The Yorkshire and Humber Community Panel was formed in 2007 after a group of experienced and active community leaders and grass roots workers came together to share ideas about how active citizens can improve their communities. The Panel received support from the Yorkshire and Humber Empowerment Partnership to help it become established and develop.
Panel members come from a wide range of geographical and cultural communities who link directly into large numbers of other groups and residents throughout their own communities. What they all have in common is a track record of successful community activity as well as the experience and knowledge that comes from direct involvement.
Building on its grass roots approach of nurturing local leaders, providing inspiration, reinforcing motivation and informing policy, and developing Big Society objectives, members of the Panel are establishing a new enterprise – YCAN a network for community activists in Yorkshire and Humber. Using their strengths and experience, this enterprise will develop and coordinate a network of community champions to support and encourage social action locally. The network will involve current and new community leaders working together to ensure communities take the lead in transforming the relationship between citizens and government.
Involvement in the new enterprise will provide opportunities to explore first hand the huge range and variety of successful and creative community activities taking place across Yorkshire and Humber. To do this it will undertake a range of activities including:
Inspire and affirm activists’ work through support community organisation members to visit each others activities