In October of 2018, Andrew Van Doorn outlined the third pillar of the Centre for Excellence in Community investment: insight. For community investment to deliver real impact to those who need it most, research has to be of a high standard and shared widely across the sector.

Launching the insight pillar, Andrew laid out our ambitions. He said: “Working together we hope the Centre will support a more collaborative approach to research, between ourselves and with academia”. Over the year we have taken the first steps in this process by meeting with academics and community investment practitioners at our conference and research symposium.

A year on, we are now finalising our insight strategy for the next 12 months. Building on our growing network, we will look to define what excellence in community investment looks like and facilitate partnerships to address key areas that need greater insight. We want to make this process collaborative, so if you are working on research into community investment or feel there is a particular issue that would benefit from closer attention, get in touch with the Centre.

We are also creating the space to collate and celebrate high quality research into community investment. Insight can only lead to action if it is accessible. We also want to know about any research into community investment, so we can share valuable learnings across the sector, turning research into impact.