New course available: Discover ABCD Open Course January 2027. Explore

The Community Renewal Centre

Welcome to Nurture Development's  e-learning platform.
For organisations that are getting started, each of our courses provides an entry point towards more community-centred ways of working.
For organisations who want to go deeper, our courses are best viewed as interdependent and we can support you to co-design a whole systems approach to working in citizen space.
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Working with Nurture Development

Our mission is to enable policymakers and practitioners working in citizen space to create the conditions where any neighbourhood can identify, connect and mobilise its assets to the benefit of the whole community. We do this through systems transformation, co-design and training & development supports that are guided by strengths-based principles and grounded in Asset-Based Community Development practice. 

There are five key phases in how we support institutions to bring about change:

Strategic Support

Phase One is the strategic development process and starts with a focused number of days in your context. We provide thought leadership, identify strategic pathways and facilitate reflective discussions with your key stakeholders. Our aim is to help you build consensus around a shared strategic direction.

Co-Design

Phase Two involves co-designing an implementation framework report that brings clarity to your strategic direction. The process draws on promising practice from around the world, while being grounded in the real-world dilemmas that you may face moving from strategy to application. 

Capacity Building

Phase Three focuses on capacity building and culture change. Together we determine the appropriate provision of tailored training in community building, service transformation, community approaches to commissioning/funding and policy development.
We offer the following courses:

  • ABCD for Professionals working in Citizen Space
  • Moving to Community-Centred Practice
  • Commissioning & Service Transformation

Legacy

To ensure long-term sustainability of your strategy, we train core leaders and practitioners to become Connected Community ABCD facilitators/trainers. This will enhance proliferation across and beyond the organisation and ensure it is embedded in its culture.

Evaluation

We offer evaluation services by way of ongoing support using a range of innovative methodologies. These measure impact and further support ongoing learning to develop and refine the strategy, implementation framework and deepen practice.

Key Note Addresses

Cormac is a social explorer, an author and a much sought-after speaker. His most recent books are The Connected Community- Discovering the Health, Wealth, and Power of Neighborhoods (Coauthor John McKnight); Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2022, and Rekindling Democracy – A Professional’s Guide to Working in Citizen Space; Cascade Books, 2020.
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A New Way of Learning

There are five elements to our learning framework and when combined, they accelerate and deepen learning. 
Each of these five elements is detailed below. 

To find out more, register for our free demonstration course and discover some of the main elements of our e-learning platform 

Read

Resources

You will have life-long access to a library of e-books and written resources developed by Nurture Development.

Watch

Video Tutorials

Cormac Russell takes you through the key principles of the  course modules in videos that you can access where and when you like.

Discuss

Zoom Sessions

You deepen your understanding and practical application through discussions, peer mentoring and skilled facilitation with our tutors.

Reflect

Reflective Practice

Facilitated reflective practice deepens understanding and embeds learning.

Apply

Action Learning

You learn by doing - applying your new knowledge and skills in real community situations.

Open Courses for Individuals

Meet our Team

Cormac Russell

Managing director

Cormac is a social explorer, author, and highly sought-after speaker. He is the Founding Director of Nurture Development.

Over the last 30 years, Cormac's work has had an enduring impact in 42 countries worldwide. He has trained communities, agencies, NGOs and governments in ABCD and other community-based approaches in Africa, Asia, Australia/Oceania, Europe and North America.

His most recent books are The Connected Community- Discovering the Health, Wealth, and Power of Neighborhoods (co-authored with John McKnight; Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2022), and Rekindling Democracy – A Professional’s Guide to Working in Citizen Space;  (Cascade Books, 2020). He is currently working on a new book project on Community-centred leadership; the book will be called: "The Pedagogy of the Powerful."

 

Cormac’s TEDx talk can be viewed here


Colleen Quinn

 Chief Executive
Having spent many years in the corporate world, Colleen is now responsible for the ongoing development and management of Nurture Development's e-learning platform and the delivery of our training offer. 

Tom Dewar

Trainer
Tom taught International and Community Development in Johns Hopkins University and was also a Professor at the University of Minnesota for over 20 years. He was Director of Evaluation for the MacArthur Foundation. 
Tom’s experience includes citizen leadership, new forms of organising, and the dangers of an over-reliance on professionals. 

Mick Ward

Trainer
Mick retired in June 2020 as Chief Officer, Transformation and Innovation, for the Adults and Health Directorate in Leeds City Council.
He has a strong commitment to the social model of disability, citizenship, communities, innovation, culture, equality and diversity, and working in partnership. 

Interested in ABCD Training?

We can support you to identify a course to get started
or you can go deeper by co-designing with us a suite of training
that leads to whole systems change. 

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