A to Z of influencing decision making
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Welcome
Welcome to the A – Z of influencing decision-making.
This guide has been designed to help direct you to the many ways, local and national, that you can ‘have your say’ or influence decisions that affect you and your local community.
Why?
Why would I want to influence decisions?
Across Bristol decisions are made every day on things that might affect you. They might be decisions about the environment, new buildings, things for young or old people, decisions about jobs or transport – almost anything you can think of. This guide will help to show you some of the many different ways that you can influence decisions made about things that affect you.
How easy is it to influence decisions?
How much you can influence decisions depends a bit on the amount of time you want to spend ‘being influential’ but is also a lot about knowing how and who to influence. This guide contains information on different ways that you can influence decisions.
Finding your way through our A to Z
Click on the letter below to navigate through the A to Z of influencing decision making or click here to look at the A to Z index
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A
Ask Bristol
Ask Bristol is a website that tells you what's happening in Bristol and how to influence it.
To find out more visit:
www.askbristol.com
B
Blog
Blogs are online diaries that anyone can see and can be used to get your point of view across. They are becoming increasingly common and popular. Some blogs are read by thousands of people, making the authors quite influential.
To find out more visit:
www.blogger.com
C
Campaign
If you want to change something then organising a campaign can be a pretty good way to influence what happens. As part of its pilot ‘Campaign Creator’ project Bristol City Council produced guide to organising a campaign. You can view the guide and get some useful tips on organising a campaign here:
Campaign Creator
Campaigning is OK! is a guide to building capacity for advocacy and campaigning, with reports from eight regional events involving over 600 people earlier this year. It is packed with information about why campaigning matters, where to get support and resources available, including training, materials, books and websites.
Click here to view the Campaigning is OK! guide
Consultation finder
This website tells you about all the different consultations that are taking place in Bristol at the moment.
To find out more visit:
Consultations taking place in Bristol web page
Citizens Panel
Bristol City Council was one of the first councils in the country to set up a citizens panel in 1998. Statistically representative of the population of Bristol, the panel has been invaluable to the council and its partners in researching how Bristol people feel on issues and as a sounding-board for future policies and decisions. The panel currently has a membership of 2,000 people and during its existence many thousands of people have served on the panel or been given the opportunity to join. The panel's membership is constantly 'refreshed' to continue to provide opportunities for people to get involved in local decision making.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council citizens panel web page
D
Democracy and E-Democracy
The e-democracy programme is a Bristol City Council project aimed at increasing representation from all sections of the community, including those groups who have traditionally been seen as 'hard to reach' as well as those who have difficulty engaging because they are very busy and don't have the time.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council e-democracy web page
E
Equality – women are under represented
Despite making up 51% of the population women make up less than 20% of Members of the UK Parliament (MPs) nationally (ethnic minority women make up just 0.3% of MPs while they are estimated to make up 4% of the UK population). In Bristol 20 (29%) of the 70 elected councillors are women. The Fawcett Society campaigns for equality between men and women and to increase the number of women elected to Parliament.
To find out more visit:
The Fawcett Society
F
Forums – online
Online or e-forums help local people to communicate in 'online discussions' without needing to meet up. The discusssions on these forums can help ensure the views of people who don't attend meetings are fed into the local neighbourhood Partnership. Normal 0
To find out more about e-forums visit:
E-Democracy.org
Forums – equalities
There are currently eight community equalities forums, made up of volunteers, to help raise issues of concern for Bristol’s minority communities with the City Council. The forums help to ensure that all groups can have fair access to council services and are taken into account in all areas of the council's work.
The existing equalities forums are:
Bristol Women's Forum
Disability Equality Forum
Race Forum
Young People's Forum
Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Forum
Bristol Older People's Forum
Bristol British Sign Language Forum
Bristol Multi Faith Forum
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council equalities forums web page
G
Governors
Being a governor can be an enjoyable and stimulating way to spend a small amount of time each month. The experience of working as part of a team involved in running the school can prove helpful in everyday life, and you may find that the free training available for governors gives you skills you can use in your job or other community work. It can also be very rewarding when other people listen to and respect your opinions on the issues facing the school. Governors can influence lots of decisions about their school, including working with the head teacher to determine the overall direction of the school. As a school governor you would help to oversee the school budget, help recruit staff, monitor the performance of the school, e.g. in examinations and key stage tests and advise on school policies and procedures.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council school governors web page
H
Housing Forums
Housing Forums have been set up by the councils Tenant Participation Unit to give as many people as possible the opportunity to voice their views, opinions and concerns about where they live and the housing services they receive.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council housing forums web page
I
Influence - the Axis of
If you're part of a community group or network then this tool produced by the Community Development Exchange (CDX) could help you access and improve the influence you have on agencies and partnerships.
