LO O K I N G A H E A D TO 2 0 2 0 -2 1
LOOKING AHEAD
TO 2020-21
CPE will continue in the
academic year 2020-21 to
deliver against the fve goals
of engaged culture, engaged
learning, engaged research,
sustainable engagement,
and visible engagement. Undoubtably the
pandemic has had a huge efect on how
we work not least because our partners
have had to repurpose their activities to
get basic supplies and support to people
or have had to put staf on furlough.
Social distancing restrictions mean that
face to face CPE will not be possible
for Trimester A at least but likely into
Trimester B too. The inequalities that
we were working to address in many
cases have widened, this makes our
engagement work to address societal
challenges and remain relevant more
important than ever.
“The economic and social
upheavals posed by the pandemic
will undoubtedly change the world
in ways we cannot yet predict.
What we do know, however, is that
there will be a need for a massive
cross-sectoral efort to rebuild
afterward; to repair, renew, and
necessarily re-imagine new social
andeconomic futures. When
governments, private businesses,
and civil society join forces to such
ends, exactly like the concerted and
cross-disciplinary eforts required
to fulfl the SDGs, universities like
ours thus have a vital role to play.”
What Is the Civic University For?,
June 2020,
Stanford Social Innovation Review.
CPE has demonstrated that by continuing
to liaise with people internally and
externally, we can fnd and explore new
ways of working. As is often the case
building relationships and trust, this part
of the process is work that is not always
visible but it will lead to positive impact
for communities in reducing inequalities
and improving health and wellbeing and
for the university in achieving its strategic
aims and for our staf and students in
living our mission.
A variety of engagement methods to
open up diaglogue with the public
were used in 2019-20 including poetry,
baking, exhibitions, flm, photography
and cartoons. CPE will use this learning
and creative thinking in the development
of online engagement. Then when we can
recommence face to face activity again,
we will blend this with online for
wider reach in engagement and
support. We will also strengthen our
communication and visibility by further
developing our Digital Engagement
Mapping tool and webpage. In all of our
endeavours, CPE will continue to be
a broker of knowledge and an advocate
for people not in the room. CPE will be
infuenced by what is going on externally
in the sector and in society and our
wealth of experience and by our
internal drivers such as Strategy 2030,
Ashoka U, Civic University Agreement,
Strategy for Learning and Teaching,
Knowledge Exchange Group and the
development of the Milton Community
Common Good Hub.
Milton Common Good Hub
GCU were partners on a successful
grant application led by North United
Communities (NUC) in Milton to secure
an initial award of £800,000 in March
2020 from the Scottish Government’s
Regeneration Capital Fund to build
a new community facility. ‘The Milton
Family and Community Centre’ will host
the site of GCU’s frst Common Good
Hub: a space for students, researchers,
service-users and practitioners to use
and to develop specialist community
programmes to beneft the area directly.
The hub will build on the outreach and
widening participation work of GCU’s
Caledonian Club which has been active in
Milton since 2007. CPE will be providing
advisory support to the working group
which will commence further university
and community consultation in 2020-21
to develop a plan for the ‘place-based’
work of the Common Good Hub and will
seek to secure further funding to enact
this plan.
“We always strive to make
a positive diference to all the
communities we serve locally and
throughout the world, and aim
to contribute to society in a manner
that embraces, yet goes beyond,
the traditional role of a university.
Our civic commitment is
really brought to life in this
innovative initiative.”
Professor Pamela Gillies CBE, FRSE
GCU Principal and Vice-Chancellor.
CONTACT:
Susan Grant, GCU CPE Coordinator
susan.grant@gcu.ac.uk/
community@gcu.ac.uk
gcu.ac.uk/theuniversity/
communityandpublicengagement
@GCUEngagement
CPE 2019-20 25
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/engagement.gcu.ac.uk
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