Harness the knowledge and imagination of everybody and make decisions that reflect the views of a whole community
Thursday, 17th May
10.00-16.00
Location
TCPA, 17 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AS
For bookings and info please contact Anna:
Talk Action
T: 0207 324 4774
E: anna@talkaction.org
"Very useful, informative and clear"
Transition Town Leicester
Facilitated by:
Perry Walker
Perry Walker is one of the co-facilitators. He developed Crowd Wise, the approach he will be presenting on the course, while Head of Democracy and Participation at nef (new economics foundation): he is now a fellow of nef. Organisations with whom he has used Crowd Wise include: Urban Forum; AFC Wimbledon; Transition Lewes; and the Fair Trade Foundation (working with Matthew. Perry has also invented a number of other participatory processes, especially the Democs conversation kits and the Open Up argument maps. He is an experienced facilitator and trainer.
Matthew Herbert
Matthew has been using consensus in a variety of settings for the last 18 years, and facilitating consensus courses for the last 10. He's supported groups of many kinds in its use - from co-operatives and co-housing projects to campaigning NGOs and community activist networks. He's facilitated consensus decision-making meetings with groups of 5 to 500 and co-authored several guides to using consensus.
Matthew has worked with Scarman Trust, Campaign against the Arms Trade, Centre for Alternative Technology, Friends of the Earth, housing co-operatives such as Two Piers Co-op and Argyle Street Co-op, the Camp for Climate Action, Transition Towns initiatives, and the Woodcraft Folk.
All across the UK large and small charities, companies and member owned groups are finding that involving staff and stakeholders is now an essential part of how they run their organisation. Whether working with 5 or 1500 people you need to able to make quality decisions that stick.
This course will help you to take decisions: in a way that is constructive and collaborative; that reflect the values and knowledge of the employees, members or stakeholders; and which build a greater sense of ownership of the final outcomes.
This training day will give you a theoretical framework for thinking about consensus decision-making (CDM) and the practical skills you need to put it into practice. You will be presented with two contrasting approaches to CDM, so that you can decide which aspects of each one fit your needs and resources.
The day combines presentations, experiential sessions, group discussions and real life case studies.
The training session will provide:
- The background to consensus decision-making
- The values that underpin consensus
- Common obstacles to effective consensus and techniques for how they can be avoided or dealt with
- Practical techniques for you to develop your own method
Detailed case studies that show how the techniques are used - A “consensus clinic” where you work out how to use CDM in your organisation or community.
- Resource packs to reinforce what you have learned on the day.
Course outcomes
- Fuller understanding of what consensus decision-making is and is not
- Clear techniques you can apply immediately
- A sense of where and how they could be applied in your organisation
Who should attend this course?
Anyone that wants to fully engage their staff, members, stakeholders or the wider community in the decision making process.
Organisations already using CDM include: charities, businesses, campaign groups, NGOs, housing associations, community groups, the United Nations and even football clubs.
Costs
£288: Large charities, public sector and businesses
£130: Smaller charities (under 15 staff) and individuals.
Concessionary rates are available for students, pensioners and the unemployed. Please contact us at info@talkaction.org for further details.
Tailored courses can be arranged for groups at a date and location to suit you.
Prices include a hot Mediterranean buffet lunch, Fair Trade refreshments and networking time.
For bookings and information please contact Anna on:
Tel: 0207 324 4774
Email: anna@talkaction.org
Supported by
The room contained a great range of opinions on the future powers that local councils should have, so I was impressed at how far we moved towards consensus in just a couple of hours.
Crispin Moor, Executive Director
Commission for Rural Communities
What I really liked about consensus voting is that it allows people to keep moving forward together, even if an individual’s preference isn’t chosen, as it appeals to the greatest mass.
James Mathie
Supporters Direct, AFC Wimbledon