David Cameron relaunches his 'big' idea today (19/07/2010) and declares that this is not a response to the need to save public money. What is it then? Is there anything new here?
'"We must be the change we want to see in the world”
Mahatma Gandhi
The Big Society is a society in which we as individuals don’t feel small. Does our society pass this test at the moment? Well, only 4 out of 10 of us believe that we can influence local decisions. Only 1 in 33 of us attend public meetings. We feel anger and frustration at the recent behaviour of both the City and Westminster and relatively powerless to change them. We are often anonymous tax-payers without a real sense of how our money gets spent. Most of us try to be reasonably good citizens but our influence seems very small.
The Big Society Network is an organisation being set up by frustrated citizens for frustrated citizens, to help everyone achieve change in their local area. Our aim is to create a new relationship between Citizens and Government in which both are genuine partners in getting things done: real democracy using all the human and technological tools we now have available. This partnership will also add a third and fourth leg to its sturdy chair by involving business and the voluntary sector.
As well as helping you get things done as an individual, we also want to help you meet up with other people in your area with the aim of discussing what you want to share and change together in order to make your neighbourhood stronger, safer and more enjoyable.
Our aim is to not only create the largest co-operative or mutual in Britain, but to create a mutual that is Britain. Every citizen can be a shareholder, contribute, receive help and rewards.
The Network is, above all, practical. It’s an enormous tool-box of advice, case histories, links to people and resources, using the power of the Internet, Mobiles and face-to-face action.
www.thebigsociety.co.uk/idea.html'
Commendable then, but not so new. We in Great Yarmouth are quite used to the concept of partnership working, the old Community Partnerships, Neighbourhood Management, 96ktalkback, Community Skills Swap, they are all testament to the fact that in this Borough there is a desire to engage and involve. It remains to be seen how this coalition government is going to push this forward, how it's going to fund it and how it is going to ensure that it's not a merely a method of absolving government and local government of responsibility for delivery of services. Meanwhile, in Great Yarmouth, we have the foundations of our own 'big society', people are beginning to get involved, it's no longer just 'the same old faces'. We are already doing it Mr Cameron - give us the means to make it work.
