Justice Ministry looks for input
With every political party buying into the idea of
greater public engagement, the Ministry
of Justice’s recent initiative on a National
Framework for Greater Citizen Engagement
assumes critical importance. And unlike many formal
consultations, the Ministry is flexible about receiving
input to this “Discussion Paper” after the published
date of October 1st.
The Institute wants to encourage extensive debate on this
framework which features key issues such as the use of
petitions, deliberative events and citizen juries. The
document is admirably concise and to the point and can be
found by clicking
here
Either make representations directly to the Ministry or
contact the Institute (martin@consultationinstitute.org)
which is looking at the possibility of convening
practitioners’ roundtables to consider the issues.
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Go Live
Date for new Government Code of Practice
The new Government Consultation
Code of Practice – supplemented by a broad
set of Guidelines goes live on November 1st (click
here for details). It
will apply to every central Government department. Executive
Agencies, NDPBs and other public bodies will need to “opt
in” to the Code, but there will be strong pressure for all
significant consultors
to adopt it.
Public bodies and organisations active in the public
realm, unsure whether or not to “opt-in” and wishing to
seek independent advice, may wish to contact the Institute
which is gearing up to offer this type of support. Contact Elizabeth
Gammell, the Institute’s Standards Director on
01767 689600 (elizabeth@consultationinstitute.org)
for a preliminary discussion.
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More PB
pilots announced
We better get used to the term “PB”.
Many of the 240 delegates at last week’s Conference in
Manchester dislike the term “Participatory
Budgeting” but can’t come up with
an universally accepted alternative. Hazel
Blears prefers “Community Kitties” but
that applies only to one type of PB. Still, she had positive
news, announcing twelve more “pilots” from Norfolk to
Cumbria. She also re-iterated her intention that by 2012,
every Council will be undertaking some form of PB.
To support this, and to invest in the necessary skills,
the PB Unit
has worked with The
Consultation Institute to develop two
brand new Training Courses, with bookings already
being taken for:
Getting Started with Participatory Budgeting
23rd Oct Manchester,
30th Oct London
(Click
to book)
Organising PB Events 19th
Nov Manchester,
27th Nov London
(Click
to book)
For more details of the courses click
here
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Foundation
Trusts – 1.3 million members ...and rising
Monitor,
the Regulator for Foundation Trusts now estimates that an
astonishing 1.3million people have become “members” of
their local Foundation Trusts. They can vote for Hospital
Governors and are viewed as key stakeholders whose views
will be sought as the NHS fulfils its Section 242 “duty to
involve”.
Meanwhile, many LINks
are still struggling to get off the ground, and the Department
of Health has approved an extension of the
transition period to help out the laggards. Gung-ho CLG,
in contrast seems so enthused by LINks that it seems keen to
expand the concept beyond health and social care and is
inviting Councils to submit proposals. Where this leads is
anybody’s guess but the idea of networks of interested
stakeholders is a powerful concept. For advice on how to
explore this, contact href="mailto:martin@consultationinstitute.org">Martin
Woodrow
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Positive
Youth Engagement Peer Support
The round seven ‘Positive
youth engagement’ beacon authorities
were awarded additional funding in 2007 through the
government’s Beacon Peer
Support Programme. The beacons aimed to
develop new approaches to involve hard-to-reach young people
in the development of their own communities. The initiative
is currently exploring how volunteering can capture the way
that young people express their views and aspirations of
life in the UK. Eight councils have already begun the
process of weaving their minority youth groups’ interests
into the fabric of their communities through a variety of
innovative and creative schemes. For some of the initiatives click
here
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Inclusionware
Following 7 years of working with the public sector on
stakeholder engagement projects INOVEM
have recently re-branded their suite of applications as Inclusionware(TM)
to create a single, simple yet multi-functional environment
which connects all the people you need to collaborate with,
consult or inform. This new brand has been designed to
encompass the key traits of their software, in that:
· It’s easy for people to access, manage and use
· It’s about getting more people involved in decisions
· It helps authorities and companies to be more
‘inclusive’
In addition, based on the experiences of its growing
user-base, INOVEM has also formulated nine solution areas
describing how Inclusionware can be used to engage, involve
and empower stakeholders. If you want to find out how INOVEM
Inclusionware can help you, visit www.inovem.com
or call John Glover on 01488 648 468.
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| Research |
|
Latest data shows 65% online
In the debate about the extent to which we can rely on e-consultation,
it is important to understand the demographics of online
access. The latest Office of
National Statistics figures (Aug 2008)
show:-
• Overall, 65% of households now have internet access
• Regional variations persist; London & South East at
73%, the North-East at 54%
• High correlation between internet access and educational
qualifications; 93% of graduates; 56% of those with no
formal qualifications
• Surging use by the over-65’s; Grey surfing is alive
and well – at least for 26% of them!
• The internet is still used more by men than women;
e-mails the most popular application
There’s plenty of room for debate as to what these mean
for investment in new technology dialogue methods, but
there’s also a warning against relying on “Online
only” consultations. This was the
subject of a recent Tuesday
Topic, sent to all Institute members.
