Citizens UK Impact Report by Citizens UK

IMPACT REPORT 2013

CONTENTs

INTRODUCTION

ACTION

ThE IMPACT Of CITIzENs UK

PEOPlE INsTITUTIONs ChAllENGEs

9 12 14

CAMPAIGNs – A bRIEf OVERVIEW

WhAT hAPPENs NExT?

WhO ARE CITIzENs UK?

WhAT Is ThIs IMPACT REPORT fOR?

Citizens UK is the home of community organising in the UK. Citizens UK is an alliance of civil society institutions, founded in 1989. There are now local alliances in London, Cardiff, Birmingham, Milton Keynes and Nottingham. As of April 2014, all local alliances will be affiliate members of Citizens UK.

The purpose of this impact report is to communicate clearly with members about the overall aims of the Citizens UK alliance. It is a statement of how Citizens UK makes a difference to people’s lives, and it backs up these claims with evidence. As a first impact report, it does not cover everything Citizens UK does, but it is an important first step. The report is based on consultation with leaders and others who work with Citizens UK, and aims to be transparent about findings.

Community organising was brought to the UK by Neil Jameson, Citizens UK’s Chief Executive, after he saw its impact on communities in the USA. Community organising brings together the institutions of civil society – charities, churches, colleges, mosques, schools, synagogues, trade unions, and others – into common membership. Citizens UK’s membership is currently 254 dues-paying members, who work with our Community Organisers, the staff at Citizens UK. Overall there are 34 people employed as Organisers or in our head office in London.

This is not an evaluation or an academic piece of research. Instead, we have attempted to follow the six principles of how to report impact, as suggested by industry experts1:

Citizens UK has earned a reputation for its large and successful campaigns. The Living Wage, Citizens for Sanctuary and CitySafe have all captured the imagination of the public and politicians. This report will show how the success of these campaigns relies on the techniques of community organising. Ultimately, Citizens UK is aiming to develop individual leaders in public life, to strengthen the institutions of civil society, and to build networks between institutions in local communities. By building local power in this way, citizens are better equipped to achieve the changes they want and hold those in power to account.

The report was shaped by a steering group made up of Organisers, leaders, trustees and evaluation experts, led by Jess Daggers from Intentionality CIC. The report is by Citizens UK, with the expert guidance of Intentionality in complying with impact reporting good practice.

01. ClARITy

05. VERIfIAbIlITy

02. ACCEssIbIlITy

06. PROPORTIONAlITy

Clearly connect our work and objectives Make impact data accessible 03. TRANsPARENCy

Provide a full, open and honest account of our impact

Back up our claims with evidence Report at a level of detail that reflects the size and complexity of our work

04. ACCOUNTAbIlITy

Inform leaders of progress and intentions

It is down to Citizens UK members to judge whether we have achieved these principles. Please do get in touch with colin.weatherup@citizensuk.org.uk if you have any comments or queries about the report.

1. Principles of good impact reporting March 2012, produced by ACEVO, Charity Finance Group, NCVO et al

CITIZENS UK IMPACT REPORT

INTRODUCTION

WhO DO WE WORK WITh? DEVELOP LEADERSHIP SKILLS

ABLE TO MEET FUNDING OBJECTIVES

PART OF A STRONGER, MORE DIVERSE NETWORK

ABLE TO NEGOTIATE MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH POWER

CORE LEADERSHIP TEAM

BUILD LINKS WITH OTHER INSTITUTIONS IN CIVIL SOCIETY

STAFF LEARN NEW SKILLS

PARTNERS PROVIDING PRO-BONO SUPPORT

PARTICIPATE MORE IN PUBLIC LIFE

5% 7%

FULFIL CSR OBJECTIVES

WIDER INSTITUTION MEMBERSHIP

OTHER CIVIL SOCIETY INSTITUTIONS

32% 13%

CORPORATE BODIES

FUNDERS

LOCAL AUTHORITIES LIVING WAGE GIVES BETTER STANDARD OF LIVING CHILDREN NO LONGER KEPT IN DETENTION CENTRES

E.G. LOW PAID WORKERS AND THEIR EMPLOYERS

E.G. PEOPLE SEEKING SANCTUARY IN THE UK

MEMbERshIP ACROss CITIzENs UK

MEMBER INSTITUTIONS BENEFICIARIES OF CUK CAMPAIGNS

18% 22%

ABLE TO NEGOTIATE MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH CIVIL SOCIETY

GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS

PUBLIC BODIES

Of our 254 dues-paying members, 218 (86%) are in London, which is split into The East London Communities Organisation (TELCO), South London Citizens (SLC), North London Citizens (NLC) and West London Citizens (WLC). In addition to Nottingham, Birmingham and Milton Keynes, Citizens UK has local alliances in Cardiff and Scotland, but these most recent alliances do not yet collect dues from members.

