Warwickshire County Council’s Cabinet today approved the establishment of a Residents’ Panel to inform the council’s policy-making in the coming years.
The panel will deliver on the Council’s existing commitment, as part of its new Customer Experience Strategy, to increase engagement in local democracy and for residents to be given a forum through which to share their views.
The panel will help/contribute to shape the policy and priorities in the five year Council Plan and the Covid-19 Recovery Plan. This will ensure they remain fresh, relevant and respond rapidly to changing circumstances.
The panel will engage a sample of residents, with measures in place to ensure this is reflective of the various groups and different voices across the County. It will allow simple survey type questions and also smaller focus group type approaches on complex issues like climate change and tackling inequalities.
The new panel will be in addition to our numerous existing ways of engaging residents. The Covid-19 pandemic has seen this brought into sharper focus with an upsurge in working together with residents, voluntary groups and town and parish councils. Local volunteer activity, both formal and informal, has increased dramatically over the pandemic, latest statistics indicating a 120% increase since March 2020, all of which has accelerated progress against the county’s Voluntary and Community Sector Strategy.
The proposed Residents’ Panel will build on this. Cllr Izzi Seccombe, Leader of Warwickshire County Council, said: “I am delighted there will be such a comprehensive mechanism to engage residents in everything we do. Their views and guidance are essential not only in how we shape future activities so that they meet what residents need and want and but also in making sure that we are performing to their expectations and know if we aren’t.”
Cllr Kam Kaur, Portfolio Holder for Customer and Transformation added: “The panel will help us better understand the full range of diverse views from across the county and help us deliver on our ambition to be a data and evidence-driven organisation when we are developing our policies and priorities.”
Separately, the County Council will establish a second, separate panel, specifically designed for public engagement on any future proposals for Local Government Reform and has invited the District and Borough Councils to commission this jointly with it.