Leeds City Council runs a panel to hear what people in Leeds think about council services and issues affecting their local area. The council needs more people to join the panel so it better represents the city as a whole. Joining the panel is an opportunity to find out about new plans in Leeds and represent your community.
Recent issues the panel have been asked about include:
- Fostering
- Customer services
- The city’s cultural programme
- Libraries and heritage
- Urgent care services
- Children’s transport
- Waste and environmental services
The panel is made up of thousands of people with a balance of different people from different areas, age groups, religions and so on. However, the mix of panel members is not as representative of Leeds as it could be. For example, there are not many 18-24 year olds on the panel and some areas of the city, like Beeston and Holbeck, have fewer panel members than others.
If you join the panel then you will be asked to complete a number of surveys each year. This can be done on the web or through the post. You may also be invited to attend group discussions and workshops in person.
If you are interested in joining then further information is available at www.leeds.gov.uk/citizenspanel or by contacting citizenspanel@leeds.gov.uk.
You can download the latest Citizens’ Panel newsletter here: Leeds Citizens Panel Newsletter June 2013
I’m half tempted by this – but is there any real point? Does the council actually listen to these kind of consultations or is it just another tickbox exercise to justify the schemes that Councillors want to go ahead with and ignore when they disagree with them? I recall reading that the majority of this thing was against city centre evening and Sunday car parking charges and now that’s being railroaded ahead despite the damage it’ll do to the economy. Perhaps Russell Brand has a point about democracy.
Tackling this backwards I think we need to be clear that the private sector car parks in Leeds have always charged people for parking on Sundays and in the evenings so all that’s happening now is the Council is levying what are pretty modest charges – have a look at the charges in York in comparison.
Some of the highly politically motivated comments about the damage it will do to the economy need to be taken with a lorry load of salt… The Council has significant and very real budget pressures that are getting worse so has to find ways of raising money where it can in my view this is one of the least bad alternatives.
I’m on the citizen’s panel and the answer to your question is I don’t know! In general the council is not good at demonstrating how feedback has affected decision making so your scepticism, Silver Machine, is understandable. The consultation on the car park charges was quite sophisticated and not just yes and no answers and I suspect was used to gauge what level of charges would be introduced.
The answer to Russell Brand is if you’re not prepared to vote or get involved then I think you lose the right to complain. Lots of arguments as to who said ‘Democracy is a very bad form of government. Unfortunately all the others are so much worse’ but it’s worth bearing in mind.
Well, I’ve filled out the form to give the panel a go, no harm in trying to see if it makes a difference I suppose…
“highly politically motivated comments” – Good grief, Steve, I’m no politician!, far from it! – I’ll declare an interest in the Sunday parking issue in so far as my other half works somewhere in the city centre that’s likely to lose a lot of trade as a result of a lot of people scarpering off to the out of town shopping centres instead. I know for a fact that if Sunday trading goes down, people are going to be made unemployed – and for what? a gamble on a few extra quid in the council coffers that’ll be swallowed up on traffic wardens and admin anyway. It’s a decision that’s a complete false economy I’m afraid.
Russell Brand – I’d agree that without voting you have no say – it’s just a shame we can’t have a massive shake of the system – get some people into power who know what they are doing rather than the usual career politicians and self important types that clutter up the system like stuck records at national and local levels (with the odd notable exception)
Silver Machine
Just to be clear I wasn’t accusing you of making ‘highly politically motivated’ comments but some national Tory politicians who conveniently avoided noting that the private sector had been charging for parking in Leeds on the evenings and Sundays since time began.
My understanding is that a number of the larger stores in Leeds were in favour of LCC charging for its car parking spaces on Sunday as their staff were clogging up the free car parking spaces…
Surely if people shop out of town rather than in the city centre it ought not to have any effect on jobs if the same amount is being sold? Doesn’t it just, at least in theory, move the jobs form one location to another?
I think what will determine use of the city centre for shopping is the quality and choice of shopping available. If John Lewis comes to Leeds city centre as planned that will make a positive difference.
So the highly paid senior management of the larger stores are in favour of LCC charging for its car parking spaces on Sunday as their staff were clogging up the free car parking spaces. Have a wander around town between 9 & 10am and you’ll find there’s no great truth in that suggestion, and anyway, the odd break for low-paid workers isn’t something too begrudgable surely.
Naturally the large store management aren’t too bothered as they’ve got stores in all the out of town shopping centres anyway, but spare a thought for the few and far between independent shops in the city, the cafes, market stalls, restaurants & bars – no room at the out of town stores for them. No need to worry about their workers eh.