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| What is community engagement? |
Have you ever taken part in a quiz or done an exam when you
have felt that the person setting the questions was a bit further ahead in the textbook than you?
I suspect that there were times when the participants in the
community engagement event in Great Waldingfield on Monday evening felt a
little bit like that! (For more information on this process click on the Community Engagement 2012 tab above.)
Once we got beyond the first questions about what the
community liked and disliked about the village, things got a bit more difficult. I had been concerned that
many people really don’t know much about what councils do on their behalf,
whether at the Parish, District or County level. This view proved to be correct. Usually the activities of the council only
become a matter of concern when things go wrong, and I have to say
you can’t blame people for this. Dustbins and planning, housing and environmental
health, aren’t really that entertaining.
However, it is clear that some would like to know more, and
councillors and officers present learned
from the session that we need to get better at communication. This means going further than reaching out to
people in the old fashioned ways (parish magazines, noticeboards etc.) We have to make more use of websites and e
mails. I couldn’t help thinking also
that it IS a pity that we no longer send out Babergh Matters, which at least
gave people the opportunity to read about the activities of the council round
the District. Some councillors felt that
it was a waste of money, but, following this exercise, I am not so sure.
The event was by no means a disaster. Despite the handicap of some lack of knowledge, members of Great Waldingfield Parish
council, the public, and officers and elected representatives from the County
and District Councils, managed to have a lively conversation from which all of
us learned something, and which will send some useful messages back to Babergh . These opinions, taken with others from around
the District, should assist us in setting a strategic direction for the Council in the years to
come.
The next community event will be held by Chilton Parish
Council at the Christopher Centre in Sudbury at 7.30p.m. this coming Monday, 15
October. An event for Acton will be held
on the evening of 19 November and we are still arranging something
for Little Waldingfield.
I have prepared some information for people who would like
to know more about the council’s activities prior to these meetings. Please e mail me if you would like a
copy. Parish Councillors will receive
the papers whether they want them or not!
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