To find out more visit:
Community Development Exchange Access of Influence web page
J
Join a group
Whatever you are interested in influencing you'll probably find that there is someone else who shares your views.
You can find out about voluntary and community groups that exist through Bristol City Council, city wide groups such as the Black Development Agency, The Care Forum, Voscur or Volunteering Bristol. There are also an increasing number of online discussion groups that you can join.
To find out more visit:
Voscur membership web page
Bristol City Council
Black Development Agency
The Care Forum
Volunteering Bristol
K
Knowledge
Before you can influence them you need to know when key decisions are scheduled to be made. The council and other public agencies publish a forward plan of when there decisions will be made.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council forward plan and key decision web pages
L
Lobby
Lobbying is the practice of influencing decisions made by government. It includes all attempts to influence legislators and officials, whether by other legislators, constituents or organized groups. A lobbyist is a person who tries to influence legislation on behalf of a special interest or a member of a lobby. Speakers’ Corner Trust is a new charity, established in 2007, which seeks to provide a stimulus to civil society both in the UK and in emerging democracies overseas by creating new opportunities for citizens to exchange ideas and opinions in open, face-to-face debate.
To find out more visit:
Speakers Corner Trust website
M
Members of Council
There are 70 councillors who represent the wards of the City of Bristol. By using the Bristol City Council councillor finder, you can find: your local councillor; their contact details; surgery times / dates; and the committees on which they serve. If you are interested in standing as a councillor, then there is also a guide to the process and what to expect if you are elected.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council councillors, democracy and election web page
Members of Parliament
There are 5 Members of Parliament (MPs) who represent the City of Bristol. You can find: your local MP; their contact details; surgery times / dates; and the committees on which they serve on the parliament website.
To find out more visist:
Parliament website
TheyWorkForYou.com is a non-partisan website run by a charity which aims to make it easy for people to keep tabs on their elected and unelected representatives in Parliament and other assemblies.
To find out more visit:
They work for you website
Museum of Bristol
The new Museum of Bristol will open on Harbourside in 2011 and will bring the city’s history to life. The museum will be full of the personal memories and stories of people who have lived and worked in Bristol. The musuem will feature the extraordinary stories of ordinary people past and present who have had an influence on Bristol.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council Museum of Bristol web page
N
Neighbourhood Partnerships
Responding to the calls from the government for people to have more say in local decision making, Bristol City Council introduced new forms of Neighbourhood Governance across the city in 2008. The new structures are called Neighbourhood Partnerships and they bring together local councillors, statutory agencies (like the local police, health services and schools), and local voluntary and community groups, with local residents. Each Neighbourhood Partnership covers the areas of 2 or 3 council wards
To find out more visit:
Voscur Neighbourhood Partnership web page
O
Operation Black Vote
Operation Black Vote (OBV) is the first initiative to focus exclusively on the Black democratic deficit in the UK. OBV believe that without a strong political voice for African, Asian, Caribbean and other ethnic minorities, the ideal of equality of opportunity - regardless of race and colour - will remain an ideal. Operation Black Vote is a non-party political campaign, supported by a broad coalition of mainly Black organisations. OBV main objectives are:
- to urge Black people to register to vote;
- to enable the Black community to claim its place in British democracy;
- to demonstrate a collective community potential that could significantly influence the outcome in many seats at the General Election;
- to confront politicians with the reality of what it means to be Black in Britain; to force them to address the inequality of opportunity faced by Black people;
- to encourage them to recognise our unique perspective and positively promote the cultural diversity of British society in the best interests of society as a whole.
To find out more visit:
Operation Black Vote website
P
Petitions
Any Bristol resident can submit a petition to Bristol City Council. The council will respond to the petition or pass it to the relevant public agency (e.g. NHS Bristol or the police). In Bristol, it is now possible to start and support a petition online. This means that the petition can be made available to a potentially much wider audience, giving you the opportunity to gather more names in support.
To find out more visit:
Bristol e-petition website
Partners And Community Together (PACT)
PACT - Partners and Communities Together meetings give you the chance to meet your Neighbourhood Police Team, have a say on how your neighbourhood is policed and monitor the police performance. PACT gives you the chance to influence what happens in your neighbourhood and a mechanism whereby issues identified through PACT meetings in your neighbourhood, are taken to a PACT partnership panel where courses of action are agreed.
