Innovative community engagement with disadvantaged or underrepresented groups
The Local Government Association (LGA) is working with New Local and TPXimpact to capture and celebrate examples of innovative community engagement led by councils with groups who are disadvantaged or often underrepresented in local decision-making.
We are exploring novel approaches and creative methods of engagement that have led to positive outcomes and helped bring underrepresented voices to the fore. From delivering services like adult social care to developing green spaces, neighbourhood planning or developing your corporate plan, we have been collecting stories which showcase how councils are engaging with a range of communities in their area.
These stories and lessons learned from your experience will be shared with councils and partners through workshops and case studies, equipping them with the tools and confidence to speak to local people in new ways.
About the project
We know that involving local people and giving them meaningful opportunities to shape the plans, decisions, and public services that affect their lives can lead to positive outcomes for councils and communities. Where communities have been given a stake in the decisions and appropriately supported to develop solutions to problems, great things have happened.
Councils and communities are already working together around the UK to address issues that impact their local areas. A huge variety of approaches are being taken to do this, from community champion programmes and citizen science to the use of digital tools and the arts. Through this project, we’ll showcase this fantastic work and draw out lessons for others, helping empower councils to adopt similar approaches.
This project will help councils learn from the most innovative community engagement approaches, be they new or tried and tested, and make better use of the tools at their disposal to connect with their residents. This could be an innovative use of working or partnering, or an innovative way of applying a particular method to a problem.
We are particularly interested in how councils have engaged with groups who are historically marginalised or underrepresented. As disadvantage looks different in different places, we are not defining what this means and are keen to capture a range of initiatives which brought different voices into the engagement process.
Join our mailing list