Trust in Democracy

All political parties are promoting policies for a strong local democracy. Placing the power back in the hands of the people and their locally elected leaders is a central theme, in varying degrees, of the main political parties' rhetoric and is vital for restoring public confidence in the value and effectiveness of local democracy.

To explore this further, London Councils has put together this publication featuring several councillor-led initiatives for empowering local people to get involved in local decision-making and build confidence in their ability to influence and improve their areas.

Councillors, council officers and community and voluntary groups have also been asked to share their experiences and identify the barriers they face in bringing communities and councillors closer together to tackle local issues.

These examples aim to help boroughs work more closely with the communities they serve, so that the public can have confidence in their councils as strong, trusted and responsive organisations and in councillors as their first port of call for local issues.

Published January 2010