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08/02/2010

Coventry City Council Challenge - Watch it here!

The final ten contestants have taken part in the first ever Local Government Challenge.  Coventry City Council was selected to host the first of five high profile events which will see contestants from local authorities across England and Wales pitted against each other for the final prize - a prestigious £10,000 Bruce-Lockhart scholarship. 

Contestants were challenged to develop a series of ideas and proposals to increase voter turnout in two of Coventry's most deprived wards which has resulted in the council taking forward a number of campaign suggestions.

The two teams of five - the Redstripes and the Anarchic Stars - were given less than seven hours to research and present ideas on a campaign to encourage everyone of voting age to take an interest in the next round of local elections and take the time to vote. 

Following a verbal briefing, the teams were dispatched to two separate community centres in Radford Ward and Longford Ward, two of the most deprived areas in the City.  Contestants met a range of local residents at the community centres and on the streets to gather their views and develop their proposals.    

At the end of the day contestants presented their findings to a distinguished panel of judges comprising of Martin Reeves, Chief Executive of Coventry City Council, Julie Towers, Chief Executive of challenge sponsors Tribal Resourcing, and John Ransford LGA Chief Executive. 

Campaign ideas involved a better use of electronic media such as Facebook and Twitter to encourage younger people to vote; advertising at local events and making use of free services already available to the council such as relaying voting information to customers via the telephone holding system, explaining that every vote could make a difference. 

The judges put the teams under the severe scrutiny asking team members how they would rate their team leaders, how ideas were formulated and questioned leadership styles. 

It was a tough day for all involved and in the end the panel came to the unanimous decision that the first ever challenge winners were the Anarchic Stars. 

Speaking after the event John Ransford, Chief Executive of the Local Government Association, said: 

"The enthusiasm demonstrated by each finalist was really encouraging.  The teams clearly worked well together, tapping into each other’s skills to ensure two high quality presentations were delivered to the panel.  Unfortunately there can only be one winning team but I look forward to seeing what they are up against in the next challenge hosted jointly by Waverley District Council and Surrey County Council."

 Martin Reeves, Chief Executive of Coventry City Council, said: 

"I am very happy that the LGA chose to launch what we hope will be a regular event in the local government calendar in Coventry.  I was impressed with what the teams put together within the very short space of time available.  I am pleased that we will be able to put some of the suggestions into action and continue in the innovative work the city and council are known for embracing." 

Julie Towers of Tribal, said: 

"Effective relationship management and leadership in local government are becoming more important than ever - and this challenge certainly tested those skills.  I am pleased that Tribal was able to be involved and I think that projects like the Local Government Challenge provide an innovative and interesting way to develop and showcase the best local government talent."

The whole challenge is being filmed by the Local Government Channel and the first episode of the series is available at www.localgovernmentchannel.com.

The next challenge takes place on 18 February 2010. A further three are scheduled to take place in Northampton, Essex and Kent.

The winner will be announced at the LGA Group Annual Conference 2010 in Bournemouth. He or she will receive the first ever prestigious Bruce-Lockhart Scholarship, worth up to £10,000, to promote and share fresh ideas and approaches for the public sector through exchanges between the UK, USA and Europe.

Members of Team A – Anarchic Stars -  included:

•  Antony Walker, Corporate Policy and Performance Assistant, Birmingham City Council
•  Helen Burkhalter, Portfolio Officer (Climate Change), Denbighshire Council
•  Nahid Alaei, Procurement and Contracts Management Officer, Lambeth Council
•  Rachel Allen, Business Improvement Officer, London Borough of Merton
•  Von Robert Edomi, Media and Public Relations Manager, Barking and Dagenham Council
  
  

 Members of Team B – the Redstipes - included:

•  David Brown, Arts & Creative Industries Business Dev. Officer, Mansfield District Council
•  Angela Holden, Electoral Services Manager, London Borough of Hounslow
•  Michael Ngue, Private Renting Access and Support Officer, Lambeth Council
•  Rosalind Thorpe, Legal Support Officer, Stockport Council
•  Jessica Woodhouse, Policy and Project Officer, Norwich City Council
  
  

 The judging panel for this challenge included:

•  John Ransford, Chief Executive, Local Government Association
•  Martin Reeves, Chief Executive, Coventry City Council
•  Julie Towers, Chief Executive, Tribal (Coventry challenge sponsor)

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