TELCO

NOTTINGHAM

SLC

BIRMINGHAM

NLC

MILTON KEYNES

WLC

NHS E.G. COMMUNITIES AROUND MEMBER INSTITUTIONS

BENEFIT FROM LOCAL CHANGES BROUGHT ABOUT BY CAMPAIGNS E.G. BETTER ROAD MARKINGS, NEW STREET LIGHTING

SENSE OF COMMUNITY AND FEELINGS OF SAFETY BUILT UP THROUGH CITYSAFE

Across the Citizens UK alliance, we have a huge number of partners and collaborators, who are directly impacted by our working partnerships. Tens of thousands of people are impacted by the changes brought about by our campaigns. Over time, Citizens UK intends to build up its impact measurement work to include the impact we have on more of these partners. For this, the 2013 Impact Report, we have concentrated on the people at the core of our work: our member institutions and the leaders we train to participate in public life.

ACADEMIC COMMUNITY

E.G. SHOPKEEPERS, POLICE AND YOUNG PEOPLE

POLICE

UK BORDER AGENCY OPPORTUNITIES FOR RESEARCH INTO CIVIC ACTION AND PARTICIPATION

BETTER UNDERSTAND NEEDS AND DESIRES OF COMMUNITIES THEY SERVE

OPPORTUNITIES TO WORK TOWARDS SOCIAL JUSTICE

TyPEs Of INsTITUTION

BUILD MORE AND STRONGER RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES

hOW DO WE KNOW WhAT OUR IMPACT Is? In the past year Jess Daggers from Intentionality CIC has worked with Community Organisers and leaders to:

Overall, just over half of member institutions are faith-based, and almost a third are educational institutions.

52%

31%

Interview 26 member institutions – roughly 10% of the total – to ask them what impact working with Citizens UK has had on them

Gather feedback from 86 leaders on 2-day and 6-day training, using ‘before’ and ‘after’ questionnaires2

Develop a new mobile application (“the app”) for Community Organisers. The app allows Organisers to record ‘output data’ – the number of 1-2-1s and actions taking place – as well as information on ‘outcomes’ – including the ways in which people are developing as leaders

These activities generate evidence about the impact of Citizens UK. This evidence is not yet very robust, but it is an important step on from anecdotes and individual stories to a more collective understanding of what is taking place across the alliance. Reporting on impact is a work in progress. It is something Citizens UK seeks to continually improve, and we appreciate the time and support of members in taking part.

FAITH 12%

EDUCATION OTHER

LABOUR

2. 303 people in total went on 6-day and 2-day training in 2013. The questionnaires were not used at one session, a number of participants did not return questionnaires, and the final trainings took place too late to be included in this report. Citizens UK intends to improve the coverage of the training questionnaires in 2014.

CITIZENS UK IMPACT REPORT

INTRODUCTION

WhAT Is CITIzENs UK TRyING TO AChIEVE? The broad aim of Citizens UK is to build the power of civil society. We achieve this aim through our many and varied campaigns, each of which has its own specific aims and outcomes. Underpinning this work are our three core outcomes: 1.

Building networks and relationships between the institutions of civil society

Developing individuals to participate as leaders in public life

Strengthening institutions

These core outcomes are the foundation of every one of our campaigns. None of our achievements would be possible without them.

WhAT DO WE MEAN by bUIlDING NETWORKs AND RElATIONshIPs?

WhAT DO WE MEAN by sTRENGThENING INsTITUTIONs?

WhAT DO WE MEAN by lEADERshIP DEVElOPMENT?

Institutions are stronger when they have good relationships with others in civil society. By becoming part of the Citizens UK alliance, we support our members in getting to know other institutions. If they already have a relationship, taking action together helps to build on and strengthen it.

We encourage institutions to use the tools of community organising to build and strengthen relationships between members, to actively listen to their needs and opinions, and to recognise and encourage potential leaders.

