Camden Council Leader Georgia Gould joins Purpose Coalition to explore the future of Citizens Assemblies
Camden Council Leader, Georgia Gould, has joined Purpose Coalition members for a roundtable event in Euston to explore the role of Citizens Assemblies in Britain - and how they can be expanded to cover more aspects of public policy decision making.
Citizens' Assemblies are a new concept, not just in Britain, but around the world. Assemblies come together to learn about a discuss issues, and reach conclusions about what they think should happen in society. Assemblies enable decision-makers to understand people's informed and considered preference on complex, controversial and moral issues. In 2018, Parliament commissioned its first Citizens' Assembly on Social Care.
The Purpose Coalition is now exploring how the model of citizens assemblies can be expanded to developed to cover more aspects of public policy making to ensure decisions are made that are both long-lasting and have had the necessary stakeholder consultation to make them work. In order to be truly successful, these should include businesses, universities, and our public health services, in partnership with local and national government.
In Camden - under the leadership of Georgia Gould - Citizens Assemblies have been used extensively. The Council started using assemblies as a blank canvass, aiming to ensure that residents can identify the main challenges for the future, help co-produce solutions, and tackle issues identified.
Nick Forbes CBE, former Member of Keir Starmer’s Shadow Cabinet and Chair of the Roundtable said:
“It was great to hear from Cllr Georgia Gould about the pioneering work of Camden Council in establishing citizen’s assemblies, as part of their commitment to increasing democratic engagement and citizenship. Her vision of engaged communities working together to build consensus around some of the most challenging issues we face is hugely inspiring. Crucially, by bringing people together from a range of backgrounds, they can give honest and realistic recommendations based on full consideration of the evidence. As government decision-making gets more complex and resources more scarce, this community intelligence and involvement is a vital tool to ensure public services remain directly relevant to the people they serve.”
