Questions/Answers

The Northern Ireland Executive’s Action Plan for Tackling Paramilitarism, Criminality, and Organised Crime recognises that women have a strategic role in building a better society where they, their families, and their neighbours can feel safe and confident. Women Involved in Community Transformation (WICT) assists women in developing skills to work in communities; enables them to make new connections with community/voluntary groups; and supports them in becoming involved in positive community activity. The aim is to develop women's participation and influence in community development by supporting the development of influential relationships to build participation in political structures and move away from paramilitarism. Therefore, civic leadership grows from the neighborhood level upwards. Hundreds of women are benefiting from this initiative. Phase 1: 539 women completed training in the following modules: Personal Development, Health and Well-Being, Leadership and Mentoring, Citizenship, Women and Peacebuilding, and Women in the Justice System. 350 women achieved the vocational accreditation City & Guilds (Institute of Leadership and Management) Level 2 Award in Leadership and Team Skills (secondary education level). Phase 2: 439 women continued training and development in SOCIAL INNOVATION in education and employment opportunities, COMMUNICATION AND ENGAGEMENT dialogue training, COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP including volunteerism, non-formal education, and community health advocacy, and WOMEN IN CIVIL SOCIETY political training. Phase 3: With an additional 341 women recruited and completing Phase 1 training, 533 are women undertaking accredited training in Mentoring, Mediation and Facilitation, and Asset Based Community Development. Phase 4 is currently being launched. Participants may undertake training in creative leadership, mentoring, and mental health. United Nations Phase: Finally, 40 grassroots women have been trained in TWN’s bespoke United Nations and Gender diplomacy programme. A delegation of 35 grassroots women and activists attended CSW63 and delivered the “A Conversation With…” side-event on women’s stories during the conflict and peace process.

Women Involved in Community Transformation (WICT) is the women’s empowerment programme that supports communities transitioning from living under paramilitary control. It enables women to actualize transformative community development work and tackle more public decision-making leadership roles through global citizenship, leadership, and human rights education. This included launching the Women’s Intervention Forum where grassroots women respond to public consultations and provide feedback on the wider Tackling Paramilitarism Programme. Feedback enabled internally displaced women to participate, rather than limiting participation to Department of Justice identified areas. Currently, women are receiving digital literacy support, preparing for the connected learning platform launch in 2021.

Goal 4: Quality Education. 4.7 By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development [...] through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship [...]. 539 women completed training in sustainable development, human rights, peace-building, gender equality, diversity and community development with a focus on promoting a culture of peace and lawfulness. 350 achieved accreditation at the secondary education level. 341 women are currently undertaking this training. Goal 5. Gender Equality. 5.5 Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life. 40 grassroots women and 35 human rights defenders completed United Nations and Gender training in voice coaching, public speaking, diplomacy. 35 participants attended Commission on the Status of Women 63, and 40 will attend CSW65. Goal 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions. 16.7 Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels. 533 women are currently undertaking accredited training in Mediation, Mentoring and Asset-Based Community Development. The Women’s Intervention Forum (20 women) responds to public consultations and speaking to public officials and statutory bodies.

People Training for Women Network’s ethos focuses on helping women fulfill their potential with dignity, in equality, and amidst a safe environment. Prosperity TWN ensures access to inclusive industry-recognised qualifications, advancing women’s transferable skills and employability, including secondary and tertiary education in leadership, mentoring, mediation, education, and training. Planet The WICT Connected Learning Platform launch in 2021 will provide access to learning in-the-home. Peace WICT supports the peace process and progress towards a just and equal society. Partnership TWN partners with organisations to deliver on the SDGs 4, 5 and 16: Foyle Women’s Information Network, Intercomm Ireland, and Cooperation Ireland.

The WICT initiative is the only women’s measure within the Tackling Paramilitarism Programme to support communities transitioning from paramilitary control. Additionally, the Women’s Intervention Forum serves as a vital network of women across Northern Ireland to respond to public consultations and provide feedback on the delivery of the wider Programme.

The Women Involved in Community Transformation programme addresses Northern Ireland’s Programme for Government on Tackling Paramilitary Activity, Criminality, and Organised Crime. It responds to measure B: Support for Transition for communities to move away from involvement in paramilitary activity, specifically measure B5 to empower women and girls: WICT is the only women’s measure within the Tackling Paramilitarism Programme to support communities transitioning from paramilitary control. It provides a safe space for women from all backgrounds to gather to develop as decision-making community leaders.

