Community Empowerment

Thursday October 22nd 2009, One Great George Street - London, 08:20 - 16:10

Community Empowerment: Reconnecting Local Councils to Their Communities

"The current economic downturn is having a huge impact on our communities. This Bill sets out the framework for every level of government to address the economic issues facing their areas in a coordinated and effective way, and plan for sustainable economic growth in every region of the country."

Rt Hon Hazel Blears MP, Former Secretary of State, Communities and Local Government, 2008.

Overview

With a commitment to fulfil Public Service Agreement 21 to build more cohesive, empowered and active communities, and a duty to involve communities and local people in a meaningful way in local decision-making from April 2009 through epetitions, citizen juries and focus groups, the government is committed to reconnecting local people to local democracy and local government through community empowerment. For the government, community empowerment is about local people and local government working together to help to solve local problems.

Building upon work and implementing policies set out in the Communities in Control: real people, real power, White Paper (published July 2008), the Government's Review of Sub-National Economic Development and Regeneration (SNR) (published in November 2008), and An Action Plan for Community Empowerment: building on success (published in October 2007), the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill, will give people new rights to be involved in decision-making not only to ensure that councils are more accountable and responsive to the needs of the community but also to improve the design and provision of council services and the overall performance of councils.

The Bill will also place a duty on local authorities to carry out an economic assessment of their region to better enable them to plan and promote economic development through multi-area agreements and the setting-up of economic prosperity boards.

To what extent will the Bill help to reinvigorate local democracy? What measures are in place to support ordinary people to become involved in local politics? To what degree is the available support sufficient? How will the strengthening of overview and scrutiny committees in local councils improve the performance of local government? What meaningful role can communication technologies play in reconnecting people to their local community and to local democracy generally? In what ways will the Bill alter both the power and financial relationship between central and local government, and local government and the third sector?

Agenda

This forum will provide delegates with the opportunity to examine the Bill and the key success factors to reconnect the town hall and the wider community with each person in the community.

