There is a paucity of research into the development of intersectoral collaborations designed to support early childhood development in rural communities. Drawing on findings from a qualitative study conducted in three small rural communities in Tasmania, this paper will examine community-based intersectoral collaborations involving government and non-government organisations from the health and allied health, education and community service sectors. The paper analyses the process of developing intersectoral collaborations from the perspective of early childhood health and wellbeing. The specific focus is on collaborations that build family and community capacity. Findings indicate that three groups of factors operate interdependently to influence collaborations: social capital, leadership and environmental factors. Each community has different leadership sources, structures and processes, shaped by levels of community social capital, and by environmental factors such as policy and resources. Effective models of early childhood development require strong local and external leadership. Rural communities that are able to identify and harness the skills, knowledge and resources of internal and external leaders are well positioned to take greater ownership of their own health and wellbeing. The paper provides guidelines for developing and enhancing the capacity of rural communities at different stages of collaborative readiness.
Participation in higher education has widened in recent years, to include groups who are at risk of social exclusion. Public policy in many countries has promoted increased enrolments for non-traditional student groups. Social inclusion policy and practice is underpinned by differing ideological frameworks relating to the degree of social inclusion. This paper analyses Australian universities' high level, publicly available strategic planning documents for evidence of their strategies to implement the Australian Government's social inclusion agenda, and their position on a social inclusion continuum extending from neoliberal access to social justice participation to human potential empowerment. Longer-established, research-intensive universities' strategies are clustered at the neoliberal access end of the continuum, while universities articulating strategies at the human potential empowerment end of the continuum tended to be more recently established institutions, often located in rural regions. The findings suggest strongly that socially inclusive universities articulate a comprehensive and integrated suite of strategies spanning the access, participation and empowerment domains. Universities aspiring to be socially inclusive beyond any short-term government policy imperative require a high level plan or framework that articulates goals, agreed strategies for building and sustaining a socially inclusive organisation, and indicators of success
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