Charnwood connect: Holistic knowledge management for building resilience in the voluntary sector

Charnwood Connect, funded for two years by the Big Lottery Advice Services Transitions Fund, was designed in response to changes in UK social welfare and housing policy. It aimed to encourage voluntary and public sector organisations to work together to achieve more for clients and service providers by adopting an integrated model of best practices in knowledge management. The project was led by Citizens Advice Charnwood and The Bridge (East Midlands); an additional eight advice agencies within the locality were included. The project was underpinned by knowledge management principles with particular emphasis on successful knowledge sharing between the project participants as well as with their clients. A holistic approach was taken, with attention paid to both technical and social aspects. The former was primarily addressed by the development of an IT Knowledge Hub and the latter by the creation of The Forum. Given that project participants had previously been in competition for funding, a key challenge was to support the building of relationships and trust - over time, there was an increase in mutual awareness and respect about the work of different partners that accelerated improvements in collaboration and in achievement of the project aims. A host of evidence has been gathered to demonstrate Charnwood Connect’s impact. The project leaves an important legacy and is increasingly recognised and promoted in discussions with funders, decision makers, including Members, and policy makers. Availability of the IT Knowledge Hub has demonstrated the value of locality based online platforms as important resources for empowering communities and creating better access to advice services. The Forum continues to be a valuable vehicle for building communities of practitioners, sharing knowledge and collaborating on issues of concern for clients. Finally, a business and strategy plan, with a shared vision for transforming Charnwood Connect from a project to a partnership, has recently been signed off, demonstrating commitment to carrying forward the ideas and initiatives already tested and implemented, and creating scope for further developments.