There are lots of skills and attributes that go into making an effective leader in public life, and we seek to create the opportunities for leaders to develop these skills. An effective leader can build relationships with a diversity of people, communicate well in public, negotiate with power, and more. Citizens UK has created a tool – a ‘leadership development matrix’ – to be used collaboratively between Organisers and leaders to help capture this change through the mobile app. More on this tool can be seen on page 10.

Diversity is an essential part of a Citizens alliance. Community organising teaches institutions how to build and strengthen relationships with a diversity of institutions, to find common ground, and to work together to achieve a shared vision of the common good.

WhAT Is COMMUNITy ORGANIsING?

Overall, community organising is a method for building the power of local communities. The way the method works is best explained by an example:

1-2-1 MEETINGs

COMMUNITy ORGANIsING IN NORTh lONDON

1-2-1 meetings are incredibly important. They are more than just a chat, as they are used to understand each others’ interests and motivations. They signal that the participants value each others’ time and opinions, and want to build a public relationship.

ChAPTER The different London alliances are called ‘Chapters’. There are four Chapters making up London Citizens overall.

l I s T E N I N G C A M PA I G N A listening campaign is a coordinated effort by an institution or a group of institutions to ask people – both the members of the institution and wider afield – what they would like to change about their area, or take collective action on.

Citizens UK began its expansion into north London by making contact with key civil society institutions. The Community Organiser leading the creation of North London Citizens (NLC) organised a series of 1-2-1 meetings with the leaders in these institutions. Over 3 years or so, these meetings built a network of relationships, culminating in 30 institutions agreeing to become founding members of the NLC Chapter. With every 1-2-1 meeting the Community Organiser was searching for people who showed leadership potential, whether they were already the headmistress of a primary school, or a member of a church congregation who had never taken a leadership role before. Those

people were encouraged to attend the 2-day and 6-day training, where they could learn more about the ideas of community organising. With every 1-2-1, the Organiser was explaining and advocating the techniques of community organising. The Organiser was encouraging leaders to do their own 1-2-1s with their staff, congregations and students, and to listen to people’s opinions and desires about the change they wanted to see. After NLC was founded as a chapter, with 30 organisations agreeing to work together, the Community Organiser trained and supported leaders to run a listening campaign. The issues they identified were analysed and turned into a series of possible campaign plans. The decision about which issues to collectively pursue were then put to the vote at a Delegates’ Assembly, where each member institution has a vote. At the same time, smaller working groups were set up around issues that needed more immediate action.

Importantly, we believe the strength of an institution is also reflected in how well it organises its money. Citizens UK depends on the membership dues paid by institutions to help cover the cost of Organisers’ wages. We fundamentally believe that if people value something, they will be willing to pay for it.

Action is essential to community organising. It is only through taking action that leaders can experience how community organising works in practice. Importantly, action has to be strategic. It is based on a power analysis of the decision-makers in control of a situation. Community Organisers teach leaders how to make a campaign winnable. Action can be part of a local campaign, but it can also be part of the national campaigns run by Citizens UK. While some campaigns are specific to a local area, others are coordinated on a larger scale. In North London Citizens, for example, leaders took part in the national Living Wage campaign to get Islington Council to commit to a Living Wage for all its employees. Locally, leaders organised a Citizens Inquiry into the Tottenham Riots in 2011, and negotiated with the Leader of Brent Council to spend a day with the leaders of member institutions. Throughout the development of NLC – which now has five Organ-

isers – leaders and Organisers continued to do 1-2-1s, to build links between institutions, and to find opportunities to develop their own and others’ leadership skills. At the core of the community organising philosophy is the idea that Organisers should never do for people what they can do for themselves. hOW ARE COMMUNITy ORGANIsERs TRAINED?

As Citizens UK grows, we are developing the training available to our Organisers. Four of our Organisers have completed the MA Community Organising at Queen Mary, University of London, and a further five are studying for a Post Graduate Certificate in Community Organising, which we have developed as a training course for Community Organisers.

ACTION ‘Action’ is understood very broadly in community organising. It can be internal, such as a coffee morning to build relationships between different groups within a congregation. It can be a strategic meeting between leaders from different institutions to decide how to tackle an issue. And it can be public action, which aims to bring attention to an issue and get a reaction from those in power.

P O W E R A N A ly s I s Power analysis identifies where the decision-making power lies in an organisation, so that action is targeted effectively. It recognises the difference between power that comes from a position, and power that comes from relationships. M A K E A C A M PA I G N W I N N A b l E Campaigns are made winnable by turning the overall problem into specific issues with identifiable solutions. Campaigns are successful when it is clear what is being asked for, and the ask is possible and reasonable.

