Take part in themed debates at new-look full council meetings
Published 25 February 2011
The first of the borough's 'themed' council assemblies have been decided.
'The Future for Southwark' and 'Sports in Southwark' have been chosen as the themes for the April and July full council meetings respectively.
The idea of themed debates was adopted as one of the recommendations from the council's new democracy taskforce, the Democracy Commission.
The Democracy Commission was set up to make council meetings more open and effective, and to improve the democratic process of the council. One of their recommendations made last year was to have themed assembly meetings so as to inform plans at an early stage, give residents a chance to have their say, as well as explore alternative venues, be more flexible in the timings and change the rules around petitions.
The April themed debate will provide an opportunity for residents to voice their opinions on how we deliver a fairer future for Southwark within the constraints of the budget, and how we should measure our success.
The public are now being urged to submit questions on these themes to the council and to take part in the assemblies when they take place. See notes to editors for how to do this.
Councillor Abdul Mohamed, cabinet member for equalities and community engagement at Southwark Council, and Chair of the Democracy Commission, said: "I strongly believe that adopting themes for our council assemblies should help engage more of the public in our democratic process, and I'm excited by the first two themes that have been chosen.
"I look forward to some lively debate on the two subjects and would urge the public to get as involved as they can."
The theme chosen for the assembly meeting in April is The Future for Southwark - developing our plan for the borough. The theme chosen for the assembly meeting in July is Sports in Southwark.
