Next Tuesday evening, Wokingham’s Communities Vision 2035 will be formally launched by the volunteer steering group that has overseen its development.
More than two years ago, I stood in front of a well-attended meeting in Wokingham Town Hall to sketch out the idea a Community Vision (as we originally called it) that would set out the broad aspirations of borough stakeholders and the wider public for the years ahead.
In the past, the council produced strategies and then consulted on them. The idea of the Communities Vision is to bring in the public at the beginning, rather than the end – to empower the people who live and work in the borough to help chart the course ahead.
At that initial meeting in Wokingham Town Hall, there was much enthusiasm, but I worried about whether that could be sustained over the long process needed to form a Vision, co-authored by many groups, including those which are hard to reach, and endorsed by the wider public. It soon became apparent that my concerns were unfounded.
After the launch at the town hall, there was a series of productive workshops with the voluntary and charitable sector, town and parish councils, and businesses. There were also forum sessions with a wider range of participants, including the probation service, the chamber of commerce, health providers, the fire service and police, faith groups, educators (including Reading University and local schools) and the Youth Council. All have contributed as equal partners with the borough council.
The steering group formed to carry forward the work on the Communities Vision includes many of these different stakeholders. Council officers support the work of the steering group, and I try to attend their meetings whenever I can, but this is very much a community-led effort. The chair is Nick Fellows, of Wokingham Volunteer Centre.
Rarely has a council initiated a process and then stepped back to allow others to lead and direct it. Wokingham Borough Council has sought to call on the energy, enthusiasm, experience and knowledge within our communities.
I want to thank our officers, who have given such great support in facilitating the process while allowing the steering group to set the course. I am enormously grateful to Nick and his colleagues for their hard work and commitment over many months. Without their dedication and enthusiasm, we would not have made the incredible progress that we have done.
Last October, the borough council formally committed to playing its part in realising the Vision’s ambitions. We have already started to do so, with initiatives to protect valued green spaces and make public transport more accessible. There is much more we will be doing over the coming years.
But the Vision is not just a route map for the council. For its objectives to be realised, others need also to be committed to helping. Several local organizations have endorsed the Vision. I hope at the launch event next week many local groups will show their support by pledging to address one or more of the Vision’s ambitions.
We can all do our bit. Every contribution, however small, will help make Wokingham Borough an even better place to live and work.
By Cllr Stephen Conway
