11.16 Learning in the community is vital to the perspective which we have set out. It takes many forms and is located in a variety of settings. Government, public authorities, funders and providers of learning should all recognise and support community learning designed to promote capacity building and community development.
11.17 Community-based learning contributes in diverse ways to the development of a learning culture in our society, and will do more so in the future provided it is properly resourced and recognised. For different reasons reflecting the different needs and social compositions of those communities, the provision of learning opportunities in both urban and rural settings can constitute a valuable element in the life of those communities. This is especially true for those living in relatively remote or far-flung places where there may be few, if any, public facilities or amenities. For them, as for many in urban settings, learning represents a point of contact, an opportunity for sociability and community building and an occasion in which people can review their own circumstances and priorities.
11.18 Just as families take many forms so, too, do communities. Their diversity is reflected in their social composition, in their size, in their objectives and in their access to resources. In this sense, as we have already seen, both the very idea of 'community' itself and support for community initiatives need always to be both inclusive and generous. Developing a learning culture in such diverse community contexts can build upon initiatives already taken by communities themselves, whether these are in particular localities or associated with particular sets of interests and concerns.
11.19 This diversity itself constitutes enormous contribution to democratic engagement in our society and it deserves to be fully recognised and properly resourced. Of particular importance in this regard are those initiatives and projects that are concerned with 'capacity building' and community development. Such endeavours go to the very heart of supporting local self-activity, community participation and democratic involvement. They represent a form of deep and long-term investment in communities and their ability to survive, thrive and change.
11.20 Often, it will not be possible quickly to identify the precise extent of improvement, or of achievement brought about by community-based learning provision, at least in the short-run, other than through the testimony of community members themselves. This should not be a reason for refusing support to such initiatives. As pioneering work has already demonstrated, often funded through the European Union or Single Regeneration Budget, the benefits of capacity building can be far-reaching and surprising, including those which lead to palpable cost savings in other areas of public expenditure. For this reason alone, within a new national strategy for lifelong learning, the potential value of learning in the community should not be.
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