The purpose of the Skills Symposium was to encouragethe transfer of knowledge and learning – by experts,practitioners and policy makers – to improve and integratethe skills needed to create genuinely sustainablecommunities across Europe.The role of the working group was to encourage and promoteknowledge exchange in the preparation and following theSymposium and to ensure it contributes to and gains fromcapitalisation of URBACT networks.The working group members were either experts,practitioners or academics from the local, regional andnational levels with expertise in fields of urban and regionalpolicy making, urban knowledge exchange, architecture,spatial planning, culture, economic and sustainabledevelopment.The group has held 5 working group meetings plus thesymposium event itself. The Working Group research for theSymposium set out to stimulate debate at a number of levels:>What are the skills needed to create and managesuccessful places throughout Europe?>What are the skills and training needs associatedspecifically with good governance models and effectivepartnership working?>Is there evidence of a skills gap and what barriers exist toovercoming any gaps?>What strategies and actions are in place at national,regional or local levels to promote skills developmentand capacity building amongst policy makers, practitionersand amongst communities themselves?The research focused on these fundamental issuesand the symposium set out to discuss them and consideropportunities for shared learning. Achievements: Please refer to the 'Description' field, which also includes the achievements of this project.