Article

One of the success-stories of the last of decades has been the gradual acceptance by consultors, that their attempts to engage stakeholders and the public have to be more socially inclusive. Seeking the views of the usual suspects was always easier than building relationships with communities and groups who are less accustomed to the culture and processes of […]

The road to consultation has two distinct aspects – procedural and substantive. Organisers of consultations these days are quite familiar with the necessary preparations for such a formal engagement exercise. We normally refer to the procedural elements as pre-consultation, and expect it to cover discussions with key stakeholders about the form the dialogue should take – methods, venues, timings

In a world where consultation fatigue is a real issue – and organisations have to work hard to get citizens and stakeholders interested – it may be surprising to note how many consultations fall short of offering them anything meaningful to consider. In the ideal model, the consultor lays out the context for a forthcoming decision, explains the constraints,

There’s an old stock market adage: – ‘Sell in May… and go away…” These days we can replace it with – ‘Challenge a consultation in June/July, and hear the outcome in August…’ How else can we explain the spate of judgments handed down in the last three weeks – and holding enormous significance for anyone