Case study-co-production and community development in France

Across France, associations called ‘centres sociaux’, which roughly translates to social centres in English (social as in social services, rather than social club), provide a range of services and activities to promote community development. These associations are based on the ideals of the settlement movement that originated in the United States and England, which aimed to bridge the gap between rich and poor by advocating middle class volunteers working alongside the poor in locally based settlement houses to provide services such as education, training, childcare and healthcare (Durand, 1996). Social centres continue this tradition by acting as community development organisations and community centres, promoting activities to support active citizenship and social cohesion. There are now over 2,000 such social centres across France.