Caithleen Bell

Location: Huntly, Aberdeenshire

Role: Senior Community Learning and Development Worker

I live in Huntly, a small town in the North of Aberdeenshire, and enjoy spending time outdoors hillwalking, camping and exploring new places. I love escaping into a good book and I’m trying to read 35 in 2026. I have two house cats, Mouse and Fearne, who often make an appearance when I’m working from home.

I work as a Senior Community Learning and Development Worker in the Adult Learning and Communities team within Aberdeenshire Council, supporting learning opportunities for people of all ages. My work focuses on supporting the North Aberdeenshire Adult Learning and Communities staff team to deliver learning opportunities to individuals and communities that is tailored to meet the needs of the participant. I also support our adult learners in Aberdeenshire to have a voice, express their views and influence decisions that affect them.

In my own community, our team supports adult learners to engage in literacies learning opportunities. By building confidence, encouraging participation, and helping adult learners to make informed choices, we aim to support strong, active communities across Aberdeenshire. I am passionate about literacies, social practice learning and community development.

This will be my fourth trip to Kenya, I also volunteer with a small Aberdeenshire based Charity – Scotland na Kenya, pomoja for children. Through the charity we made the connection with Emily at Inspire Nyeri. This will be my first visit in a professional / work capacity, and I hope the start of a long mutually beneficial relationship between Inspire and Aberdeenshire CLD. My dream for this experience is to continue to expand my professional networks and connect with other professional and communities. I’m keen to see and learn about innovative approaches to community empowerment and project sustainability.