Common Ground Meetings

Common Ground meetings are relaxed, informal, friendly, informative, stimulating challenging discussions & are central to making us a strong, inclusive, dynamic network. Share your knowledge and learn from the experiences of others.

Befriending Network Scotland provides Common Ground meetings so that befriending staff or committee members can meet others involved in befriending projects locally, discuss and explore topical issues around befriending, and contribute to good practice in befriending at a national level.

Common Ground Meetings around the country feature the same agenda items, but also allow time for local issues to be raised. At the end of each series of Common Ground Meetings, we produce comprehensive notes-so you can find out what other befriending projects across the country have been talking about!

Common Ground Meetings take place in March, June and November.

Details are sent to members a few weeks in advance. Meetings are held in Edinburgh, Falkirk, Glasgow, Dundee, Galashiels and Aberdeen. In addition we take one meeting to a different location with each round of meetings and hold a teleconference for those unable to attend meetings.

Each meeting covers 2 best practice discussion topics and notes are then compiled from the round of meetings and distributed to all members.

Our Summer 2008 meetings will be discussing:

Discrimination

  • What choices do you give clients about who they are matched with? Age? Gender? Religious belief? Race? Sexuality? What do you do if a client says they don't want to be matched with someone on the grounds of their age or race or sexuality etc?
  • How about volunteers what choices do they get and what if they discriminate?
  • Is there anything that you do at your project to try to breakdown prejudice?
  • Are there things you do to ensure that your service is accessible to all?

Publicity

  • Who do you publicise your project too? Potential clients? Potential volunteers? Both together? Or are there others you want to pick up on your publicity?
  • What is the function of publicity for your project and what format does it take?
  • What about befriending generally, how much do the public know about what we all do? What is there impression of us? Does it matter?

Advance Booking

We need to know in advance which meeting you will be attending for planning and catering purposes, so email, phone or fax to book a place or send the following booking form through the post:

Download Booking Form

Email: susan@befriending.co.uk
Phone: 0131 225 6156
Fax: 0131 225 6290
By Post: Befriending Network (Scotland), 45 Queensferry Street Lane, Edinburgh, EH2 4PF

Please retain a copy of your booking form to remind you of discussion topics as further information is not usually sent through the post prior to the meeting.

Dates & venues

AberdeenTuesday 19 August 10am-12noon
Befriend a Child, 9 Bon Accord Sq, Aberdeen
DundeeTuesday 19 August 2pm-4pm
Number 10, 10 Constitution Rd, Dundee
FalkirkWednesday 20 August 10am-12noon
FDAMH, The Victoria Centre, Victoria Rd, Falkirk
GlasgowWednesday 20 August 2pm-4pm
Epilepsy Connections, 100 Wellington St, Glasgow G2 6DH
EdinburghThursday 21 August 10am-12noon
re:discover, health-in-mind, 40 Shandwick Pl, Edinburgh, EH2 4RT
FifeTuesday 26 August 10am-12noon
Fife Society for the Blind, 13 Wilson Ave, Kirkcaldy, KY2 5EF
NewcastleWednesday 27 August 10.30am-12.30pm
Age Concern Newcastle, Mea House, Ellison Pl, Newcastle, NE1 8XS

Download Booking Form

Based Outside Scotland? Or can't make a date near you?

Teleconference – Friday 22 August 10am-12noon

All you need is a quiet room and a phone, we do the rest. Interested? Get in touch and we can send you information about just how easy it is.

Testimonials from previous clients

“The common ground meetings are an invaluable support to us. Working for a small, independent project, we only have each other to bounce ideas off and it's great to network with others and share ideas, discuss good practice and learn from BNS experience. It's also really good to hear what's happening locally.”