Citizens’ assembly meets for the first time, on the eve of the International Day of Democracy

Yesterday was the first day of the West of England Citizens’ Assembly which will take place over eight days in September, October and November. 

52 citizens from all walks of life came together from across Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. 

They came together to answer the question “What would culture and creativity look like in the West of England if they were for everyone?”

They were supported by a team of independent facilitators  (pictured above) and LaToyah McAllister-Jones and Rebekah McCabe as Co-Lead Facilitators. 

(Rebekah and LaToyah)

The Mayor of the West of England welcomed citizens and thanked them for taking part in the assembly. In the morning, there were lots of introductions and the group of 52 agreed how they wanted to work together during the assembly. 

There was a practical workshop with Play:Disrupt to help citizens explore different aspects of the creative and cultural ecosystem in the region.

(Play:Disrupt workshop)

After lunch, there were three presentations:

• Sarah James, Head of Creative and Cultural Industries for the Mayoral Combined Authority, talking about the cultural ecology in the West of England.
• Sophie Moysey, Senior Relationship Manager at Arts Council England about the funding landscape shaped by the government’s lead arts funder. 
• Kathryn Davis, Director Visit West, talking about the visitor economy in the West of England. 

 

(Sarah James, Mayoral Combined Authority)

After each commentator spoke, citizens worked together, in eight groups each with an independent facilitator, to reflect on what they heard. They then asked questions to the commentators to clarify and follow-up on key points that interested them. 

The next assembly days will be on the 27th and 28th September when citizens will meet online in their four area groups – Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. 

Citizens will experience a wide range of case studies, stories and evidence, selected by the independent Advisory Panel.  

We will share the next report from the Citizens’ Assembly at 8am on Monday 29th September. There will also be a short documentary made about the Citizens’ Assembly created by journalist and filmmaker Neil Maggs.