There is a major democratic deficit in England — people feel that they have no influence over our future, and that those that do aren’t making the right decisions.
English Devolution could provide one way to help tackle this deficit, but there are risks that it either won’t get delivered without local public involvement, or won’t significantly improve democratic engagement and accountability. Participatory and deliberative processes could help tackle both these risks, helping to better deliver English Devolution and ensure it would tackle the current democratic deficit through greater and better involvement of citizens. With enough time and evidence, people in communities across the country can help take on difficult questions, side-step political divides, and provide solutions to problems grounded in the needs and aspirations of local communities.
Across England, we've started to see some examples of combined authorities embracing participative methods; from citizens' panels in the West Midlands to citizens' assemblies in South Yorkshire.
But we believe there is more that could be done to truly embed participation and deliberation in English devolution.
In November 2023 we embarked on a research project which aims to develop concrete proposals for how participatory and deliberative processes can enhance English Devolution. Through interviews with combined authorities, academics, think tanks and community organisations, we are looking to find practical solutions that put citizens at the heart of local decision making.
Join us at our event:
In the summer we will be hosting an event to share our findings and discuss next steps. Keep an eye out for details—we'd love to have you join us as we explore how to put our proposals into action.