Everything you need
to run a workshop is here
All the information that you need is included in the dropdown sections of this page. If you would like a printable summary then please download a editable GoogleDoc by clicking on the button below.
General pointers & instructions
The following boxes give some general information and context that applies to all the workshops
Having someone to guide and support a group in conversation can often make the difference between having a really valuable, enriching and useful conversation and not. Some facilitators spend their life practising this art, whilst others find themselves thrown in at the deep end having never done it before. Fortunately, with some careful preparation it is possible to do a good job even as a complete novice. In addition, many facilitators find they learn and grow personally from the process which serves them well in other areas of their life.
On paper you could say the main role of a facilitator is to guide a group discussion, fostering effective communication and collaboration. However, there are a few simple rules that enable the other humans having the conversation to really make the most of it. In summary:
Overall, facilitators ensure that discussions stay on track, conflicts are addressed constructively and that the goals for the session are achieved. In the case of Conversations for Scotland, good facilitation will help participants to come to more grounded, effective decisions about the type of future that they want for their community.
There are numerous online resources available to support facilitators (for example, this collection from Chris Corrigan). If you feel that you would like additional help, then please contact the Central Team as we may be able to provide more hands-on support.
For up to 10 participants the workshops can be run in one big group. For larger groups, we recommend breaking people up into sub groups of around 5 during the workshop exercises. This is to ensure that all voices are heard and that the depth of conversation is meaningful.
We feel strongly that these workshops should be accessible to anyone that would like to host one. We have therefore divided the content into essential and optional modules, split between two suggested workshops.
Workshop 1: contains the 3 essential modules
that are designed to be delivered together in an informal 2 hour session:
Workshop 2: contains two optional modules (4 and 5) that can be added for a second 2-3 hour workshop.
We have divided the Workshop Playbook into 4 components:
Next step
Read the background to help frame the workshop conversation
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