Durham

DURHAM COMMUNITY ACTION

Durham Community Action has reached 90 years serving and supporting rural communities and volunteers across County Durham.

It was established in 1935, as “The Community Service Council for Durham County”, at a time when the County boundaries extended as far north as South Shields and Sunderland, and south to include a large swathe of what is now Teesside, including Stockton and Darlington.

In 1935, 30% of the county’s workforce was registered as unemployed. The organisation was established to help families dealing with the ravages of unemployment during the Depression of the 1930s. It set out the rationale: “What is known as the “Unemployment Problem” can, in effect, be divided into its causes and effects. The former is primarily an economic and political issue, the latter personal and social.’’

It was to the personal and social effects that the Community Service Council attended, setting up what were known as “Service Clubs”. They had the express purpose to “enable men to use their enforced idleness so that it may be of some profit to themselves and to the community in which they live. They are not intended to be an alternative to normal industrial employment but are designed so that men may maintain their morale towards the day when they can once more take their place in industry.”

There was a great breadth in the range of activities and training provided through the Service Clubs, including handicrafts, keep fit, education and drama. There were clubs for men and for women and they were widely taken up. Most tellingly, the Clubs were financially supported, mainly by ordinary individuals and benefactors from outside County Durham, particularly from the south of England.

Strangers and small organisations outside of County Durham “adopted” Service Clubs and communities. Members of staff working in various government offices in Whitehall helped with donations from their pay. It was reported that “firm friendships have been made and new connections found between North and South.”

Economically and socially, conditions in County Durham have come a long way since 1935, however the need for social and community support has remained unchanged. Clubs and societies established in the 30’s have evolved as a vital infrastructure of community organisations, run mainly by local people volunteering their time to manage and care for community spaces for all to enjoy.

The constancy and local ownership of County Durham’s community spaces has come into its own time and again, including the provision of sanctuary, solace and warmth, offering foodbanks, social events, education, and all forms of social sustenance.

Crucial to supporting community action is a close understanding and ability to influence public policy as it affects small communities. DCA has always been an advocate for communities, drawing on relationships across the voluntary and community sector to provide an informed voice to policy makers. DCA has developed successful collaborative relationships with the key public sector agencies which also serve the County. Importantly, DCA works with the County Council, and supported communities through Local Government Reform which merged six local councils into the single unitary authority which is now Durham County Council.

The range of projects and programmes which DCA has supported over decades has had lasting social and economic benefits for Durham’s rural communities. Change and evolution are necessary and constant, and access to services is an important aspect of DCA’s past and current work. DCA works closely with health care services, working alongside communities as governance for health care has evolved and developed.

DCA collaborates closely with our colleagues in the VCSE, acting as a broker, fostering partnerships, collaboration, and innovation across the voluntary sector. Volunteers, and the organisations which benefit from volunteers, come together via DCA for networking and training through the Centre for Volunteering.

The Covid-19 pandemic and long-term austerity took its toll on communities, and the impacts are still being felt and understood. It means that community action and a strong infrastructure to nurture economic and social growth is as critical as it has ever been over nearly 100 years ….and the resilience and staying power of community activists never dims!

For more information and access to DCA’s activities and reach: www.durhamcommunityaction.org.uk

Durham Resources