Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Harringay to pioneer use of digital media to open up area forums
Following HoL's use of Twitter at last summer's area forum, the Council is to pioneer the use of digital media at the Harringay & St Ann's area forum at the end of this month.
Last summer I caused some controversy in certain parts of the neighbourhood by live tweeting from the Harringay & St Ann's area Forum.
I was impressed at the time by Councillor David Browne's staunch defence of my right to do so and the potential benefits of the tool. We've subsequently had a number of conversations and David has become ever more convinced that using digital media to open up the area forums to wider participation is an important step in the right direction.
David took over as chair of our local area forum last year. He was keenly aware of the difficult history of the forum and is determined to make to it more effective, more transparent and more engaging.
He's keen to see the meetings effectively run so that they are a more appealing way for people to take part in local democracy. "I want to see the balance shift to one where the residents do the lion's share of talking. I want to get away from officer presentations. People don't want to come for a lecture. Officers should come and listen and take away what they learn".
At the next area forum on the 26th January, Harringay Online will be supporting David to use Twitter and, depending on technical limitations, other digital media tools to open an interactive channel with local people who can't attend the meeting in person.
"I don't want to put people off attending", explained David. "That would be awful. But I do want to make it possible for people to take part virtually even if they can't join us physically."
Harringay Online is working with David to use digital media and display screens to enable people to submit comments and questions from home as well as from the room. Those attending will be able to see a live display of all the remotely submitted questions and comments.
Once we're clear on what's possible in the venue (Cyprus Kitchen on Green Lanes), I'll come back and confirm exactly how whizzy we can make the digital media component.
Neither David nor I is expecting this development to be a magic wand, but I do hope it will be part of a slow process to improve the way our local democracy functions.
In the meantime, hats off to David. It's individuals like him, prepared to take a risk, who create change. (Also a quiet thank you to Haringey's Chief Exec Kevin Crompton who's given David his blessing for this experiment).
Tags for Forum Posts: area assembly, area forum
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Liz on
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Good work! I noticed that the public meeting at Downhills was being live tweeted and that David was tweeting from it. Enormous help for those of us who couldn't make it to follow the debate. For the 400 at the meeting there were quite possibly the same number again able to be informed of proceedings because of their use of Twitter.
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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The media people there later reported some 600 people, Liz.
The big leap forward will be streaming video from public meetings of such importance.
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Got my figures from C4 I think, HIndy said 600. I erred on the side of caution. I do know there were lots of us following online. Me, bathing the kids with one hand while checking the twitter stream with other. Multi-tasking mum.
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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Yes, he said he did that in preparation for meetings he had with Haringey officers today - so he could show. It works.
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I wonder why Kevin Crompton has to give his blessing to tweeting, recording, or even video/audio streaming from public meetings chaired by a councillor?
In any case, I was under the impression that councillors were elected by the voters and that Chairs of Neighbourhood Forums were voted in by the full Council.
Or perhaps I'm out of date and some new law has gone through in the past few weeks, to enable councillors - like school governors - to be dismissed and replaced by Interim Executive Boards?
Frankly, I will only believe in Haringey senior officers' commitment to digital media when they unblock those media for their own staff. In other words, treat them like responsible professionals, instead of naughty kids.
(Tottenham Hale ward councillor)
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David made it clear that officer permission wasn't a prerequisite. He said he was informing the officers rather than seeking permission. But, nonetheless, better to have the key people on board, non.
As you know, I'm all for the Council being more open to social media.
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I'm sure that Liz is right and that lots of people - especially women - are able to multitask during Area Forum meetings.
And I expect that - unlike me - most councillors are adept at doing their email, texting Uncle Freddy, and tweeting to their thousands of loyal "followers". And all at the same time as paying very close attention to the views of residents who've taken the trouble to come out on a dark winter evening.
The trouble is, it doesn't always look that way. As Karen Kilgariff plaintively explains.
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I think you're missing the point somewhat. If you're *at* the meeting, it isn't necessary to look at your smartphone to follow the meeting. If cllrs are doing all that, then they are not taking part in the meeting, they are merely present, unless, like David they are tweeting half a dozen times the *content* of the meeting (and incidentally nothing else during the meeting). The use of social media is for people who are unable to attend in person because their work/childcare/carer issues mean they are stuck in a different place.
There is a world of difference between using social media to help people interact with the meeting, and people not doing their job of listening and taking part. Aren't you accusing the cllrs of precisely what Haringey staff are suspected of if they are given access to Social Media sites and to which you object so much? and falling into the trap of saying if people aren't able to make it on that dark winter evening they simply don't care enough? It's not always possible if your kids are young, you're a lone parent, disabled, ill, working odd hours or away from home to keep to the hours expected by the civic core of 24 hour commitment to showing up.
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You seem strangely determined to be a bit grumpy about this Alan. Do you see an upside really and you're just playing devil's advocate? Or do you truly believe there's nothing positive in this development?
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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If I were you Hugh, I'd go back and delete the bit about Kevin Crompton giving his blessing. If I was an elected councillor I'd find it VERY offensive. And if you can't see why...
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The phrase I used, John, was that Crompton 'gave his blessing'. My choice of language was intended to imply the clear blue water between the official granting of permission and the expression of approving sentiment.
My adding the sentence parenthetically and the 'quiet' nature of the thank you were aimed at putting the importance of this aspect in its proper place as somewhat incidental to the primary focus of the post.
The reason I felt Crompton's views to be noteworthy at all is that the chief exec's openness to the use of social media in this context is of real importance to the subtext of the post - the more general development of the use of the social media in all parts of the Council. His attitude will also have a direct impact on the day to day lives of councillors, particularly those who seek to encourage the role of social media as tool for council officers. For example, I know that Counillor Stanton is continually frustrated about the fact that at Haringey, as with many councils, officers are unable to access Flickr and other social media sites.
It is my view that a thoughtful opening up to social media in a wide range of council departments will create improved levels of communication and understanding between residents and Council and promote an increased transparency.
For these reasons, I think it is appropriate to have mentioned the chief exec's views in my post. However, I had no wish to angle it offensively at our elected representatives. To any who may have felt affronted, I hope my explantion here offers some mollification.
Zooming out from that one parenthetical sentence for a moment, John, what's your reaction to the trialling of social media in the area forum?
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Permalink Reply by Pat Devereaux on
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Brilliant idea
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