Andrew Lowe: Build strong communities and services will follow

Published on Monday 4 October 2010 22:19

NEVER before has there been such fear for the effective delivery of services in the future. Political debates, opinions and discussions all focus on money and as we all know, money can't buy you everything.

Money can't even begin to compensate for the resources that lie dormant in our communities, resources that if mobilised and supported could do more to look after the people of Scotland than any public service could ever do.

The late, great Jimmy Reid said: "The untapped resources of the North Sea are nothing to the untapped resources of our people. I am convinced that the great mass of our people go through life without even a glimmer of what they could have contributed to their fellow human beings: it's a personal tragedy, a social crime."

This is not about doing things on the cheap; and for those who argue it is, well, their time has passed. It might be a drive for change led by a financial situation, but the change is the right change none the less. We should have understood better that communities and community service are fundamental to a functioning, caring, correcting and responsible society.

A focus on local communities isn't just about saving money. Research confirms effective, sustained solutions to societal problems require community involvement. So what's stopping us putting effort and resources into building stronger communities, something we all know works? Well, money and fear hold us back, but so does the fact that many decision-makers don't understand even their own communities as they commute out of them to do their policy jobs.

But there are many good examples of projects to kick-start community involvement in youth crime, in the care of older people and in the care of people with disabilities.

We should not be afraid to take a big step and shout out loud that some things can be cheaper to do and also be the best solution too. It's just a shame that it has taken a recession for us all to realise it.

• Andrew Lowe is vice-president of ADSW (Association of Directors of Social Work)