CANCELLED: Annual Briefing Day 2018

Focus on Local Democracy

DUE TO THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS THIS EVENT HAS BEEN

CANCELLED

SHIRE HALL, MARKET PLACE, WARWICK, CV34 4RR

Saturday 3 March 2018

9.50 am - 1.30 pm
Registration from 9.15am

This seminar is aimed at Councillors and Clerks both new and experienced.

March 2018 will only be a little over a year before the next round of elections for most of our councils.  We are very aware of the difficulty many councils have in attracting people to stand as Councillors and with that in mind we are getting together a wide range of contributors to look at varying aspects of this problems and they will provide ideas on how you might encourage your communities to get involved.

• We will have a discussion session with a representative from the government supported body Locality.
• A talk from Professor Colin Copus from the De Montfort University who has conducted research into this topic.
• The NALC Young Councillor of the year who is Mayor of Henley on Thames will be making a contribution
• We also hope to have the Warwickshire Youth parliament represented
• Finally for when you catch your new councillor we will have a session on the initial support run by Gill Lungley - an experienced Clerk in conjunction with PC Stuart Baker from Warwickshire Police

PROGRAMME *

9.15 am		Coffee and registration
9.50 am		Welcome and Introduction
10.00 am		Speaker: Prof. Colin Copus The Councillor Commission report: Findings and Implications for Town and Parish Councils
10.45 am		Refreshment Break
11.15 am		Choice of workshops
1.		Social Media – its potential and perils with Representatives of the Warwickshire Youth Parliament and Cllr. Dan Essex
2.		“Power to the People” with Meena Bharadwa from “Locality”
3.		The preparations required by parish Councils in the run up to Elections with Kim Bedford
4.		What needs to be done once you have your new councillor with Gill Lungley and PC Stuart Baker
12.30 pm		Refreshment Break
12.45 pm		Speaker: Kellie Hinton: NALC Young Councillor of the Year and Mayor of Henley on Thames Focus on the Regeneration of Local Politics
1.15 pm		Questions and close of Seminar

 The event will finish at 1.30pm

* It may be necessary for reasons beyond the control of the Association to change the content and timing   of the programme, the speaker, the date or the venue

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SPEAKERS

Prof. Colin Copus De Montfort University

The Councillor Commission report: Findings and Implications for Town and Parish Councils
The councillor commission spent a year researching the experiences of councillors at all level of local government and focused heavily on the work of town and parish Councillors. The session will examine the findings of the research, its implications for town and parish Councillors and how to enhance the standing and powers of the role.

Professor Colin Copus is the Director of the Local Governance Research Unit in the Department of Politics and Public Policy, De Montfort University where he is a Professor of Local Politics. His academic interests are central-local relationships and the constitutional status of local government, localism, local party politics, local political leadership and the changing role of the councillor.

Colin was the editor Local Government Studies 2001 to 2013.  He has also served as a councillor on a London Borough council, a county and a district council and three parish councils.

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Kellie Hinton:- NALC Young Councillor of the Year and Mayor of Henley on Thames

A Focus on the Regeneration of Local Politics

• How can we regenerate and revitalise local councils?
• How can we involve young people in local politics?
• How do local councils encourage a diverse membership?
• How can we engage with modern society, utilising modern tools such as social media?

 As a young local councillor of over six years, on a socially diverse local council, I will be using this session to help councils answer the questions above. By talking about the issues we face in recruiting younger and more diverse members, drawing on experience of helping change the face of local politics in my home town, referencing case studies and presenting a case for regenerating local councils before answering any questions, I aim to leave your members with something to think about.      

Kellie Hinton has been a Councillor for over 6 years, Mayor of Henley-on-Thames, NALC Young Councillor of the Year, Sue Ryder Women of Achievement 2018 nominee (awards in Feb) 32 years old, working, mother of one.

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WORKSHOPS

Workshop 1.

Social Media – its potential and perils

Representatives of the Warwickshire Youth Parliament with Cllr. Dan Essex

The session will explore the different types of social media that are available. You will hear from the end user how they would like to receive information. Which social media is appropriate for different types of information?  The importance of updating. The problems when the media is misused.

Pease note there is a limited capacity in workshop sessions and are allocated on a first come first served basis.  If we are unable to seat you in your choice you will automatically be placed on another session and be informed.

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Workshop 2:

“Power to the People”

Structured discussion by Meena Bharadwa  from “Locality”. 

The session will explore the future of localism; tips and tricks on how to engage with the community; empowering the community with examples of how they have worked with Parish Councils and finally discussing the challenges and how to overcome them. 

