Sharing power, accountability and leadership in place-based work

In the second of a series of meetings, sparked by the Levelling Up white paper we’ll discuss the importance of sharing power, accountability, and leadership in place-based work.

The next community of practice meeting will take place from 12-1.30 pm on 28^th April.

As local areas hope for and plan to take on additional powers as a result of the Levelling Up agenda, it is incumbent on us to share what we know about supporting inclusive and sustainable local change. The white paper advocates for devolution of power to tackle systemic geographic inequality in the UK but upholds devolution to a single local leader, such as a Metro Mayor, as sufficient power-sharing.

At the meeting, you will hear from people who are actively trialing and seeking out methods to share power, accountability, and leadership to bring about place-based change.

Sharing power in practice

Speakers include:

Susan Rodaway from Vocal Eyes. Susan first became involved with Vocal Eyes as a member of a community council in a village in Swansea, where they used the platform to engage the community in participatory budgeting. Susan will speak from the perspective of a member of a community council and will have the practical insights to talk about how a digital platform can facilitate this.

Cameron Bray is the Learning & Participation Manager at Barking & Dagenham Giving a participatory grantmaking charity. Cameron believes change happens when people are able to come together and discuss what they want and need. Their ambition is to help make those conversations happen and move towards a shared vision for the borough.

Ngozi Obiakonwa is a resident of Barking & Dagenham and a member of BD Giving’s Community Steering Group. Her role involves collaborating with other local people to make decisions about a Community Endowment Fund of almost £1 million is invested and how the income it generates is spent.

We’ll also make space for you to reflect with, learn from and pose questions as a group.