CITIZENSHIPAND COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP
“Representativeness” and Partnership Working in Regeneration
Table of Contents
Representation in the United Kingdom 3
Community Involvement in Partnership Working 4
Methods to Improve Community Participation 6
Conclusion 7
Source Material 8
“Representativeness” and Partnership Working in Regeneration
Representation in the United Kingdom
In any democracy, citizens are both governed and governing and make up the process of government. How good government is therefore depends on the actions of citizens. If citizens are treated as customers, or as passive members of society, the potential of this type of government is not achieved. The UK operates a form of democracy known as “representative democracy” where representatives act on the behalf of citizens. This however is only effective if there is an active process where citizens can be heard and listened to. Although some representation can be achieved through elections, there is an ongoing nature to representation that is more than this. To represent someone politically is to serve on behalf of that person and some how to be held accountable to that person .
In a representative democracy, deliberation is an important concept. Different political preferences normally conflict with one another and the purpose of democratic institutions is to resolve this conflict . In an open environment of debate, the final solution may not correspond to any starting position. Creating new solutions through this kind of reflection is at the heart of democracy because deliberation is able to transform ideas. Speaking, listening and reflecting can lead to the discovery of new possibilities where interests can be reconciled. If deliberation were not to happen, the majority would simply be in tyranny over the many minorities by simply holding a larger share of the vote. Deliberation in search of a practical agreement is therefore a necessary element in representative...