MESSAGE FROM CO-CHAIRS OF CITIZENS:MK ALLIANCE, TIM NORWOOD AND KURSHIDA MIRZA...
The annual Delegates Assembly, this year on Tuesday 5th February 6.30-8pm at Church of Christ the Cornerstone, is one of the highlights of the Citizens:MK year (photo of last year's above). It's when we gather as an alliance and give our consent and authority to the campaigns that are emerging from our members. It's a really crucial part of our democracy and a way of sending a positive message to our leaders.
Each of our 19 member institutions are asked to bring five or more people to this meeting. You don't get a vote if you bring fewer than that. Turnout is crucial since the numbers indicate commitment and show that we are serious. We will be focusing on turnout at this meeting as we prepare for the Accountability Assembly in April.
Please take this seriously and take time to talk in your institutions to talk about what you will support. Those of you who were at the Leaders Forum will know the range of campaigns that are being considered.
Further afield, there are changes happening in Citizens UK. Alliances like ours are being launched across the country and this means we need to change the way we operate. At national level there is going to be a new "Leadership Group" which will meet monthly through a conference call. There will also be a National Delegates Assembly in the summer which could be really exciting!
Closer to home, funding is being secured to launch alliances across the Thames Valley area. In practical terms, this will mean that we will be part of a larger local cluster. Citizens MK will continue much as it is, but we will soon have local partners to work with.
In the meantime, our first priority is the Delegates Assembly. Please make sure that your institution is represented, so that we can move forward confidently together.
Pupils from Summerfield Primary School took part in a public action to raise awareness of hate crime in MK. While pupil councillors met and got pledges from a range of local power-holders, the school choir sung an original song, ‘Love Is Stronger Than Hate’ to attract attention. The action, which took place at the Arriva Buses booth opposite The Point in CMK, was organised as part of Citizens:mk’s Fight Against Hate campaign, and filmed and broadcast on BBC TV Look East. See video. Read more.
At a breakfast launch of the Refugee Welcome Schools initiative, hosted by Grant Thornton LLP and Dentons LLP UKMEA, six MK schools committed themselves to achieving Refugee Welcome Schools accreditation. Read more.
Jubilee Wood Primary School is the first MK school to join the Refugee Welcome Schools initiative, which is being championed by teachers union NASUWT. The other two are Brooklands Farm Primary School and Lord Grey Secondary School. Read more. Several other MK schools have pledged to follow.
18 LEADERS ATTEND FIRST STUDY ACTION TRAINING
18 leaders from 10 civil society institutions, including 7 member institutions, attended Citizens:mk’s first ever Study Action training morning. Building on the methodology of community organising, the aim of the session was to bring leaders together to organise a ‘study action’ in January from which all would learn best practice for their own campaigns and institutions. Read more and join the 'Fair Work' Action on 29th Jan.
14 students have begun Citizens:mk’s first ever community leadership training course for school sixth formers, ‘Anger To Action’, funded by MK Community Foundation. Read more.
Click here to read about experiences of last year's Two-Day trainees. Click here to read about the impact of follow-up Mentoring. Click here to see how an Action Learning Set works. Click here to see what the Graduation event looks like.
ARGUMENT FOR COMMUNITY ORGANISING
If you want to make change, you need power. We develop relational power by communicating self-interest through 121 meetings with followers, peer leaders and power-holders...
...see more of the Argument in next newsletter - or contact our Community Organiser, tel 07962 838685, if you can't wait!
