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Principles

Circuit Riders, e-Riders and other professionals working with charities, non-profits and other VCS organisations have for some years acknowledged that there has not been a single statement of the principles by which they work. The idea of having these has been discussed at various conferences and meetings in the UK, US and internationally but without an overall agreement. Until now….

The ICT Hub Circuit Rider Training and Standards Project (2006 – 2008), following on from groundwork done by many Riders, carried out consultation with a wide range of Riders and other ICT voluntary sector professionals to formulate the Principles which are reproduced on this page. We feel that this is a significant step forward in advancing the Circuit Rider movement and one which helps towards enabling the professionalisation of the community. We would urge all those working in the sector to show their commitment by “signing up” to the principles (see below).

The Circuit Rider Principles

I/we commit to…

    Vision and values

  1. Recognise and respect the characteristics (vision, values, culture, funding, mission, beneficiaries and services) of the particular Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) organisation I/we work with and adapt my approach appropriately.


    2. Working practices

  2. Work honestly and transparently, declaring any conflicts of interest (including reselling activities) and be prepared to say when a non-Information and Communication Technology (ICT) solution is the best course of action.
  3. Use non-technical language and examples to help organisations understand ICT and their choices.
  4. Understand the limitations of my ICT skills and knowledge and help to connect VCS organisations I/we work with to other ICT providers and development workers if I/we am not able to meet the organisation’s needs.
  5. Ensure legal and best practice requirements are made explicit to the organisations I/we work with (e.g. health and safety, data protection, environmental, accessibility, inclusion, confidentiality and licensing).


    6. Learning, professional development and support

  6. Engage in continuous learning to maintain the necessary skills and level of knowledge to understand ICT, the VCS in general and any sub-sectors (e.g. health, environment, etc.) I/we work with.
  7. Participate in and share my knowledge with the VCS ICT community and the organisations I/we work with.


    8. Supporting organisational development and sustainability

  8. Help organisations understand the impact ICT can have on staff, volunteers and beneficiaries, taking responsibility to highlight and assist with change management.
  9. Equip organisations with tools, knowledge and processes to enable them to make informed decisions and take full advantage of ICT and how to make ongoing strategic decisions with or without external support.
  10. Enable organisations to understand the total cost of ownership (TCO) needed to maintain and improve their ICT commitments, offering choice and refraining from prescribing dependency-based ICT solutions.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 UK: England & Wales License.
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/uk/

January 2008

Sign up

To sign up to the list of organisations and individuals who have made a commitment to work according to the Circuit Rider Principles, get in touch by emailing crprinciples@lasa.org.uk  Please include your name, organisation (if appropriate) and web address. Your details will be published on the Circuit Rider Signatories page. You are welcome to display the Principles on your website as a signatory and we would appreciate links back to these pages.