We are developng a Guild of Community Organisers that meets three times a year to reflect on our progress and learn from collective experience.

CITIZENS UK IMPACT REPORT

ACTION Our Organisers and the leaders at our member institutions take action on a regular basis. Citizens UK thinks it is increasingly important to keep track of the dozens of actions we help to organise each month. Doing so will help us to understand how we are distributing our time and resources, and to communicate more effectively what it takes to create the kind of changes we bring about through our campaigns. For this reason, we have developed the app that some of our Organisers have started to use to record their activity. All Organisers will be using the app by Christmas 2013. We are pleased to share some preliminary results, which represent just a small proportion of the action that takes place across Citizens UK as a whole:

ThE IMPACT Of CITIzENs UK

REsUlTs fROM ThE APP: 19 organisers have so far recorded 326 1-2-1s, between March and October 2013. This does not reflect the true level of activity of Organisers, but it gives us some interesting information:

Of 1-2-1s WERE WITh NEW PEOPlE

75%

25%75%

25%

WERE REPEAT 1-2-1s

12 organisers have recorded 79 actions, with a total turnout of almost 3000 people.

50 1500

OVER 50 DIffERENT NATIONAlITIEs WERE REPREsENTED AT ThE ACTIONs

OVER 1500 PEOPlE DID sOMEThING ThEy hAD NEVER DONE bEfORE, IllUsTRATING hOW COMMUNITy ORGANIsING bRINGs PEOPlE INTO PARTICIPATION IN PUblIC lIfE

1-2-1s by TyPE Of INsTITUTION

Overall, Citizens UK’s work has an impact on tens of thousands of people across the UK, through our numerous campaigns. At the heart of this change are the institutions in the Citizens UK alliance and their members. These institutions and individuals form the focus of this section. Importantly, we have included the issues or problems that have arisen in our conversations with leaders – some of the unintended impact of Citizens UK – with a public commitment of how we are responding to these issues. (see page 14)

PEOPlE Citizens UK develops people as leaders in public life in a number of ways: ƀǇ On the 2-day and 6-day training courses, which are run several times a year ƀǇ At ad hoc training sessions run by Organisers at individual institutions

2% LABOUR YOUTH

COMMUNITY EDUCATION

15%

OTHER FAITH NOT RECORDED

16%

36% 24%

ƀǇ Through individual meetings between leaders and Community Organisers We have been asking for leaders’ thoughts on leadership development through evaluation questionnaires used at all 2-day and 6-day training, and through the institution interviews that took place in July – September 2013. The recent evaluation of the CitySafe campaign also gives some insight into leadership development with young people.

CITIzENs UK TRAINING TRAINING AIMs TO DO A NUMbER Of ThINGs:

1. ExPlAIN ThE ThEORy Of COMMUNITy ORGANIsING Community organising uses concepts such as ‘power’ and ‘self-interest’ in a specific way. The training gives leaders from all backgrounds a common language for building alliances and working together. A crucial feature of training is therefore teaching leaders the ideas that underpin community organising. Out of the 86 responses to our training questionnaires, 97% agree that they better understand what community organising means and involves. 100% agree that they better understand what Citizens UK is about. A number of the leaders we interviewed said that it was only after the 6-day training that they really understood how community organising is supposed to work. And “Understanding of power dynamics” has consistently been the biggest area of change on our ‘distance travelled’ measures, with leaders moving an average of 2.5 points up a 10-point scale.

2. MOTIVATE, INsPIRE AND ENCOURAGE lEADERshIP POTENTIAl Community organising demonstrates that the actions of ordinary people can contribute to positive, concrete change. In the words of one of our leaders, community organising “makes the normal person feel powerful”. The training leaves most leaders feeling positive about taking an active role in leading change through their institution. Over 90% of trainees agreed that they are more optimistic and more motivated about local action following the training. 97% feel better equipped to lead on and tackle local issues 90% feel better equipped to support others to have greater involvement in local decision-making 88% have a clearer idea of possible solutions to local problems

