With the General Election looming, localism is high on the agenda for all the political parties. The consensus appears to be that more decisions should be made locally with local people playing an active role in that process. Whilst this has sparked an interesting debate as to whether there is a real commitment here to hand over power to local bodies and people, we cannot deny that the last few years have seen increases in legislation, consultations and funding for projects that seek to give power not only to local government, but also to individuals.
The voluntary and community sector obviously has a key role to play in helping deliver this new agenda. But there are also implications for how charities and voluntary organisations work – particularly when it comes to campaigning. For one thing, campaigners will need to start working through the complex maze that is local government and new relationships will need to be built between local decision makers and organisations.
But will national charities be expected to engage at a local level? Could this mean that charities will have to invest more in local campaigning?
The trend towards localism is shifting the balance of power, but it is also shaping the expectations of local people. Individuals are being given an increasingly meaningful role in shaping their neighbourhoods and communities, as well as the services that they use. Community involvement is key to the Government’s plans to improve public services. Increased involvement not only improves services, but it also improves people’s perceptions of those services, helping to create better, sustainable relationships for the future.
National charities have a lot to learn from this approach. As a sector, we cannot afford to talk on behalf of the people we support. Instead, we should be creating platforms to give people the chance to talk for themselves. If we want our campaigns to retain any degree of legitimacy, this must be done on a meaningful level, and not just by wheeling out the usual suspects at conferences or for television interviews.
And where better to start this trend than at a local level? Many campaigning organisations have already recognised the power of local people and have started to harness it in the form of local campaigns networks. At Leonard Cheshire Disability (LCD), for instance, disabled people are supported to create campaign groups to campaign on issues that effect them in their local communities every day. This is empowering people to make change happen for themselves and enabling real change to happen in areas that previously could not be reached.
We should not underestimate the importance of local issues, nor the impact that local people can have. With a shift of power from national to local government, national organisations may well be pushed to engage more with local people. But this should be seen as an opportunity, rather than a cost. By investing in local campaigning and local people, national organisations will be investing in a sustainable future for themselves.
Eleanor is a Local Campaigns Co-ordinator for Leonard Cheshire Disability, she is speaking in the ‘Going Local’ workshop at the Campaigns Conference