Non-members who would now like a copy, please contact href="mailto:martin@consultationinstitute.org">Martin
Woodrow.
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Reaching
out – community engagement and health
'Reaching out –
community engagement and health'
is the third in a series of publications from the IDeA’s
Healthy Communities programme, this time
written in conjunction with NICE
(National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence).
The document explores the importance of engaging
communities in health promotion and health services, and the
health benefits that this can bring. It builds on the NICE
guidance on community engagement and health published
earlier this year and it reflects recent government
commitments to engaging the public further in democratic and
decision-making processes. These are outlined in the
Community Empowerment White Paper, ‘Communities
in Control’. The publication is designed
to stimulate thinking about community engagement in any
council. It is particular relevant to those working in
patient and public involvement. It should also interest
community development officers, lead members for health and
public health workers. To download click
here
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Request
for Consultation Videos & DVDs
The Institute is preparing its programme for 2009 and
wishes to respond to the growing practice of using Videos
and DVDs as part of public consultations. It
is hoping to develop a hands-on Practitioner Workshop on the
subject, and this will include looking at current practice
and the value they deliver.
To make this as well-researched as possible we are trying
to assemble as comprehensive a library of relevant examples
as possible. If your organisation has experimented with this
medium and are willing to share your learning with us, we
would be grateful. Send any DVDs to the Programme &
Research Unit, 21A High Street, Sandy, Beds. SG19 1AG
or contact Janet Burgess (janet@consultationinstitute.org)
to discuss.
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“If you
ask me” – new publication
Baroness Liz Barker
and Meeting Place
Communications have published an interesting
Report on the state of public consultation in Planning.
Launched at the LibDem Conference in Bournemouth this month
(the Baroness is a LibDem Peer) this 37 page paper is a
timely analysis of the issues and challenges confronted by
every Council – and will be of interest to Elected
members, officers, developers, environmental campaigners
...and of course to millions of householders. Copies are
available from Rhiannon Wadeson
on 01225 422243.
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| Events |
|
Don’t forget the blogosphere!
The what!?! That’s the new buzzword to describe the
self-appointed citizen journalists who comment on what’s
happening. And they’re alive and well in your industry
...or your village .... They are certainly part of the media
– that influences public debate of all kinds, and have to
be taken as seriously as the more familiar print and
broadcasting journalists.
All these are covered in the new joint training course
with Involve.
Media Relations and Public
Engagement aims to help anyone who needs to
manage a public engagement exercise in the glare of local or
national media coverage. It will also be invaluable to PR
and communications professionals to give them an insight
into the special characteristics of consultation and
engagement activities. Limited places available (with
Institute Members given first preference ) for initial
courses; click
here for details
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Coming
soon
Courses
Effective
Focus Groups 30 Sep 2008
London
Making
Consultation Meaningful - 2008 1
Oct 2008 Manchester
Effective
Focus Groups 2 Oct 2008
Cardiff
Media
Relations & Public Engagement - a TCI/Involve course
2 Oct 2008 London
Consensus
Building for Overview & Scrutiny Committees
8 Oct 2008 Birmingham
Evaluating
Public Engagement - a TCI/Involve course
8 Oct 2008 Belfast
Comprehensive
Engagement Strategies (in association with IDeA)
9 Oct 2008 Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Consultation
Before & After 15
Oct 2008 London FULL Waiting list open
Effective
Surveys & Questionnaires 21
Oct 2008 Birmingham
Comprehensive
Engagement Strategies (in association with IDeA)
23 Oct 2008 Birmingham
Implementing
the NHS duty (S.242) to involve 28
Oct 2008 Birmingham
Consultation
Before & After 29
Oct 2008 York
Events
Practitioner
Workshop - Effective Dialogues with Migrant Communities
2 Oct 2008 Manchester
Public
Engagement & Single Outcome Agreements
8 Oct 2008 Edinburgh
Breakfast
Briefings: Effective Evaulation - Public Engagement
Exercises 16 Oct 2008
London
Panels
4 - The 4th Citizens & Community Panels Conference
22 Oct 2008 Birmingham
Practitioner
Workshop - Effective Dialogues with Migrant Communities 4
Nov 2008 Leicester
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| And
finally! |
|
Colour blind?
Atticus in the Sunday Times
last week, reported that taxi drivers are up in arms over
plans to paint their black cabs in a new striking colour.
Consultants had been asked to look into the possibility and
spent £24,000 of the Council’s money, so most aspects
should have been covered comprehensively. Trouble was, no
one asked the taxi drivers themselves .....!!
To see the original Birmingham
Post article click
here
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top
| Contact
TCI |
|
TCI
Contact Details
Useful email addresses:
Events - support-tci@consultationinstitute.org
Research - research-tci@consultationinstitute.org
Your comments about this issue of the TCI E Newsletter
are very welcome. We would greatly appreciate ideas and
submissions for the next issue. Do you have news or views
that would be of interest to other? Email Editor.
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| The TCI
Newsletter may contain links to sites on the Internet that
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