CCIN: Vacancy for One Full Member on the V&P Board
Three candidates have applied to join the Values and Principles Board 2024-2025.
Voting Closes at noon on Thursday, 1st February 2024.
With three candidates for the one vacancy, we now have a contested election.
Please find below the Supporting Statement from each of the candidates. The candidates are listed in the order their nomination form was received.
Each Full Member Council of the Network has ONE vote. Ballot forms have been sent to Leaders/Mayors of the 43 Full Council Members eligible to vote.
Each Full Member Council is asked to submit their completed ballot paper and email it to [email protected] by noon on Thursday, February 1st, 2024. These should be signed off by the Council Leader/Mayor before submission.
Cllr Alistair Willoughby
Executive Member for Communities & Partnerships
North Herts District Council
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Personal Statement for VP Membership
Cllr Alistair Willoughby
Hello, I’m Alistair Willoughby and I serve as the Executive Member for Communities & Partnerships at North Herts District Council. My role involves creating strong partnerships between councillors, council officers, community organisations, charities, and partners.
A central part of my role is building and developing community wealth building and cooperative policies within North Herts. I’ve created a new Community Investment Fund which empowers community groups, charities, and organisations to invest internally to grow capacity and deliver more locally. I will be taking forward the lessons from this exercise and applying them to our UKSPF allocations in order to ensure we achieve maximum value for our communities from this money, ensuring co-operative values are central to our decision-making.
The challenges facing local government mean we have to find increasingly creative ways to achieve efficiencies. Much of my work delivers added value which goes beyond the mere statutory duties we are expected to carry out and feeds into the bigger health, well-being, and economic development responsibilities I believe it is critical councils of all levels engage in to ensure we deliver what our communities need now, and in the future.
I have experience experimenting with different approaches to resolving policy questions and empowering partners to lead in their respective areas. Ultimately, for me, everything revolves around empowering communities. I have been a dedicated community activist and am involved in a number of local charities, trusts, and voluntary organisations in my hometown. Building networks between community organisations, groups, and charities has allowed us to share resources, research, and engagement opportunities, all of which deliver significant benefits for our communities.
While we face significant challenges, there are many opportunities and taking a cooperative approach in tackling these will help us deliver more for our communities. My vision for the future relies on identifying opportunities for collaboration between local government, the voluntary and community sector, and private sector partners who share our values. We need to be clear on what we’re seeking to achieve and also understand and promote the role of local government in achieving positive community outcomes. That’s why I’m leading on ensuring all decisions taken by my council have regard to our role in achieving positive health and wellbeing opportunities, supporting the strategic priorities of our ICS.
I have witnessed firsthand how the CCIN has partnered with local authorities and other organisations to implement incredible projects that have revolutionised the way we engage with the people in our areas. Through shared vision, research, and networking, we are able to address the vast issues that we face as funding becomes more scarce. I am eager to join the Values & Principles Board to contribute my experience, perspective, and motivation to the CCIN. My passion lies in finding better ways to empower communities and design innovative solutions to both old problems and current concerns. I believe that my contribution will strengthen the impact of the policies and projects that come out of our work.
Cllr Jason Williams
Co-Chair Co-operative Councils’ Innovation Network in the City of Westminster
Chair of Climate Action, Environment and Highways Scrutiny Committee and Vice Chair of Planning
Westminster City Council
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Personal Statement for VP Membership
As new members of the Co-operative Councils’ Innovation Network it is an exciting time to be involved with the Values and Principles Board as a Co-Chair of the City of Westminster network.
Councillor in the City of Westminster for Pimlico South ward, Chair of the Climate, Environment and Highways policy and scrutiny committee and Vice Chair of Planning. Experienced in scrutiny and worked as part of the task force to review scrutiny practices in the Council with the scrutiny review to make decision making more effective.
Experienced board member, chaired a grant making group as part of the Big Local initiative and Trustee of a local Toy Library, over 15 years’ experience as a School Governor and Governor of my local Nursery School. I have written policies, procedures and constitution and chaired meetings ranging from scrutiny meetings, planning committees and HR hearings.
As a committed co-operator and Vice Chair of London region Co-op party I am looking forward to working as part of the network to develop co-production systems and increase democratic engagement and new models of meeting community priority needs.
Cllr Jacky Alty
Cabinet Member for Community Wealth Building, Social Justice, Equality & Diversity
South Ribble Borough Council
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Personal Statement for VP Membership
Cllr Jacky Alty
I left school as a disaffected teenager. I married at 18 and went on to have children before realising that I had ‘thinking’ potential. I attended night school, college and subsequently, universities for a variety of qualifications.
As a nurse, midwife, health visitor and Specialist Practitioner in CAMHS I engaged in professional roles, demonstrating the values identified in the CCIN publication. Throughout my professional work I helped to initiate and contribute to a community led project called The Leyland for over 15 years.
Working in the community, I provided opportunities for residents to develop personal skills, gain experience and education, ultimately exploring their own potential. I was Chair for 3 years.
I re-joined the Labour Party in 2015 and subsequently the Co-operative Party. I stood for election in 2019 and was successful. It was my first real taste of local government (I had been quite ignorant previously), and I was offered the role of Lead Member for Social Justice, Equality and Diversity. I also held the role of Chair for Licensing and Public Safety until the elections in 2023, following which I was offered the role of Cabinet Member for South Ribble Borough Council with a portfolio for Community Wealth Building, Social Justice, Equality and Diversity.
During the first term of office, I provided input toward policy development, embedding Equality and Diversity into practical application and took opportunities to challenge when practice didn’t match the policy. I managed to increase the visibility of the Social Justice Programme e.g., Windrush, Community Toilet Scheme and Staff Champions amongst others – the work is ongoing with a new Lead Member who sits within my portfolio.
I believe my life is driven by the core beliefs described as your named values. I am continually seeking to promote opportunities for others, particularly those for whom ‘the accepted norm’ is not a good fit. I am diagnosed with significant hearing impairment and ADHD, and I am cognisant of the variety of abilities and experiences which often deter individuals from pursuing success or seeking the support needed to progress their journey.
I am passionate in my belief that personal agency is essential. The key principles of participation, accountability, lifelong education, and the opportunity to work in co-operation with different groups in society, can reduce barriers to success. Promoting a sense of security and significance personally, releases an option for concern for the wider community and an individual’s place within it.
I have set up a co-operative (a lengthy process); a retail artisan opportunity which failed before it opened to the public, providing me with valuable learning opportunities. I have also gained a measure of understanding the role that local government can play in supporting co-operative innovation and addressing barriers to it.
My journey (with or without this post), will continue to work toward promoting community wealth within the wealth generating workforce, whatever their skill set, previous experience or aspirations.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
