BUILDING COMMUNITY POWER 

Wales Co-operative Party Conference 2022

In 2022, due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the Co-operative Party is once again holding a series of virtual Conferences across all regions and nations of the UK.  Members and supporters from across Wales are invited to take part in this online Zoom event on Saturday 29 January from 2pm to 5pm.

The pandemic has shown that we respond to crisis with kindness – shown in the hundreds of mutual aid groups that have established, in the way that community and co-operative businesses have stepped up to support those in need, and in the way that people made huge sacrifices to limit the spread of the virus. As we rebuild from Covid-19, we want to look at how we ensure this co-operation can live on.

The theme for this Conference is Building Community Power – how we can strengthen community wellbeing and resilience by examining how communities themselves can make a difference.  By empowering our communities we can actively involve them in the decisions that affect their lives. We will examine how we can widen ownership in our economy and give people the tools and support to tackle the big issues from inequality and hunger to green jobs and high street regeneration.

The programme

2:00     Welcome to Conference and introduction to keynote speakers

• Jackie Jones, Chair Wales Co-operative Party

2:05     Update on the work of the Co-operative Party:

• Joe Fortune, General Secretary

2.15     Keynote address:

• First Minister for Wales, Mark Drakeford MS

2.45     Building Community Power:

• Chair – Huw Irranca Davies MS, Chair Co-op Party Senedd Group
• Heather Powell – Wrexham Music Co-operative
• Alice Taherzadeh – Splo-down food coop, Cardiff University & co-author of ‘Working Co-operatively for Sustainable and Just Food Systems’.
• Derek Walker, Chief Executive of the Wales Co-op Centre and Board member Banc Cambria
• Cllr Joanne Gauden, Executive Member for Economy, Skills & Regeneration, Torfaen Council

3.30     Worker Buyouts Law:

• Huw Irranca Davies
• Christina Rees MP

3.45     Serving the Community with co-operative values:

• Sarah Murphy MS – to chair & speak about setting up the Bridgend’s Coronavirus Support Group)
• Baroness (Debbie) Wilcox of Newport – Co-chair of Co-op Party’s Diverse Councils project
• Dan McCallum, Awel Aman Tawe/Egni Swansea
• Pearl Costello, Food Cardiff

4.15     Policy – topics for members consultation in 2022. Members are invited to join these workshops as we explore these important areas of policy in further detail.

• Anna Birley – Co-op Party Policy Officer – introduction and chair for Health

Health policy development, with

• Mike Hedges MS, Member of the Senedd’s Health and Social Care Committee

4.45     Anna to pass over chair to Mary Wimbury, Co-op Party NEC representative for Wales

International development policy development, with

• tbc, Labour Campaign for International development LCID
• Chair – Mary Wimbury, Co-op Party NEC representative for Wales

5.15     Closing remarks:

• Mary Wimbury

Register your interest in attending here:

This Conference will be held on Zoom.  Please register using the form below.  Do check your in-box for a confirmation email which will contain the Zoom joining link.