CITIzENs UK IMPACT REPORT CITIZENS

ThE IMPACT Of CITIzENs UK

3. TEACh lEADERs NEW sKIlls The training teaches leaders how to use 1-2-1s to build effective relationships, how to analyse power, how to bring people together to work on an issue, and more. Using 10-point scales to capture ‘before’ and ‘after’ data, the questionnaires indicate that many people already have leadership skills when they arrive on training. The biggest areas of change have consistently been: 1

UNDERSTANDING OF POWER DYNAMICS

UNDERSTANDING OF HOW TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER TO CAMPAIGN

UNDERSTANDING OF HOW TO INFLUENCE OTHERS

BEFORE

AFTER

Overall, the training allows leaders to build on existing skills, while effectively teaching how to use the tools of community organising. It tends to motivate leaders and generate greater optimism that their actions can lead to effective change. However, our training is not always as effective as it could be. For example, some of the leaders we interviewed said they left training without a clear idea of how to apply what they had learned back in their institution. This is despite efforts to ensure leaders agree a plan of action with their Organiser before they finish training. To keep track of when leaders are left in this situation, we are aiming to introduce a routine 6-month follow up with leaders who have been on 6-day training. We encourage all leaders who are not clear on how to put community organising into practice to get in touch with their Organiser.

“The whole framework of rounds, giving everyone voice, it’s very different, at the beginning I found it a bit tedious. I’m used to doing things quickly. As it developed I realised how important that was. I always believed that once you empower people you give them so much more. To have the structures there to see how another group goes about doing that, that was really quite good.”

“Have you seen people in your institution develop as leaders?” “Not yet, not yet. I can understand how this can happen, but it didn’t happen yet. Change is slow.” Leader, Islamic organisation

lEADERshIP DEVElOPMENT Citizens UK have seen countless examples across the alliance of individuals transforming their lives through involvement with community organising. Of course, there are also many individuals who are not affected much or at all. We are beginning to measure the change we bring about, so that we can better understand what happens, and where we are most effective. The mobile app is an important part of measuring change in leadership skills. It is both a strategic tool to help Organisers be targeted and reflective in their approach, and a way to capture numerical data about how our leaders are changing. The leadership data is displayed on the star diagram to the right, with examples from two leaders. From the institution interviews, leadership development was consistently the strongest area of impact. Even people who have been in leadership positions for many years said that community organising had helped them to improve. Leaders also pointed out that developing leadership skills takes a long time, and that it is particularly effective with young people. A recent evaluation of the CitySafe campaign – one of the main ways young leaders in London get involved with Citizens UK – confirmed this. For example, 80% of young leaders said that being involved in CitySafe meant they were more keen to get their friends to join them in taking action to change their local area.

ABLE TO COMMUNICATE IN PUBLIC

ABLE TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH DIVERSITY OF PEOPLE

EXAMPLE 1 PETER EXAMPLE 2 SARAH HAS MOTIVATION ROOTED IN ANGER AT INJUSTICE

ABLE TO UNDERSTAND AND ANALYSE POWER DYNAMICS

RELIABLE

SHARES LEADERSHIP AND POWER WITH OTHERS

HAS CONNECTIONS WITH OTHER PEOPLE IN PUBLIC LIFE

CORE SKILLS PERSONAL QUALITIES

WILLING/ABLE TO INVEST TIME IN BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS

INSTITUTIONAL LEADERSHIP

HAS AN INTEREST IN DEVELOPING OWN AND OTHERS’ ABLE TO TURN LEADERSHIP OUT OTHER ABILITIES PEOPLE TO ACTIONS HAS STRONG CONNECTION TO INSTITUTION

MEETS WITH OTHER LEADERS

ABLE TO ORGANISE TIME

HAS STRATEGIC ABILITY

USES ORGANISING TOOLS TO STRENGTHEN OWN INSTITUTION

CONFIDENT

INTERESTED IN WORKING IN OTHER INSTITUTIONS

DESIRES PARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC LIFE

COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP

PARTICIPATES IN ACTION

CITIZENS UK LEADERSHIP

INVESTS TIME AND MONEY IN CUK MORE BROADLY

ABLE TO ORGANISE EFFECTIVE INTERNAL MEETINGS AND ACTIONS

UNDERSTANDS AND IMPLEMENTS COMMUNITY ORGANISING SHOWS INTEREST IN WORKING WITH ORGANISERS

SPREADS THE WORD ABOUT CUK

PARTICIPATES IN BROADER CUK DECISIONS

ExAMPlE 1: PETER f, yOUTh ORGANIsATION

ExAMPlE 2:

