Citizenship and Participation

 

Proposals have been put forward to revive local democracy by creating Citizens Assemblies in every immediate neighbourhood. These are designed to bring neighbours closer together, to build trust, and to bring the Council closer to the concerns of local people. A Citizen's Charter is part of the proposal. It is hoped that these discussions might help also to create a common civic identity - a Bradfordian identity - that would help to overcome divisions in the community. This might promote community awareness, and help with issues such as anti-social behaviour.

•  Do you support these proposals?

•  Do you have any comments about their implementation?

•  If you were asked to write a Citizen's Charter for Bradford , what would you include?

 

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Comments received so far

 

Comment	Name/Date
Various neighbourhood forums and consultations have not been overwhelmed by attendance. Given residential segregation in Bradford it's difficult to see how this would help to create a common civic identity, though it might help with anti-social behaviour	Marie, 19/5/04
I am all in favour of anything that increases the opportunities for people to make their voices heard.  I don't know the detail of these proposals, but I am sceptical about systems that rely on meetings and forums.  Many people are switching off from formal mechanisms for participation (including voting) - I think there is a danger that increased 'formal' mechanisms will only cater to the same people who are already to a certain extent engaged.  If this allows them to have a better say, it is obviously a good thing, but perhaps not sufficient.   I think participation can come from support for people to work locally on direct change - rather than lobbying - at which point there may be more incentive for people to engage with more formal systems to further their own local agendas.	Heather, 1/6/04