Take Part Training

PA Training

• Participatory Appraisal is committed to seeking out those generally excluded from the decision making process in their area.
• P.A. does not set an agenda; rather it allows participants to highlight priorities and needs. By going out to the community (we do not ask people to come to us) we use information gained at one level to direct the questions at the next level. There are five levels of consultation which include identifying issues, community identified solutions, verification and action planning.
• Participation is developed between agencies by working in partnership towards common goals. Participation from the community comes from the consultation about and involvement in the emerging actions.
• P.A. training through Take Part Training includes; the PA philosophy, communication and public presentation skills, project data management, data analysis, creative design, team working and team building, facilitation skills, personal development, organisational skills, confidence building, report writing and project structure and responsibility. The six month course is accredited to A' level equivalent through The Open College Network.
• The team learn through 'doing' using the same participatory tools and methods that are used to consult with the community... the programme builds on earlier learning and is guided by the information coming from the community.
• P.A. is a very democratic and inclusive process that builds links, ownership and confidence in the participants both those receiving the training and the community whose ideas and solutions to issues get turned into local actions.
• P.A. was developed in countries within Africa and Asia to ensure that the community and service users had an input into development and it is used in the same way in the U.K.