The government has published extensive guidance to help public sector commissioners embed volunteering and social action in public services.
The six pieces of guidance, published today by Office for Civil Society, are the result of a project conducted last year with the New Economics Foundation.
The reports provide guidance on making the case for greater social action in the public sector, and on how public sector bodies can commission and create conditions to encourage more social action.
It offers advice on why people volunteer or take other kinds of social action, what conditions help encourage community engagement from ordinary people, and what behaviours from public sector bodies are likely to help and hinder this
“Social action is about people coming together to help improve their lives and solve important problems in their communities,” a statement accompanying the guidance said. “When the public sector works with communities – listening to citizens, growing their capacity to act, and working with them as equals – social action can become a powerful way of meeting people’s needs.
“These publications provide resources, ideas and case studies on how to embed social action into existing services, develop new programmes and create the conditions for social action.”
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