Local Government Channel

Council Worker of the Year Awards 2010: Community Engagement

15/06/2010

So where are we on Big Society?  There's been lots of talk and it certainly makes for a good Lib-Con soundbite.

It was at the heart of the Tory Manifesto, when David Cameron pledged to unleash a "neighbourhood army of 5,000 professional community organisers" to fight local problems. Nick Clegg then told us days into his new job that building this Big Society was the responsibility of every department of Government....oh and every citizen too. 

All neatly brought together in the great Lib-Con manifesto for the next 5 years, the Programme for Government, which suggests we take “Conservative plans to strengthen families and encourage social responsibility, and add to them the Liberal Democrat passion for protecting our civil liberties..and you create a Big Society matched by big citizens.”

So while we try to juggle deciding which services we want cut [see last week’s blog] with working out how we plan to do our bit for society, not forgetting “we’re all in it together” when it comes to getting the economy back on track, let’s remember the thousands of frontline workers who are already totally dedicated to improving their communities.


Our finalists for the Community Engagement Award at Council Worker of the Year 2010 include:

-    Menara Ahmed who’s recruited local people in Tower Hamlets to champion projects engaging hard to reach communities.
-    James Brindle who’s created Virtual Gyms in community centres to get the inactive of East Lindsey shedding the pounds.
-    Jenny King who’s using her Children’s Centre in Grimsby to empower people to change their own lives.
-    Paul Robertson who knows his community in Kent from top to bottom, from the elderly to schoolchildren. 
-    Beverley Yearwood who’s singlehandedly brought people together to fight ASB in Leeds.

Watch them in action and vote now for who you think is already more than doing their bit.


Comments

Security phrase

All fields are required.

Please read our comments policy before posting your comment.
By pressing the "Post Comment" button you agree to our privacy policy.

 

Blog

Scroll up Scroll down

Discussion

Live Twitter Feed