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The group co-designing the course are holding a series of workshops on Tuesday evenings during May and June 2005 with a final celebration meeting on July 5th. We also hope to contribute to two Thursday evening meetings called LETS Get Together initiated by the University of Openess at the same venue where a wider group of people are debating and demonstrating different models for community currencies and test-driving related software. Participants include Michael Linton founder of LETS in Canada, and Mary Fee, coordinator of LETSlink which connects up LETS organisers all over the country - these will be held on Thursdays June 2nd and June 30th. During the course we also hope to connect up with existing LETS groups in London by arrangement, and/or by visiting their open meetings. The course will cover the theory and practice of LETS as well as special software for LETS. We hope to engage with LETS organisers who have real experience of the practicalities of running schemes, and who can give feedback from their experience to help with designing software basics and interfaces, and accumulate suitable training material for future courses. Participants will be able to access basic training as required in computer skills, day to day office administration, recording information, communication and group-work skills, and developing motivation and confidence, identifying current skills. We hope to attract as co-planners and participants people currently running LETS. The workshops will provide an opportunity for networking, mutual support and updating of skills. Topics will be confirmed for future sessions on an ongoing basis: so far we envisage we will include: history of community currencies, theoretical models, how to get organised, legal structures, rules etc, administrative and technical requirements, organising and managing the group, publicity and outreach, etc. We anticipate that during the course there will be lively exchange about the real issues that arise when participating in LETS, and we hope that the course will provide an opportunity for mutual support, advice and the sharing of experiences. We will be documenting the proceeds of each session,
and can keep people in the wide LETS community informed of our
progress. LETS organisers who are interested to support the project
but whose commitments do not allow them to attend in person, are
invited to nominate an attendee who would benefit from and contribute
to this workshop - who might then be able to take on some administrative
responsibility in your scheme. We will also be inviting individuals who have enquired about joining LETS in the London area and who may not have found a local scheme. When selecting applicants we will prioritise those who are unemployed, who are likely to attend all the sessions, and who are most likely to benefit personally from participating, within an equal opportunities policy in terms of age, gender, orientation, disability and ethnic origin. The course is designed to provide core skills to increase the employability of participants in the normal job market, in addition to the specific focus on community currencies. To encourage applications from our chosen target group, it will be free of charge, refreshments will be provided, and reasonable London-wide travelling expenses will be paid to all participants. The course will have an afternoon and evening session.
The first session starting at 3pm will cover the theory and practice
of LETS. There will be a break for afternoon tea at 5pm and from
6pm we will focus on a particular technical topic, featuring opensource
software. The remainder of the evening will develop from there,
either with hands-on practice or broader discussion arising from
the presentations. Students will be provided with printed material
to study between sessions. Applicants will be asked to provide full contact details, and also tell us about their employment status, educational and work history, knowledge of IT and administration, current activities, availability (eg day/evening, weekdays/weekends) personal data including disability/access issues, and most importantly their reasons for wanting to join the course. The detailed syllabus is being planned (and will develop whilst the course is in progress) in consultation with member organisations of LETSlink London, and with the participants. To assist with planning and/or if you would like to attend the course, please email letslinklondon@freezone.co.uk with a message headed LETS Training Course, or write to: Secretary, Letslink London, 12 Southcote Road, London N19 5BJ, tel: 020-7607-7852. This project is supported by a Fast Forward
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