The Co-operative Party in Wales

The Co-operative Council :  Looking to the future in Wales

A new Welsh model for political action to change communities and councils….and to do things together.

At the core of the “Welsh Co-operative Council” concept is a determination to reclaim the founding traditions of the Labour and Co-operative Movements.

The emphasis is on collective action and co-operation, and on empowerment and enterprise.  The purpose is to transform local services, value our people and strengthen local communities.

The essence of a “Welsh Co-operative Council” is to transform the relationship between the leadership of the Council (councillors and executive) both with the public and with those who work with the Council – to engage everyone, working in partnership, to deliver the Labour vision for our people.

The “Co-operative Council” concept is supported by the Wales Co-operative Centre and by the Co-operative Group in Wales as well as Welsh Labour and the Wales Council of the Co-operative Party.

The intention is to help the local Labour Party in each part of Wales to put  forward policy ideas and initiatives designed to meet the needs of local communities and to deliver the services they need. We all need to help our communities avoid the worst of the UK coalition’s brutal cuts while taking forward the co-operative and mutual initiatives set out in the Welsh Labour manifesto in 2011.

Co-operative approaches can also be applied to almost every aspect of local government, including community regeneration and economic development, youth services, housing, leisure, social services and education. The details will vary from service to service and from county to county, but everywhere the approach is to work together, build self reliance, encourage innovation.

But the new approach is not about turning all services into cooperatives, nor about replacing skilled professionals with volunteers. It’s simply that where services are under threat and resources are tight it makes sense to preserve quality by exploring the benefit of public service mutuals as the alternative to privatisation or administrative bureaucracy.

The Co-operative Group has stressed its belief that “the principles on which mutuals are founded have a particular resonance in the public sector where there is an underlying sense of public purpose”.  Co-operative and mutual models allow councils to retain jobs and investment locally, are ethical, are more flexible around citizen and worker needs, and contribute to aspects of the local economy.

If you want to explore this idea and help us work together to ensure that local elected representatives, the communities who need public services, and those who work to provide services are all linked in a system of mutual respect, shared values and teamwork then get in touch.

The Co-operative Council kite-mark will identify Labour-led councils which give local people choice and control over the public services they use.  It is about listening to the voices of citizens and valuing the contribution of those who work for the local council.  The way different services work will vary, but the objective of finding new ways to hand more power, choice and control to local people is at the heart of the new approach.

As we develop Co-operative Councils in Wales we will seek to work with Carl Sargeant and the Assembly Labour Team – and to exchange experience and ideas with the Co-operative Councils Network which is being promoted by the Co-operative Party and was launched recently by Ed Miliband.  It now provides a forum for 18 Labour Councils in England and their councillors who are adopting this approach and sharing new thinking by working together.

Want to know more?

You can learn more by contacting the Co-operative Party

• Alun Michael MP, Co-operative Party NEC Member for Wales Alun.Michael.MP@Parliament.UK
• Anna Turley, Co-operative Party & Co-operative Councils Network annaturley@me.com

….. or visit the website: http://www.councils.coop/

• Karen Wilkie, Deputy General Secretary, Co-operative Party   k.wilkie@party.coop

2012 gives us a great opportunity to mark a new era for the mutual and co-operative traditions of Welsh Labour !