Rebuilding The Party Through Better Support Systems for Officers
Rebuilding The Party Through Better Support Systems for Officers
One of the things I hear most often from Officers is that they had to learn on the job, and spend valuable time getting up to speed. Let’s get Officers the support they need to do their job well from the start.
I will actively support the rebuilding of the party, including and especially where constituencies have lost MPs and Councillors, and towns and communities where the territory is tough, through wider support to new Chairs and their teams.
We must introduce a best practice system whereby all new officers are contacted by the ‘next layer up’ within a week of taking office. Outgoing officers should, wherever possible, be valued for their knowledge and experience. We need to develop an Induction Programme to support this through the Campaign Academy.
Too much time is wasted through new officers not getting the guidance and support they need. They have to learn on the job without the right support. This needs to change.
Ensuring that the Constitution and Rules are Implemented to Support Local Parties.
I took my Region through the Parliamentary Boundary Changes, set up new local parties, and know the Constitution well. But I’ve also stood up to other wings of the Party when they’ve tried to ignore the rules. Let’s not let that happen.
I have been proactively involved with the re-drafting of the Constitution, and I will ensure that the review of the Constitution and supporting Rules is completed AND implemented to ensure that members are at the heart of decision making.
We must maintain good relations with CCHQ and the Parliamentary Party, but not be afraid to have honest conversations, and to challenge where necessary.
End Local Parties Time Being Wasted by Disputes and Troublesome Individuals.
Over the years, so much of my time at a local level has been taken up by a small handful of troublesome individuals, and this is a big distraction from the jobs we all want and need to be doing. I’ve got a grievance policy ready to go out to consultation to answer this.
We need to ensure that the Disciplinary Policy is understood and used. However, some difficult situations and individuals fall outside of the scope of this policy. These situations undermine Associations for months, if not years. I will implement a Grievance Policy which can deal with these issues.
Unity Between the Voluntary Party, CCHQ, and Elected Representatives
As a Regional Chair I know how frustrating it has been for local Associations to only hear about important visits from Shadow Cabinet Ministers when they read about it in the paper the day after. Let’s work better as a team, and get the most from Visits.
We need to get the Shadow Cabinet out and about AND make sure local Parties are aware of visits. Too often we miss the opportunities of engaging with and thanking volunteers.
I will ensure systems are in place to let local Parties know about visits as a matter of course – unless there is a good reason, it should be mandatory that Shadow Ministerial Visits are flagged to local parties, Area and Regions as part of the planning process.
