How To Use The Toolkit Helping bridge the gap between current practice and best practice in community consultation and engagement in Co. Carlow

Introductions The Wheel began this project with Carlow PPN on 2 Nov 2017 (470 days ago) Most of what you read in these slides are comments directly collected from the people of Carlow We have tried to stay true to the feedback we received and present it back to the people of Carlow as we heard it and understood it.

Why This? Chance to make Carlow a better place to live! Reinvigorate consultation in Carlow with public Want to foster ownership of initiatives Critically important to encourage the margins in – rural poor, migrant communities, people with disabilities public more engaged (feel ownership of process), practical benefits e.g. cost savings – everybody wins! brings a different, fresh mind-set Chance to make Carlow a better place to live!

Why Now? some parts of the community never engage - understand why not and who are they connecting with? improve the way consultation takes place Over longer term 2-3 years, will see the benefit of improved consultation and want to engage The establishment of the PPN as a driver of change/outreach

The Process Research national & international best practice Consult with the communities of Carlow: Survey Process was facilitative, ensure the voices of participants were heard

The Result A ‘Consultation Toolkit’ from what we learned Plain English, practical and user friendly Not an encyclopaedic reference of all consultation processes and theory Reflects the main and most frequent points that communities raised, producing a toolkit that would be most helpful to them when completed

940 Days From Now? Saturday, 11 September 2021 We Hope Has the toolkit been used by communities, Local Authority, Other State Bodies in Carlow? Are more people getting involved? Is Carlow a place where communities feel they have a say? Does Carlow feel like a better place to live? We Fear Is the toolkit sitting on a shelf gathering dust? Nothing has changed Is there still a gap between current practice and best practice in community consultation and engagement in Carlow? Do those problems & frustrations still exist? Is it the few, not the many, getting involved?

What Now?

What’s In The Toolkit

What Makes A Good Community? Emotional Connection A right to belong and feel welcome Basic needs are met and opportunity for recreation & social interaction People feel they have a say in the issues that affect them What would be the response of people in your own community to this question?

Good Consultation Has… Genuine Involvement Takes Time Important to have feedback

Preparation & Engagement Who should be involved? How to reach out to communities? Link in with local supports & services Be open to advice & guidance on how best to approach each community

Identifying & Mapping Stakeholders Who will be impacted? Whose help is needed to make the decision work? Who are the experts who can advise? Who has been campaigning about the issue? Who is missing?

Methods To Use… Workshops Focus Groups One-to-one meetings Surveys; Online, hard-copy, door-to-door Suggestion Box Submissions Creative events

Methods To Use…

The Invitation Personalised Understand how communities already communicate Best media and platforms to get the message out? The influencers in each community who can get people along?

The Venue Comfortable Accessible Inclusivity Refreshments Are people made welcome?

Working With Media Know your media Understand deadlines What is the news angle? The 5 W’s and H Press releases Ponieważ tak do mnie dotrzeć –That’s how to reach me!

Write A Submission Provide a clear and straightforward template for people to use in response Use Plain English! No Jargon Use examples where available

Design A Survey Options questions; ‘a, b or c’ (quantitative) Open Questions; ‘if yes please specify’ (qualitative) Balance Less is more. Cut it down to real issue at hand Free online survey tools Collect offline and collate online

Giving Feedback Each step of the way Check In, ask for feedback Show draft ideas Revisit & make changes Avoid presenting as a fait-accompli Youth group participant likened it to amazon progress updates

Communicate Results

Presentation & Celebration Giving A Voice: People want to see how their input influenced the project Celebrate the outcomes Here is what YOU helped us achieve Create the space to share the results. Ask participants to spread the word and present to their peers

Using The Toolkit

Tools & Templates Planning Guide World Café Appreciative Enquiry Citizens Jury Consultation Picnics Community Mapping Sample Submission Template Sample Survey

Case Studies Town Teams Roscommon Ballyfermot Skate Park South Dublin County Council Participatory Budgeting Rathvilly Action Plan Leighlinbridge Parish Pastoral Council

Useful Links Further reading tips and links dotted throughout the toolkit

A Living, Breathing Document To be used to involve as many as possible Not just to identify problems but to find solutions To help those who have struggled to see change and give them the tools to help them achieve it To ensure Carlow communities feel they have a say in the issues that effect them

Questions please ?