The overall target group consisted of 3 groups. The first was women living in areas identified by the Department for Justice as areas of high level of paramilitary and criminal activity. The second was women who were internally displaced in Northern Ireland as a result of paramilitary activity. The third was women currently on probation. The participants were from a variety of socio-demographic backgrounds. Selected outcomes of Phase 1 and 2: 64.9% achieving accreditation/qualification 65.7% are more aware of ways to get involved in their community 61.7% expressing an intention to get involved or more involved in their community 66.8% reporting they feel better connected with other women in their community 63.3% reporting they could help to change attitudes in their communities 64.6% reporting they could help improve things in their local communities 80.9% showing improvements in Locus of Control 78.5% showing improvements in Self-efficacy 44.4% showing improvements in Well-being This illustrates a positive change on each element between the beginning of WICT and the end of Phase 2, particularly with regard to self-efficacy and locus of control. On both measures participants now exceed the Northern Ireland average for females.

Autumn 2017 – Development of the training materials by TWN training team, and pilot of the programme. September 2017-March 2018 – Delivery of the Phase 1 to 539 women: Women Involved in Community Transformation training programme. 26 April 2018 – Graduation ceremony for women who completed the WICT training. Summer 2018 – Delivery of the “A Conversation With…” events series in which women from across northern Ireland share personal stories about their experience of the conflict and peace process. June 2018-March 2019 – Delivery of the Phase 2 to 439 women: Next Steps Pathways programme: Social Innovation, Communication and Engagement, Community Leadership, and Women in Civil Society. January-March 2019 – Delivery of the United Nations and Gender training programme. March 2019 – Delegation of 35 grassroots women and human rights activists attended the Commission on the Status of Women 63. September 2017-March 2019 – Ongoing evaluation of the programme by Community Evaluation Northern Ireland (CENI) April 2019 – Launch of the Women’s Intervention Forum – a network of 20 women that meet every other month and respond to public consultations and meet with public officials and statutory bodies. Summer 2019 – Development of the Phase 3 qualifications and certifications and Delivery to Pilot Groups: Community Change Pathways in Mentoring, Mediation and Asset-Based Community Development. November 2019 – CENI published the evaluation report on Phase 1 and 2. September 2019-present – Delivery of the Phase 3 to 533 women: Community Change Pathways and the WICT training programme. Summer 2020 – Mentoring and support to participants during COVID-19 social distancing measures. Autumn 2020 – Draft evaluation report for Phase 3. Autumn 2020 – Development of Phase 4 pathways.

There were 2 obstacles that have been identified. During Phase 1, there was inconsistency in the delivery of the WICT training programme. For Phase 3 and the new participants’ recruitment, the trainer programme was redesigned to address areas for improvement. The second obstacle was COVID-19 social distancing measures interrupting Phase 3 delivery and the second delegation of grassroots women and activists to attend the Commission on the Status of Women 64 in March 2020. Support phone calls were made during the lockdown period and funding was secured for participants to access technology (laptops and hotspots) for training.

WICT is innovative in our region as it provides opportunities for women to become trained in SHAPE fields – Social Sciences Humanities & the Arts for People and the Economy – in order to enable women to be able to lead on community transformation and make positive change. More specifically, the WICT programme provides a safe space for women to explore themes of how conflict has affected women on both sides of the community.

Not applicable.

As part of the COVID-19 recovery plan, TWN embraced video conferencing technology and other film editing technologies to make use of digital learning and engagement. Additionally, TWN is launching our connected learning platform in 2021 specific to the WICT programme.

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As a global citizenship education programme, the WICT programme is completely adaptable to other countries and contexts. TWN always works in partnership with groups internationally and shares best practices across our international network. In particular the WICT training programme modules -- Personal Development, Health & Well-Being, Leadership and Mentoring, Citizenship, Women and Peace-Building and Women in the Justice System -- are all topics relevant to other countries in conflict or reconciliation processes. These modules provide a foundation for empowering women and girls, enabling them to address discrimination and inequality in their own societies as well as empower them as community leaders and decision-makers. In particular, the WICT programme is lobbying on issues women face from within their own communities, particularly in relation to sexual violence and domestic violence, which can often be ignored when the violence involves community members that are seen as “heroes” of the conflict.

Human resources TWN staff team: 2 strategic leaders, 3 policy and development officers, and 2 project coordinators. TWN works with 3 partners - Cooperation Ireland, Intercomm Ireland, and Foyle Women’s Information Network - and has 30 plus trained educators. Financial resources Budget of £592,400: covering staff costs, residential programmes, childcare provision, venue hire, tutor costs, hospitality, accreditation, equipment, and technology access. Other resources TWN designed and edited the training materials. TWN sourced laptops and mobile hotspots on loan for participants in need. TWN is accredited with CPD UK, City & Guilds Institute of Leadership and Management, and TQUK (Training Qualifications UK).

