ARVAC believes that:
- healthy, diverse and inclusive communities make a fundamental contribution to people's quality of life and living conditions
- healthy communities are created and sustained by the activities of effective local organisations and groups
- research has a major role to play in promoting supporting, and developing the work of local organisations and groups by such means as:
developing awareness of the valuable role played by community organisations
informing and improving the ways in which community organisations are led and managed;
and informing policy-makers of the ways in which the work community organisations can be encouraged and supported.
- participation in the research process and access to its products should be freely and widely available and not restricted to academics and other professional researchers
ARVAC aims to:
- act as a resource to people interested in research in or on community organisations
- promote and help develop effective and appropriate forms of research in or on community organisations
- encourage and facilitate networking and collaboration between people undertaking work in this field
- ensure that the findings of research in and on community organisations are made available to policy-makers at all levels
- play a role in identifying gaps in knowledge of the community sector and the need for further research.