Peter has been a Citizens UK leader for 1 year. He has mainly been involved in CitySafe walks and a listening campaign in Islington. His average scores to the questions in each of the five areas are shown on the BLUE line

Sarah has been a Citizens UK leader for 2 years, and has been working on the Living Wage and Jobs campaign as well as encouraging Islington Council to set up a replacement bursary for the EMA worth £39,000 Her average scores are shown on the RED line:

Peter and his Organiser agreed that he has ‘improved slightly’ in all five areas, and these changes are ‘mostly’ down to Citizens UK rather than other factors. They have agreed to concentrate on finding opportunities for public speaking.

sARAh l, sIxTh fORM COllEGE

Sarah has shown a big improvement in three leadership areas, and a slight improvement in the other two. The change is ‘mostly’ down to Citizens UK, apart from in institutional leadership skills, where she also gets training from her own organisation. She has agreed with her Organiser to concentrate on receiving more CUK training

Leader, secondary school

CITIZENS UK IMPACT REPORT

ThE IMPACT Of CITIzENs UK

INsTITUTIONs Citizens UK works with our member institutions to make them stronger and more active in public life. Measuring this change is challenging, as we have a huge diversity of members who work in very different ways. As a first step in reporting our impact on our member institutions, we did 26 semi-structured interviews asking leaders what they think of their involvement with Citizens UK, and what has changed for them as a result.

INTERNAl CUlTURE Citizens UK encourage members to strengthen their internal culture by conducting frequent 1-2-1s, by actively listening to the issues and problems experienced by members, and by searching for opportunities to develop individuals with leadership potential. Based on the interviews we did, the internal culture of member institutions is changed for the better for the majority of members. In some cases, adopting the techniques of community organising is transformational. A few institutions, for example, have employed staff whose job is specifically to promote community organising internally, or have encouraged all staff to attend training and use organising methods in all aspects of the work. More commonly, institutions take up some elements of community organising, such as a renewed focus on leadership, or adopting certain techniques for running meetings. Community organising gives them tools to continue doing things they are doing anyway, perhaps making it easier to achieve their aims.

“OUR ORGANIsER hAs GOT Us WORKING WITh ThE CAThOlIC CAThEDRAl! ThAT WOUlD NEVER hAVE hAPPENED! ThE VICAR Is MAKING A VIsIT TO bRANChEs. IT’s AN INTEREsTING ExPERIENCE fOR All Of ThEM. WE WOUlDN’T hAVE DONE ThAT bEfORE.” lEADER, TRADE UNION

A few institutions make no changes at all - this may be because of a clash of cultures, or because the internal culture is already very strong/defined, or because they felt like they were already doing what community organising suggests.

POsITION IN ThE lOCAl COMMUNITy Many members benefit from the huge diversity of the alliance they find through Citizens UK. Most institutions find membership makes a difference to the variety of people

they are in contact with, and in the quality of the relationships they have, though they often had good relationships with other institutions independently of Citizens UK. In numerous cases institutions are brought together who had never interacted before.

fAITh INsTITUTIONs

A small number of institutions feel membership makes no difference in building links with others, or are doubtful about how sustainable new relationships will turn out to be.

ƀǇ The Citizens UK alliance provides an opportunity for effective interfaith and interchurch dialogue, in a manner that is seen as complementary to (or even better than) other forms of interfaith work. A Jewish organisation, for example, found that membership of Citizens UK allowed them to access public life in a way they had previously found difficult.

RElATIONshIP WITh ThE ORGANIsERs Community Organisers largely have very positive relationships with leaders across the Citizens UK alliance. The Organisers play an important role in giving momentum to campaigns, encouraging action, boosting confidence, suggesting ideas and linking people up. A number of leaders mentioned how impressed they are with the dedication and hard work of their Organiser. Organisers are typically working on numerous things at once, and leaders are asked to do a lot to support the campaigns and internal actions that take place. We understand that this relationship has to be balanced. Sometimes, unfortunately, it is out of balance, and leaders are not happy with their working relationship. Please see the end of this section (page 14) for more detail.

DIffERENT KINDs Of INsTITUTIONs The effects of membership vary across different kinds of institution. Key differences include:

ƀǇ Churches, mosques and synagogues collectively are the largest contingent of institutions, and often see community organising as a way of putting faith into action.