Meena Bharadwa has over 18 years of experience working with communities.  Meena has worked in Community Anchor Organisations delivering, developing and managing frontline services and has developed and led social and economic regeneration projects as well as action research projects with partners such as NEF and the Barrow Cadbury Trust. Whilst working as Head of Development for Birmingham Settlement Meena led on the pilot phase of the Community Organisers programme.  More recently Meena worked as Head of Commissioning for a Birmingham Hospice and worked with health commissioners to lead on coproduction with communities for tackling inequalities in palliative and end of life care. 

Meena is leading Locality’s work on Community Anchors as Hubs for Health and Wellbeing working with national funders as well as Public Health England. Whilst working for Locality Meena has led on work supporting local communities to develop partnerships and business plans to retain and develop their local libraries as sustainable community hubs.

Pease note there is a limited capacity in workshop sessions and are allocated on a first come first served basis.  If we are unable to seat you in your choice you will automatically be placed on another session and be informed.

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Workshop 3.

Preparations required by parish Councils in the run up to Elections

A discussion with Kim Bedford  

Now is the time to look ahead to elections 2019.

In this session we will;-

• Think about how we make the most of this opportunity?
• Plan a budget to cover election and recruitment and induction costs
• Consider our election strategy
• How will we encourage members of the community to stand for election?
• What motivates people to join the council....or not?

Come and share your ideas....

Kim Bedford has over 10 years’ experience in the local council sector, initially as a council clerk, a councillor and County Officer for Gloucestershire, where she developed and instigated advice and training for councillors and clerks. Seeing numerous changes, she has incorporated many new ideas and details into her courses to enable her attendees to ‘hit the ground running’ with enthusiasm and knowledge.

Pease note there is a limited capacity in workshop sessions and are allocated on a first come first served basis.  If we are unable to seat you in your choice you will automatically be placed on another session and be informed.

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Workshop 4.

Having Caught Your Councillor!

What needs to be done once you have your new councillor?  A discussion with Gill Lungley and PC 1906 Stuart Baker   

• What are the duties placed on each councillor?
• What forms must be completed?
• What are the standards to be expected?
• What happens at their first meeting?

The session will look at how to ensure your new councillor is made to feel welcome and is confident in understanding what is required

The workshop will identify the legal requirements of taking on the role of parish councillor and society’s expectations of how each councillor conducts themselves in public office. 

We shall ask the question: ‘why is this important?’ and hear about what happens when it all goes wrong before discussing what actions can be taken to ensure a happy, constructive, 4-year relationship (or longer) with the council.

Stuart Baker has been a police officer with Warwickshire for over 10 years. He has held numerous roles including those in Response, Operations Support Unit, Traffic and most recently, Neighbourhoods. He is currently the beat manager for Rugby Rural North and Central, which covers large swathes of the (mostly) rural communities north of Rugby between the West Midlands and Leicestershire borders.  Stuart is involved in meeting with parish councils, clerks and councillors on a regular basis and has experience in dealing with matters under the Localism Act 2011.

Gill Lungley holds a BA (Hons) in Business Studies, and started working for parish councils in 1991 and gaining the Cert. HE Local Policy Studies from Cheltenham and Gloucester in 1995 and a BTec in similar subject from Worcester College.  Then, because Gill loves the subject and wanted to share it with a wider audience she took the PTLLS qualification (Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector) in 2009. Gill has worked for one PC for 11 years, then took a break of 3 years before returning to clerking and have now worked for another 6 councils ranging in size from electorates of more than 5,000 to less than 400.  She has represented Worcestershire as county representative at SLCC’s NEC and is a member of the Institute of Local Council Management, which means that she keeps up to date with personal training and CPD.  Currently Gill works part-time for two parish councils as well as delivering CALC training.

Pease note there is a limited capacity in workshop sessions and are allocated on a first come first served basis.  If we are unable to seat you in your choice you will automatically be placed on another session and be informed.

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EXHIBITORS

• Community re-paint  contact Simon Edwards 
  A non-profit distributing company that collects reusable, leftover paint and re-distributes it to individuals, families, communities and charities in need, improving the wellbeing of people and the appearance of places across the UK.
• BHIB  insurance  contact Julie Walker     
  

  Over the past 50 years, BHIB has been delivering expert Insurance and Risk Management advice to a range of clients across the private and public sectors from its locations across the UK.

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FEES       

• £35.00 per delegate from councils in membership
• £20.00 for County Committee members (can not be used alongside free place offers detailed below)
• £80.00 per delegate from councils not in membership

Help with Delegate’s Fees – WALC will subsidise member councils

• Members with a budgeted income up to £15,000 will get half price for all delegates
• Members with a budgeted income between £15,001 & £30,000 can send two for the price of one
• Members with a budgeted income between £30,001 & £50,000 can send three for the price of two
• Members with a budgeted income over £50,000 can send five for the price of four

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