Effective scrutiny needs the right structure and the right processes but, perhaps most important of all, it needs the right conditions (sometimes called culture). I’ve looked into the research and summarised six conditions that you can find below. Perhaps you could use them as check list to help you think about where your council does …
As I write this, many new councillors are finding out about scrutiny for the first time. More experienced councillors are also thinking about the year ahead and reflecting on how they work. I thought it would be a good time, therefore, to write something about being an effective scrutineer. So, taking inspiration from Stephen R …
In this post I sketch out some of the ideas and findings from recently published research I was involved with. I hope it will be useful for anyone thinking about how their committee seating arrangements might be improved and perhaps encourage more of a ‘scenic design’ approach. If you know me, then you might have …
Yes, it’s good to make lists. In our meetings we like to make action points and sometimes we like to record debates. But making lists can also be really helpful. I don’t necessarily mean to-do lists (although they can be helpful as well). I mean things-we-might-do lists, things-that-helped-before lists and things-we-do-well lists, for example. Lists like these work …
Like many other facilitators, I’ve been running meetings online for the last twelve months. In particular I’ve been looking to ensure people are able to participate in a way that’s productive and enjoyable. I have to say I’ve learnt a lot. From people I’ve worked with, from trying things out and by accident, of course. …
In my work there are a number of books I’ve found helpful and I thought it would be useful to share them. In general, these books are not aimed at public board and committee meetings but they all contain helpful ideas that you might be able to use or they might provide some inspiration or …
When it comes to participating in public committee and board meetings we have a choice about which meeting style we want to use. Meeting styles colour our contributions and shape the questions we ask. Sometimes our meeting styles are conscious and sometimes they happen without thinking. Either way, it helps to notice which we are …
This post follows from a question that we talked about on my Constructive Conversations Course. I thought it would be useful to share a list of suggestions that might be helpful. Sometimes it can be a challenge to work constructively in a public board or committee meeting. Maybe party politics is driving competitive behaviours …
I’m currently reading The Art of Logic by Eugenia Cheng (and thoroughly enjoying by the way). In a chapter titled ‘How to be Right’ she deals with the topic of sweeping statements. She points to the fact that, while statements like ‘you never do the washing up‘, are not meant literally most of the time, …
While public board and committee meetings have the potential to be both constructive and productive, often this is not the case. Sometimes independent board and committee members feel that nothing ever really changes as a result of meetings. At other times friction and bad tempers create more heat than light. Knowing that a meeting is …