This Masters degree is intended for anyone interested in policy issues in the areas of social and community development and of interest to those in voluntary community work for government departments, district councils or agencies involved in social provision; it is an interdisciplinary programme intended to encourage cross-sectoral understanding, and engages with current issues in the field; attention will be paid to globalisation, and the new forms of governance that are emerging, including third way politics that place more responsibility with voluntary providers; the Master's is designed to bring together practitioners and policy makers from a number of different areas; it emphasises student participation and partnership, working across different sectors of the local economy.