ƀǇ The principles of community organising can be particularly effective in small congregations. The internal culture of a small institution can be transformed by helping the priest to become a better leader. In larger, more hierarchical churches, there can sometimes be more resistance to adopting techniques such as 1-21s and listening campaigns. ƀǇ Some religious leaders find ideas about power to be incompatible with scripture, but others have come to see that “power is not a dirty word”. ƀǇ Faith institutions are some of the most active members, because their congregations often include people who no longer work and have more time available. EDUCATION INsTITUTIONs

are less likely to experience much change to the way they run things, but offer Citizens UK as an extra-curricular activity to students. In some cases the use of listening campaigns is controversial and clashes with school leadership, but in others it is welcomed and school-wide listening campaigns are run.

“COMMUNITy ORGANIsING Is A WAy Of ENACTING WhAT WE shOUlD bE As A ChURCh.” lEADER, fAITh INsTITUTION

ƀǇ Community organising provides a way for young people to get involved outside the school gates, but in a manner that is safe and monitored. Young people in particular tend to benefit from the opportunities Citizens UK offers. ƀǇ Community organising matches very well with the Citizenship requirements of a school.There are challenges with finding times for pupils to participate, especially when coordinating with adults who work in the day. CitySafe is a very popular campaign with schools, because it is highly relevant to the children and can fit with the school day. OThER INsTITUTIONs ƀǇ There are a huge number of other kinds of institutions, including academic institutions, charities, a think tank, trade unions, and youth organisations. Each of these adopts the elements of community organising that match their internal culture – some join because of particular campaigns, others want to focus on leader training and development, others want to be part of a bigger and more diverse network.

ƀǇ Schools and colleges tend to be highly organised already, with a strong internal culture. They CITIzENs UK IMPACT REPORT CITIZENS

CAMPAIGNs

ThE IMPACT Of CITIzENs UK

A bRIEf OVERVIEW

ChAllENGEs An important part of any impact report is consideration of ‘unintended outcomes’. For Citizens UK, unintended outcomes occur when the relationships with and between member institutions do not function as community organising suggests they should. Citizens UK would like to publicly acknowledge the issues that have been raised by leaders in the interviews, and to give a response. Please feel free to discuss these issues with your Organiser or the Lead Organiser in your area. IssUE ThE bAlANCE IN ThE RElATIONshIP bETWEEN lEADER AND ORGANIsER IsN’T AlWAys RIGhT: fOUR Of ThE INsTITUTIONs WE INTERVIEWED sAID ThEy fElT ThE RElATIONshIP WAsN’T RECIPROCAl, OR ThAT ThE ORGANIsER AsKED fOR MORE ThAN ThEy GAVE. REsPONsE

“The new Citizens UK constitution empowers Local Leadership Teams - consisting of experienced leaders from member institutions who have done the Citizens UK National Training - to direct the work of their Organiser and ensure the reciprocity of the relationship. It is always tricky to get the balance right and we apologise when we have not done so. If this continues to be an issue we encourage you to raise this with the Lead Organiser of your chapter.” sOME INsTITUTIONs DO NOT fEEl lIsTENED TO: TWO INsTITUTIONs sAID ThEy DID NOT fEEl ThEIR INTEREsTs WERE bEING TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT, AND ThAT ThE REsUlTs Of lIsTENING CAMPAIGNs WERE IGNORED IN fAVOUR Of CAMPAIGNs ThAT ARE “PREDEfINED”.

“Citizens UK’s campaigns are chosen by its members and we try to ensure that we work on a broad range of issues. It is not possible for us to action every single campaign and we are sorry if your issue is not selected. It is not compulsory to participate in actions and campaigns, but we encourage member organisations to show solidarity with other members and their campaigns. The role of the new Local Leadership Teams is to safeguard the interests of member institutions and ensure that the agenda of your local Citizens alliance genuinely reflects your interests.”

