the policy context in which this takes place and examines the implications for all affected bodies. It reflects on what needs to change, what works and what the potential outcomes of this process could be.
The conference focuses in three sections on what makes communities work well:
Topics to be discussed
Who should attend
Chief Executive
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Chief Executive
Keep Scotland Beautiful
Associate Director – Place, Housing & Economic Investment
Scottish Futures Trust
Group Executive Director
CEIS
Martin Dorchester
Chief Executive
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Martin Dorchester became Chief Executive of includem in March 2018. Previously Martin was the Group Chief Executive of the David MacBrayne Group, including CALMAC Ferries, Argyll Ferries Ltd and Solent Gateway.
In a career spanning 30 years Martin has operated nationally and internationally with organisations covering logistics, technology and finance. As CEO of Dixon's B2B operation Martin built up the largest Apple reseller business in the UK as well as developing a £100m public sector business. Martin was part of the team that brought the 5 radio authorities together to create Ofcom and worked with the London Borough of Hackney on developing its infrastructure for the 2012 Olympics. Martin is also a keen lecturer and academic and has written a number of papers covering areas as diverse as CSR and Emotional Intelligence in Management Development and more recently on children and young people.
Martin is a Co-chair of the Independent Care Review and a Non-executive Director of CCPS. He has held a number of non-executive roles including: Non-executive Director of Traveline Scotland, The Sailors' Orphan Society of Scotland and most recently Transport for Wales. He is a supporter of Social and Community Business and Chaired Firstport Ltd, a start-up funding organisation for social enterprises.
Barry Fisher
Chief Executive
Keep Scotland Beautiful
Barry Fisher has been CEO of environmental charity Keep Scotland Beautiful since 2020. He joined from the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, where latterly he held the role of Scotland Director. Prior to this Barry worked with the Ocean Youth Trust Scotland. The environment has always played a massive part in all his past employment roles as he sought to engage young people with activities dependent on clean, healthy environments.
He has a BA Honours in management and tourism from the University of Glasgow.
Barry currently lives in Perthshire and is a Board Member of Dunbar Harbour Trust, Ocean Youth Trust Scotland and Remembering Srebrenica Scotland.
Diarmaid Lawlor
Associate Director – Place, Housing & Economic Investment
Scottish Futures Trust
Diarmaid is the Associate Director for Place, Housing & Economic Investment at the Scottish Futures Trust.
He was previously Head of Urbanism with Architecture and Design Scotland. An urbanist, with a multi disciplinary background, he has worked on projects involving the shaping and implementation of change for clients in Ireland, the UK and Europe, for the public, private and tertiary sectors. He has almost 20 years' experience of helping clients make well informed decisions about complex, connected urban policy and investment challenges. He is an educator, communicator and collaborator who writes and speaks on creative approaches to making better places.
Simon Smith
Group Executive Director
CEIS
Simon has held leadership roles in global research and design agencies and led programmes across national governments, charities, and the private sector. He has worked with significant clients such as the Gates Foundation, the NHS, the Home Office, and the International Rescue Committee.
Before joining CEIS, he was the Head of Regional Development for the UK innovation agency Connected Places Catapult. There, he led projects to ensure communities could benefit from and participate in a more inclusive innovation economy.
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