To find out more visit:
Avon and Somerset police PACT web page
Q
Question your council
If you live in Bristol you can ask a question to the leader of the council or a member of the city council cabinet at a full council or other public council meeting. If you wish to ask a question(s), for which you would like a written response, you must give 6 clear working days notice for full council meetings and 3 clear working days notices for all other meetings. For council meetings only questions will be printed and published with the agenda and reports (these are published 5 clear working days in advance of a meeting). The council aim to make agendas and reports available on our web site 3 days before the start of the meeting.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council consultation and petition web page
R
Register to vote
In order to vote in an election your name must be on the register. The Electoral Register is now a rolling register, which means you can join the register throughout the year.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council register to vote web page
S
Shadowing
If you've ever wondered what exactly a Bristol City Council elected Councillor or Senior Manager does, or even wondered if you could do their job why not take the opportunity to shadow someone for a few days. Contact Voscur to find out more about the shadowing scheme - part of the Neighbourhood Learning Plan.
To find out more visit:
Voscur Neighbourhood Learning web page
T
Trust
NHS Foundation Trusts are a new kind of public service organisation which gives local communities a real say in how hospitals are run. Foundation Trusts are still part of the NHS and are a new type of organisation known as a Public Benefit Corporation. They are not run for profit and continue to work in partnership with the rest of the NHS.
Bristol Royal Infirmary authorised as a Foundation Trust on 1 June 2008 and is now called 'University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust'. Becoming a member is free-of-charge and gives you the opportunity to have your say in the running of your hospitals.
To find out more visit:
University Hospital Bristol NHS Foundation Trust website
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U
Understand
Understanding how local councils and other groups that make decisions work can be quite confusing. There are some useful guides available that help to explain these issues.
To find out more visit:
Direct Gov website
Bristol City Council councillors, democracy and elections website
V
Volunteer
Volunteers can do almost anything! From helping an elderly neighbour with their shopping, to providing legal advice for a local charity, volunteers make a vital contribution to all aspects of community life. By volunteering you can also pick up new skills and expertise that might help you with your career or understanding the process for how certain decisions are made.
To find out more visit:
Volunteering Bristol
W
Webcasting
Bristol City Council is now webcasting Full Council, Cabinet and the Climate Change Select Committees meetings. This means that you can watch them from home or elsewhere via the internet. These meetings will either be webcast live or made available within 24 hours of the meeting.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council webcasting web page
X
X Marks the spot
Local elections are held three out of every four years in Bristol (no council elections planned for 2012), European Elections will take place in 2009 and 2014 plus there will be a general election some time before summer 2010. Theses are your chances to cast your vote to decide the elected representatives who will make decisions on your behalf. You can't vote unless you're on the Electoral Register (R - Register to vote)
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council election web page
Y
Youth Parliament
Bristol Big Youth Vote, this is the name that young people have given the elections for Bristol Members of the United Kingdom Youth Parliament (UKYP) and the Bristol Youth Select Committee (BYSC) in 2009. For the first time in 2009, Bristol young people elected six representatives to the UKYP - each area in Bristol, North, South and East/Central elected their own area Member and Deputy Member of the national Youth Parliament that drives forward youth voice and influence.
To find out more visit:
Bristol City Council youth parliament election web page
Z
ZZZZ!!!! – Confused
If you’re confused by jargon and acronyms have a look at the Voscur jargon buster
A to Z Index
A - Ask Bristol
B - Blog
C - Campaign
C - Consultation finder
C - Citizens Panel
D - Democracy and E-Democracy
E - Equality – women under represented
F - Forums – online
F - Forums – equalities
G - Governors
H - Housing Forums
I - Influence - the Axis of
J - Join a group
K - Knowledge
L - Lobby
M - Members of Council
M - Members of Parliament
M- Museum of Bristol
N - Neighbourhood Partnerships
O - Operation Black Vote
P - Petitions
P - Partners And Community Together (PACT)
Q - Question your council
R - Register to vote
S - Shadowing
T - Trust
U - Understand
V - Volunteer
W - Webcasting
X - X Marks the spot
Y - Youth Parliament
Z - ZZZZZ!!!! – Confused
About Voscur
We are an infrastructure organisation and a development agency for the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector in Bristol.
www.voscur.org.uk
