BETWEEN THEM, Babs Davidson and Margaret Lawrence have many years of experience in community work. Both first became involved with their local community groups in a voluntary capacity when their children were small, and since their families have grown up they have sought to turn their interest in the field of community work into a career.

For the last few years, Davidson has been a project worker with the busy, urban Primrose Hill Family Centre in Aberdeen, while Lawrence works in the rural area of central Buchan, which comprises six small villages with about 5,000 inhabitants.

However, despite their contrasting but considerable experience in and commitment to community work, neither woman has any formal qualifications in the subject both saw this as a major handicap when it came to trying to advance their careers any further.

"I found myself wondering what would happen if the project I'm involved with folded and I had to try to find work elsewhere," says Davidson, who has just finished the three year course. "I felt that because I didn't have that all important `piece of paper' I would find it difficult to have my experience recognised and to get another job even though I have a number of in service course to my credit."

Her views are shared by Lawrence, who is in year two of the programme. "My experience certainly helped me get the job I have at present, which is as a part time community development worker, and I have been doing this job for the last four and a half years.

"But I still felt that I was treated differently because I didn't have any formal qualifications. It's difficult to explain this in a tangible way it's nothing I could exactly put my finger on, it's just something I felt. When the opportunity arose to take part in the course, I was delighted," Lawrence says.

In fact, the course suited both women ideally it is specifically aimed at those with community work experience but without the educational qualifications required for entry to other forms of full time training. It was set up by Grampian Regional Council in May 1991 as the Linked Work and Training Scheme, and it has since evolved into a community education and development degree programme validated by Glasgow University.

Participants continue to work while on the programme, but their time is shared with the academic side of their training this normally involves a day a week away from the workplace. They prepare assignments and essays and are expected to take part in four residential weekends in year one. In years two and three there are also residential weekends a 10 week block

It has been a real challenge, but a very interesting and worthwhile one," Davidson says. "Initially, it is a bit off putting when you have to write your first essay and you feel very intimidated by the prospect. But we have superb tutors who have "been very encouraging and it's amazing how fast your confidence grows when you feel there is some one there supporting your efforts."

For Lawrence, mixing with the other course participants has been of immense value. "They are people, with a lot of experience, often in very different types of community work to your own, and it Is very interesting to listen and to share ideas with them," she says.

For both women, KLEAR is providing experience in quite a different type of community endeavour it was set up as an educational and self development group from the beginning, almost 16 years ago.

KLEAR was established when a group of women who had taken part in a once off personal development course decided they wanted to stay together to further their education.

Aimed primarily at women initially, it was meant for those who wanted to pick up the threads of their education but for whom mainstream courses were unsuitable.

Over the years KLEAR has gone from strength to strength with hundreds of students (of both sexes) participating in courses on everything from basic literacy to Leaving Cert subjects.

"Our work to date has been with other sorts of community work. For example, I've been very involved with parent and toddler groups," Davidson says. "So KLEAR is something quite different for us. But they have made us very weld come and we are finding it very interesting."