At Salisbury Democracy Alliance we have been continuing in our efforts to develop deliberative democracy in Salisbury. We have been somewhat stymied in our ambition to run a Citizens’ Jury because of the cost involved. Our bids to Lush and the RSA were both turned down, leaving us with the City Council as the only feasible source of funding. They have suggested that a sum of £5000 might be made available, however this would be insufficient to cover the costs of a Citizens’ Jury, which is likely to be in the region of £15-20k.
Therefore, we are looking at alternative, and cheaper, ways of involving citizens in the process of deliberation regarding the implementation of measures to make Salisbury environmentally sustainable. A range of deliberative methods are outlined on the Involve website. I identified the following as possible alternatives to a Citizens’ Jury: An Appreciative Inquiry; Action Planning; Crowd Wise; Deliberative Workshop; Dialogue; Participatory Strategic Planning. I would be interested in your thoughts on these and any others that you might like the look of.
Whilst a Citizens’ Jury remains our preferred method and we shall continue pursuing funding for that, we can also consider cheaper alternatives.
For more information contact:
Mark Potts ([email protected])
Chair of Salisbury Democracy Alliance
or
Dickie Bellringer ([email protected]) Membership Secretary
