BUILDING COMMUNITY POWER 

A Co-operative Party Regional Conference

for the East of England, London and the South East

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 the East of England, London and the South East are invited to take part in this online Zoom event on Saturday 29 January from 10am to 1pm.

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.  Using a series of participatory online workshops, 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

• 10.00   Welcome to Conference and introduction to keynote speaker
  • Preet Kaur Gill MP, Chair Co-operative Party Parliamentary Group and Shadow Secretary of State for International Development

  10.10   Keynote address on the work of the Co-op Party Parliamentary Group (followed by questions – if time)

  • Dame Meg Hillier MP, Chair Public Accounts Committee

  10.30   Building Community Power in the East, South East and London regions

  • Preet Gill MP – introduction and chair
  • Chris Llewellyn – Secretary The Bevy co-op, a community-run pub in Moulsecoomb, East Brighton
  • Claire Pritchard – Chief Executive, Greenwich Co-op Development Agency
  • Phil Glanville – Mayor of Hackney
  • Miatta Fahnbulleh – Chief Executive, New Economics

  11.30   Campaigning with the Co-op Party

  • James Butler – Co-op Party Campaigns Officer – introduction and chair
  • Cllr John Howard, Cabinet Member for Stronger Communities, London Borough of Redbridge Council
  • Cllr Kim Powell, Cabinet member for Business and Community Wealth Building. Lewisham Council

  11.50   Policy – topics for members consultation in 2022:

  • Anna Birley – Co-op Party Policy Officer – introduction and chair
  • Val Sullivan – Secretary Chelmsford Star Party Council

  12.00   International development policy development, with

  • David Taylor, Labour Campaign for International development LCID

  12.30   Health policy development, with

  • Andrew Gwynne MP, Shadow Minister for Public Health
  • Ed Rosen, Founder – Lambeth GP Food Co-op Lambeth.gpfoodcoop.org.uk 
  • Mo Girach, Buckingham & co-author of ‘Power to the People – the mutual future of our National Health Service’

  13.00   Closing remarks

  • Chris Vince, Co-op Party National Executive Committee for the East of England region

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.