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The Big Society - 15th June 2011 - An Interview

 

Q. How do you personally define the Big Society?

 

(John Stevenson): To me, the Big Society is a shift in power as well as responsibility. It is questioning the automatic assumption that Government knows best whilst accepting that for things to change, you have to act yourself.

 

Empowerment is a buzz-word – but imagine a society where individuals felt that they had the support, the right, and the duty to act for and on behalf of their community. No supervisor, no local authority impositions, no paperwork or bureaucracy to get in the way. Sounds simple, but it is a marked change from what exists at the moment.

 

It is about questioning the monopoly the state has over how our communities are run.

 

What does it mean in practice for people in your constituency?

 

In practice it means the formation of community groups who have a cause. For example, in Carlisle, ‘The Stanwix Urban Big Tidy Up’ is the perfect example of this. Time and again the problem of litter has come up in the local neighbourhood forum – but nothing happened. Now, different organisations – residents, charities, schools, students, scouts, sportsmen, church congregations – have gathered to do something about it.

 

The truth is, the Big Society has always existed – the different organisations I mention above are testament to this. The difference is that this Government wants it to be standard, unashamed, and pro-active – and not second place to the state.

 

The Big Society isn’t just about volunteerism. It is also about allowing communities to tailor public services to their particular needs. Who knows better what needs to happen where than communities themselves? If a community looks at the public services provided to them and thinks ‘we could do this better and more efficiently,” then the Big Society will allow them to act on it.

 

How can this be achieved when so much is being cut?

 

Communities do not need state funding. Of course, if we are to encourage volunteering, a suitable infrastructure should be in place. This is why changes to rules and the Big Society Bank will be an important part in setting up groups.

 

The previous administration could not make the distinction between society and state – to Labour they are the same thing. You can make cuts to the state, but society will exist whatever the financial climate.

 

And whilst the Big Society is not about replacing public services, there is in fact evidence to suggest that the state can ‘crowd out’ voluntary or community activity. It is about responsibility as well as empowerment – and the argument that communities will collapse without the nurturing hand of big government just doesn’t hold up.

 

What do you think the role of the church is in the Big Society?

 

I think the potential of the church in the Big Society is huge. In fact the church was doing Big Society long before the Coalition Government. Schools, clubs, support groups, societies, and much more have been run, on a voluntary or charitable basis, for hundreds of years by the church.

 

What I think will be different is the acceptance of the church as a part of the wider community – and the joining of different groups for a common goal.

 

I think there was a tendency for interest groups of all types to feel looked down upon, excluded from helping, or outside the sphere of influence whilst the state was pushed into every facet of life. I hope the church, and other groups, will see this change as part of the Big Society agenda.

 

How can local people get more involved in the Big Society?

 

Government proposals will make it easier for people to get involved. Community Organisers will train people to begin groups and form ‘volunteer armies’.

 

What local people should begin doing is asking themselves questions like ‘What issues are there in my local area?’ and ‘How do I think things could be run better?’

 

If they have answers to these questions, then they should act on them by forming a community group.

 

A public sector worker who, when they get home from work, has an idea about how their department could be better run and creates a co-op which bids for the provision of these services is Big Society.

 

A group of people who live on the same street and decide to set up a forum to look after their area is Big Society.

 

A group of mothers who want to set up an after-school club is Big Society.

 

I believe this Government will create opportunities everywhere for local people to be involved in their community; through volunteering, the provision of public services, or just having a say about what happens.

 

- Comments? Please get in touch with us via e-mail on office@johnstevensonmp.co.uk or by phone on 01228 550684

 

 

 

 

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