08:20	Registration and Coffee
09:10	Chair’s Opening Remarks Roger King, Visiting Fellow, OPM (CONFIRMED)
09:15	Strengthening Democracy, Empowering Local Communities Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill: extending duty to involve local people in decision-making and promote democracy: what forms might this take? Improving accountability and scrutiny to: drive performance levels improve service design and provision expand and broaden the role of overview and scrutiny committees Policing Green Paper Cave Review: National Tenant Voice Community empowerment: what has been achieved to date next steps Evaluating, planning and promoting economic development through multi-area agreements Local government finance: three-year settlement, ring-fenced local performance framework and efficiency savings Claire Cooper, Deputy Director, Community Action & Third Sector (CATS), Communities and Local Government (CONFIRMED)
09:30	Questions and Discussion 1 Claire Cooper, Deputy Director, Community Action & Third Sector (CATS), Communities and Local Government (CONFIRMED)
09:40	Reinvigorating Local Democracy: Making Engagement Cheaper and more Cheerful Extending participation in local democracy: is that what people say they want? Changing the structure and the way local government involves local people in decision-making: Providing a compelling participation offering: taking the government to local people Media tools: using social networking, voting and communication technologies that people use in their everyday lives to capture their attention Build partnerships first – the data will follow Case studies Edward Andersson, Head of Practice, involve (CONFIRMED)
10:00	Strengthening Democracy, Empowering Local Communities Rebuilding and renewing relationships: understanding expectations Rebuilding trust: a long-term commitment Policing Green Paper Changing the culture in the town hall Providing the support and encouragement to enable local people to feel they have the time and knowledge to participate Key motivating factor to participate: recommendation from friend Is there a relationship between volunteering and political activism? Do people move between the two forms of participation? Edemocracy: has its time arrived? A duty to consult: epetitions Edemocracy: who has done what where in the UK, and with what degree of success? Case studies Dr Andy Williamson, Director, eDemocracy Programme, Hansard Society (CONFIRMED)
10:20	Control Shift: Transferring Power to Local People Decentralisation, devolution and empowerment: returning power to local people: Planning powers Business rates Local enterprise partnerships Mayoral referendum Local council expenditure Bob Neill AM MP, Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party and Shadow Minister for Local Government (CONFIRMED)
10:40	Questions and Discussion 2
11:05	Coffee Break and Networking
11:30	Citizen 16 A campaign focused on the rights of 16 and 17 year olds this presentation will argue that the voting age should be lowered to empower and engage more young people in democracy Susan Nash, Vice President - Elect, Citizenship and Society, NUS (CONFIRMED)
11:50	Engaging Minority Women in Democracy and Political Engagement Charting our progress: Representation - BAME women councilors represent less than 1% of councillors Outreach work: practical ways to support prospective councillors from BAME communities Inreach work: working with local constituency, election committees to overcome barriers to selection of BAME women councillors Increasing awareness of the role of local councilors Establishing a mentoring scheme for prospective councillors Simon Woolley, Director, Operation Black Vote (CONFIRMED)
12:10	Using the Internet to Empower People to Work Together Better Inclusion – a brand characteristic to be proud of Building an understanding of your stakeholders’ opinions and interests The danger with Web 2.0 noise and your ability to listen How working in partnership can reduce consultation fatigue John Glover, Sales and Marketing Director, Inovem (CONFIRMED)
12:25	Questions and Discussion 3
12:45	Lunch and Networking
13:45	Transferring Community Assets Progress since the Quirk Review The Asset Transfer Unit, Advancing Assets and the Community Assets Programme Community Asset transfer and Community Empowerment through Partnership Working Annemarie Naylor, Assets Programmes Manager, Development Trusts Association (DTA) (CONFIRMED)
14:05	Community Empowerment: Creating Change Programme for change: Birmingham 2026: Talking Together, Working Together Birmingham People’s Panel Local strategic partnerships: work with community partners Changing the culture of local government: retrain teams to listen and respond Do not impose structure on involving communities and local people: learn from what works Seeking change: more than 250 forums and consultations Double devolution: over 70 neighbourhood forums Enabling change: ward committees and community chests Ifor Jones, Acting Director of Constituencies, Birmingham City Council (CONFIRMED)
14:25	Questions and Discussion 4
14:40	Coffee Break and Networking
15:00	Putting Power in the Hands of Local People NALC: representing urban and rural communities Meeting the needs of communities: Improving community engagement and service delivery Devolving decision-making to local people Training and financial assistance for local councilors Working in partnership with organisations Will parish, town and neighbourhood councils appear in the capital? Cllr Michael Chater, Chairman, National Association of Local Councils(CONFIRMED)
15:20	Closing Keynote: Essex Works - Localism in Action What we mean by Localism Customer choice Local priorities Some examples of Localism in Essex Working with parish & town councils Supporting local projects Using the Wellbeing Powers of the LG Act 2000 Supporting our Post Offices Supporting our businesses – Banking on Essex Focussing resources on the front line Cutting bureaucracy Investing in key services – Essex Cares Richard Puleston, Assistant Chief Executive, Essex County Council (CONFIRMED)
15:45	Questions and Discussion 5
16:00	Chair's Summary and Conclusions
16:10	Close

*programme subject to change without notice

Exhibitors

Bay Media

Inovem

Limehouse Software

Audience

Delegates will be drawn from community empowerment officers, community safety teams, police & fire authorities, LSPs, community partnerships, faith organisations, youth offending teams, neighbourhood wardens, employment services, diversity & equality officers, neighbourhood strategy managers, race hate crime co-ordinators, children’s trusts, neighbourhood renewal directors, community projects & regeneration officers, planning authorities, community cohesion officers, schools, central government departments & bodies, unions, academia, the private, legal & voluntary sectors and all those involved in creating empowered communities.