WICT is a training and development programme that provided 880 women with CPD and accredited training opportunities in SHAPE subjects (Social Sciences Humanities & the Arts for People and the Economy) developing knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values necessary to shape a sustainable future. Education promotes competencies like critical thinking and collaborative decision-making. With the 2021 connected learning platform launch, the programmes will be accessible for future generations and can be updated easily by connecting to the vast resources available online. The platform allows for the WICT to be institutional sustainable at minimum future cost for providing accreditations moving forward.

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The initiative was formally evaluated externally by Community Evaluation Northern Ireland. The methodology included: Analyses of activity data Participant monitoring forms with measures for self-efficacy, locus of control and well-being; attitudes and levels of community engagement and qualitative feedback on experiences Case studies on participants Consultation with stakeholders, including the partnership, as well as interviews with the Department for Communities. Attitudes using pre and post attitudinal surveys, focus groups, interviews.

The participant monitoring forms included a series of questions regarding: How they felt about their ability to cope with the challenges of daily life – Self Efficacy Their beliefs about things that happen in everyday life – Locus of Control Overall how satisfied they are with their life nowadays – Well-being Additionally, participants responded to questions about their participation in community development. The indicators were number of participants engaging in formal and informal volunteering, and number of participants increasing community engagement (engagement scores).

Phase 1 It provided a practical standard of attainment, particularly with a diverse range of socio-demographic participants: ‘it was about getting everyone on the same page’. It facilitated an assessment of individual participant’s abilities, and supported women to consider what routes they would follow. It provided a ‘safe’ environment which allowed participants to get to know and develop relationships with each other, and with programme coordinators and training providers, promoting bonding and trust. It supported the development of individual self-confidence and motivation amongst participants. Finally, and importantly, it provided the partners with experience in collaborative working to help mould and strengthen their new partnership whilst delivering on their own familiar areas of expertise and experience. Phase 2 It provided a more detailed upfront guidance for participants on curriculum, content, and delivery formats for each pathway,the production of course guidance manuals and learning materials for each pathway,and an agreed format for reporting including nature and duration of training received. Phase 3 Phase 3 saw a complete detailed guide on the pathways for participants, fully designed course materials in each by TWN’s training team, and standardised reporting system on training delivery.

Training for Network serves as the lead partner in the Women Involved in Community Transformation initiative. There are 3 additional partners making up the Women’s Intervention Partnership: Cooperation Ireland, Intercomm Ireland, and Foyle Women’s Information Network. The Women’s Intervention Partnership meets every 6 weeks to monitor the implementation of the programme. Additionally, the Women’s Intervention Partnership meets every 6 weeks with the Department for Communities who are the administrators of the programme under the Executive’s Tackling Paramilitarism Programme. Additionally, TWN liaises with the Department of Justice in relation to recruiting the target group of women currently on probation.

The Department for Communities initially engaged with key stakeholders from the Voluntary and Community Sector to consider the need for a multi-year programme to upskill women in community development. An initial proposal setting out a modular learning and development approach was approved by a Cross Departmental Programme Board tasked with coordinating and monitoring the implementation of the Fresh Start Agreement’s commitments. The design stage involved a stakeholder engagement followed by an open and transparent public procurement exercise. Afterwards, a Co-Design Group was established consisting of some of the stakeholders previously involved in developing the initial proposal and also other interested parties, including Department of Justice, Department for Communities, Central Procurement Directorate Community Foundation for NI, Cooperation Ireland, and Women’s Consortia. During the implementation period, a steering group consisting of the Women’s Intervention Partnership met every 6 weeks to monitor the programme. Participants were invited to the meeting to provide feedback on a regular basis. In April 2019, the Women’s Intervention Forum of grassroots women participants was established. The Forum meets every 6 weeks and also attends meetings, conferences, and consultations with statutory bodies and public officials in relation to the wider Tackling Paramilitarism Programme.

Key lessons learned A redesigned Train the Trainer programme that includes elements of continuous professional development helps ensure consistent delivery across the region. The event series “A Conversation With…” had an aspect of truth-telling that was still controversial for some participants. Providing neutral table facilitators could help alleviate any distress as a result of the dialogue. Phase 2 had many diverse pathways which enabled participants to have highly tailored individual learning plans, but made the programme slightly more difficult to manage. Less options in Phase 3 eased the administrator and financial burden of the programme, while still providing participants with meaningful ways to develop their potential. Improvements TWN is launching the connected learning platform in 2021 in which participant materials will be accessible online.