CAMPAIGNs ARE NOT AlWAys RElEVANT: fOUR INsTITUTIONs COMMENTED ThAT ThE CAMPAIGNs bEING RUN AT ThE MOMENT DO NOT CAPTURE ThE INTEREsT Of ThEIR MEMbERshIP

“It is not possible to work on every issue of interest to our members, but even if the main issues our alliance is working on does not capture your interest, by working closely with your Organiser we hope you could find a way to act on the issues that emerge from your listening campaign - perhaps on a very local level to begin with.” ThE ORGANIsER Is NOT AROUND ENOUGh: fOUR INsTITUTIONs fElT ThEy DO NOT sEE ENOUGh Of ThEIR ORGANIsER / ThEy NEED MORE sUPPORT fROM ThEIR ORGANIsER IN MAKING ThINGs hAPPEN

“If you haven’t already, please tell your Organiser this. If that doesn’t work, speak to the Lead Organiser for your chapter. The Organisers’ role is to help you to take action.” ThE ORGANIsER/CITIzENs UK MORE bROADly IsN’T AlWAys ORGANIsED ENOUGh: fOUR INsTITUTIONs MENTIONED A lACK Of ORGANIsATION ON ThE PART Of ThE ORGANIsERs/ lACK Of INfORMATION AbOUT WhAT Is hAPPENING WhEN/IN ENOUGh ADVANCE

“We hope you agree that we have a bright and talented staff team - but we need to invest more in their formation so that they are more effective Organisers. So in partnership with Queen Mary University of London we have developed a Postgraduate Certificate in Community Organising, which provides masterclasses in the key skills and virtuous habits of Organisers. By drawing in the expertise of a time management and personal effectiveness expert, Roger Black, we hope to improve the way our Organisers organise themselves.” ThERE IsN’T AlWAys A fOllOW UP ON 2-DAy AND 6-DAy TRAINING – lEADERs DON’T KNOW hOW TO APPly WhAT ThEy hAVE lEARNED, OR (IN ONE CAsE) hADN’T hEARD fROM ThE ORGANIsER sINCE ATTENDING TRAINING.

“We allocate time in the training to spend with your Organiser to agree next steps. We are also implementing a system in which Organisers routinely follow up with leaders 6 months after they attend 6-day training, but Organisers should also be in contact with leaders in the weeks following training to check in.”

Across Citizens UK there are tens of campaigns running at any time. They all rely on using the techniques of community organising to develop individual leaders, strengthen member institutions and build networks in civil society. Here is a quick overview of the national campaigns. ƀǇ The CitySafe campaign now has over 500 businesses across London signed up as SafeHavens, and 50 member institutions (including 30 schools) have agreed to make CitySafe a priority. An evaluation was recently done of the CitySafe campaign, which can be found on the Citizens UK website. It shows how community organising techniques are key to the successes so far, and looks at challenges ahead for expanding CitySafe further. ƀǇ There are now 470 Living Wage employers. While many employers now take the initiative to sign up for the Living Wage, many take some persuading by Citizens UK leaders. All of the local Living Wage actions are organised by leaders using the techniques of community organising.

ƀǇ Citizens UK has run a number of successful campaigns to improve the lives of refugees and economic migrants. The Citizens UK Diaspora Caucus now focuses on building the power of these communities on a national level by encouraging participation in and training through local Citizens alliances. ƀǇ A new campaign tackling issues in health and social care was launched in October. Listening campaigns across member institutions have exposed serious concerns around the provision of care. Leaders and organisers have developed a Care Charter, which includes demands for carers to be paid the Living Wage. ƀǇ The East London Community Land Trust addresses housing problems in East London, and will provide affordable housing to local residents on completion in 2017. The Trust is owned by local people who take on leadership positions in negotiating with developers. ƀǇ The Tech City jobs initiative is working with member institutions to find young leaders to take up apprenticeships in the Old Street area of London.

WhAT hAPPENs NExT? “It has taken a year of work to get to the publication of this impact report. We decided collectively that producing a report like this was an important first step, as was doing our first ever round of institution interviews, building our first mobile data collection tool, building up our work to evaluate 2-day and 6-day training and finding a way to measure leadership development. It is important that this work continues so that our evidence base gets more robust and more comprehensive over the coming years.

This report is for our membership and I hope it will act as a point of discussion for local leadership teams. It should be a source of celebration of the things we are doing well, and a source of reflection about things we need to change and improve. If members think this is a useful and worthwhile activity, we will aim to produce our next impact report in the next year or two. Thank you to everyone who contributes their time and energy to the work we do, and who take part in the crucial activity of collecting and analysing evidence about how well it works.” NEIl JAMEsON, DIRECTOR

CITIzENs UK IMPACT REPORT CITIZENS

CITIzENs UK

112 Cavell Street London E1 2JA Registered charity no. 1107264 Contact: tom.henderson@citizensuk.org.uk www.citizensuk.org INTENTIONAlITy CIC

Contact: info@intentionality.co.uk www.intentionality.co.uk