Originally published 25 November 2008. This article is retained from the tCI archive. Law, policy or practice may have changed since publication.
The great advantage of one-off consultations is that the period during which something unexpected can intervene is limited!
In reality, however, many of the dialogues that take place do so over a longer timescale. There might be a series of sequential consultations – as with many in spatial planning, as development proposals gradually become more site specific. Alternatively, policy and practice may evolve over a number of years and supported by continuous consultative machinery. Many public bodies have developed extensive networks of advisory committees and forums so that their strategies and decisions are informed by key stakeholders and other voices. Such permanent machinery depend upon the quality of relationships and are very vulnerable to instability – either in the consultor organisation, in membership and attendance patterns. They also rely on a sufficient sense of shared interest that people can identify with a common purpose. This can be a challenge when different localities come together and need to subsume parochial interests into a wider objective; just look at the difficulties of formulating waste management strategies right now.
Trust and Transparency are the twin pillars of successful long-term consultation, and neither is easy to maintain when economic conditions change working assumptions and impact upon the credibility of well-meaning officials. Nowhere is this more challenging than in major projects in urban regeneration. Communities in many of our major towns and cities – displaying characteristic British scepticism – have taken some persuasion that ambitious programmes of re-development are truly in their interest. Will they still think so in 2009?
The credit crunch affects major projects in many ways. In some cases, project funding will face difficulties, and wholesale re-financing may be necessary. Even when successful, this can cause delay. Secondly, projects that rely upon a steady stream of property purchases or commercial lettings will face enormous challenges and some may fail. Thirdly, community benefits and infrastructure improvements may be postponed, or even in extreme cases disappear off the agenda for years.
It’s not just a local phenomenon. Cherished political commitments such as the Government’s plan to reduce energy poverty, to tackle long-term education or health problems or ambitious climate change programmes are also vulnerable in uncertain times.
In both cases, the stakeholder or public engagement issue is the same. Someone from the relevant public body has to come to the meeting/dialogue and say: - “Forget what we’ve assumed up to now; things have changed; so we have to do something different...”
That may not be a problem if it just means two years delay in an Impact Study you’re conducting but, if disruption to your home is at issue... or if much-needed community facilities won’t materialise... or if it’s improvements to a school, a hospital, a drug rehabilitation centre... or a care home for the elderly... then it matters.
It’s not just about money; the truth is that the availability of resources of all kinds - including the time and talent of stakeholders - is an essential lubricant to help manage change in a whole range of situations. Dialogue is a vital part of change management, requiring people to trust each other and work alongside organisations and groups with very different governance, objectives and viewpoints. Many of the structures that are important to make these large projects work – whether they are called partnerships or not – are basically a coming-together of very varied interests.
This is hard even when the going is good, and there is enough lubrication! When short-term cost-cutting takes centre stage, this is when divergent interests also come to the fore, and it needs an investment in patient relationship-building and diplomacy to maintain people’s commitment and enthusiasm.
As in the financial world, what’s scarce is credit! How many consultors have accumulated sufficient credit with their stakeholders as will see them through the tougher times that lie ahead? Time will tell.
Trigger points
- How much credit does your organisation have with those whom you engage and consult?
- Take care to communicate honestly and effectively when project delays and changes appear to impact upon communities and interest groups.
- Consider attending a special Institute Roundtable event to consider these issues:- Regeneration and re-development: avoiding a crisis in public engagement
This is the 123rd Tuesday Topic; a full list of subjects covered is available for Institute members and is a valuable resource covering so many aspects of consultation and engagement