Challenge 1: Sent to Coventry
16/02/2010
Coventry City Council Challenge - Watch it here!
Challenge 1: Sent
to Coventry
Being sent to Coventry
is often a phrase associated with a person being ostracised and ignored. Usually the shunned person in question
is conspicuously present but can’t be seen or heard. Although the term is said to have originated in the 17th
century, fast forward to 2010 and it seems that in parts of the city it’s the ballot box that’s being sent to
Coventry. Voter apathy in Coventry is at an all time high and while swathes of
the population may be voting for Strictly Come Dancing or X Factor, many people are ignoring the X at their polling stations. So why aren’t
some members of the electorate voting? Well, that was up to our 10 Local Government
Contestants to find out and to come up with some workable solutions to impress
the Leaders of Coventry Council and LGA Chief Executive John Ransford. I did
ask Coventry City Council if they’d thought about offering the electorate cash
bribes, holidays, or the chance to record a song with Simon Cowell but
unfortunately these weren’t the sort of ideas they were looking for and
explains why the LGA have selected 10 more capable contestants with a breadth
of local government experience to come up with some achievable solutions.
So picture the scene
as the tenacious ten entered a conference room in a salubrious hotel on the
outskirts of town. Until Coventry,
they’d never met before but if they’d done their homework they’d have watched
all the contestants videos on the Local Government Channel, paused them,
rewound them and looked for subliminal messages to seize an advantage and sniff
out the competition.
My initial reaction as
they walked into the room was how young, youthfully attired and fresh-faced
they all looked; a refreshing change from the stereo-type of a be-suited, civil
servant. I could tell there would be some serious competition to find the next
generation of Local Government talent.
Once the challenge had
been set by the LGA and the leaders of Coventry City Council the contestants
were split into two teams. Without
mentioning names one team decamped to the hotel bar to do some late night
‘brainstorming’. By this stage both teams had nominated their team leaders -
David Brown, from Mansfield District Council and Nahid Alaei, from Lambeth
Council - and invented a collective moniker for themselves. Team One opted for The
Red Stripes and Team Two christened themselves The Anarchic Stars. I have no idea what the
inspiration for the Stars and Stripes team names are but I will make it my
mission to find out during the next challenge.
As the film shows, the
Anarchic Stars suffered their first setback when the contestants went out to the wards to speak to the non voters of Coventry.
Although focus groups had been arranged for both teams, only one person turned
up to be quizzed by the Anarchic Stars. The lack of participants should have
been an opportunity for the team
members to show leadership, creativity and the ability to think on their feet
but Claire Holloway from the LGA, whose job it is to observe the team, wasn’t convinced that the
contestants reacted as promptly to the situation as they could have.
The Red
Stripes had a full house in their focus groups and seemed much more organised
throughout their campaign. The Anarchic Stars by comparison were chaotic and
disorganised so it was perhaps surprising that they won the first challenge.
But they did give the more dynamic of the two presentations and as one of the
judges commented during the deliberation process, ‘out of chaos often comes
creativity’. According to our panel of experts, the Anarchic Stars had the more
interesting and novel ideas which is perhaps why the Local Government Challenge
is so exciting. It isn’t a
competition about being organised, making profits for Alan Sugar or thinking
inside the box. It’s a challenge
which seeks to test the contestants ingenuity, creativity, team working,
leadership and individual skills
that could make all the difference to how our councils are run.
Being privy to the
teams’ ideas, plotting, planning and strategizing over the next few months
means I’m in a good position to
spot some of the competitiveness, conflict
and negotiation that will emerge
over the next few challenges. From my vantage position, it’s clear, like in
most teams, that there are the dominating personalities, the negotiators, the
creative thinkers and the quiet sleeping lions waiting to roar up and impress
us all. But which of the ten will
most impress the judges? I’m as keen as anyone to find out, but with four more
challenges to go and everything to play for, I won’t be
rushing to the bookies just yet.
Tracey O'Halloran
Local Government Challenge
Host
Producer, WebsEdge
Comments
Blog
-
New Localism Bill - what does it mean to you?
So now we know. The long-awaited Localism Bill has finally been published, alongside the details for local government funding. -
An email worth opening….
Guest blog by Helen Burkhalter, LG Challenge Contest 2010 -
Divided by a common language
-
Is Content Really King anymore?
Or is it really now just another commodity? -
Council Worker of the Year Award 2010 Winners!!
-
Council Worker of the Year Awards 2010: Lifetime Service
Find out more about the finalists in the Lifetime Service category. -
Council Worker of the Year Awards 2010: Team
Find out more about the Team of the Year Category -
Council Worker of the Year Awards 2010: Community Engagement
Find out more about the finalists in the Community Engagement Category. -
Council Worker of the Year Awards 2010: Working with Young People
Find out more about the finalists in the Working with Young People category. -
Council Worker of the Year Awards 2010: Green Award
Find out more about the finalists in the Green Award category. -
Council Worker of the Year Awards 2010: Bravery
Find out more about the finalists in the Bravery category. -
Voting has now ended
Council of the Year Awards 2010 -
Challenge 2: Waverley Borough Council and Surrey County Council
The Town that Wants a Team -
Challenge 1: Sent to Coventry
Blog by Tracey O'Halloran, Host of the Local Government Challenge -
First Challenge - Votes and Voices has finished!
Coventry challenge a huge success as council takes forward campaign ideas -
Council Worker of the Year Awards 2010
NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN! -
Local Government Challenge Finalists Announced
-
Council Worker of the Year Awards 2009
WINNERS HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED! -
What gets you up in the morning?
So it's over for another year, council worker of the year awards. The votes have been counted, the champagne has been drunk... -
Digital Britain - Who's Paying for it?
It's here at last - the 245-page report setting out the Government's vision for the communications industry in the 21st century. -
What shape is your recession?
I'm in Washington at the moment and all the talk is about green shoots. Like in London everyone is keen to put the bad news behind us and move on... -
Local Government Heroes One and All
I know local authorities often have a bad press. Now I know this is nothing new but...
Discussion
-
What a difference a year makes.
Tell us - what were your highs and lows of 2010? How are you feeling about 2011? What are your priorities for the year ahead? -
Election Special – You ask the questions!
Tell us at the Local Government Channel the real questions you want put to Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. -
Women missing out on top jobs?
Share your thoughts... -
Welcome to the New website!
Each week from now the Local Government Channel team will be asking you to participate...
Thank you. You comment has been sent and will be reviewed for posting shortly.
Sorry, some errors occured. Please review the form below and try again.