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Dear scrutineer,

Demonstrating the impact of scrutiny

Published 12 months ago • 1 min read

Showing you’ve made a difference is a tough one, isn’t it? Last week, thinking about next month’s Centre for Governance and Scrutiny (CfGS) conference, I was visited by the ghosts of workshops past.
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Back in 2018 I hosted a workshop on demonstrating the impact of scrutiny, maybe you were there? And, as I know this is something that plays on your mind from time to time, I thought it was worth revisiting.
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It’s always nice to hear about what’s already working for people and so we spent time making lists. I love making lists in groups - there is something so useful about it. You remember things you’d forgotten, you get inspiration from others and new ideas are sparked.
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Anyhow, Here are thirty things that people in the workshop came up with on the question of ‘what do we do as scrutineers that helps to demonstrate impact?
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I came across it the other day and thought it worth sharing just in case there is one thing here that will make you say “ah, ok, that’s interesting…”
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​Things that help scrutineers to demonstrate impact​
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1. Producing an annual report
2. Having agendas that are focussed on outcomes
3. Press releases
4. Articles in the council magazine
5. Webcasting meetings so the public can see what scrutiny is doing
6. Involving all councillors in scrutiny work so they are able to share impact
7. Chairs of scrutiny using internal comms to share messages
8. Holding workshops to involve staff and share impact
9. Highlighting recommendations and intended outcomes on the work programme
10. Chairs speak at council meetings about what scrutiny has achieved
11. Impact and outcomes highlighted specifically in scrutiny reports
12. Outreach and focus groups to talk to the public (with tea and biscuits)
13. Training for staff about scrutiny so they know how it makes a difference
14. Site visits — to be visible to the public
15. Public Q&A sessions
16. Using social media to share impact
17. Following up recommendations to understand what difference has been made
18. Involving the public in work planning events — so we align to public concerns
19. Working with cooptees — they can share impact
20. Communications strategy for scrutiny
21. Getting feedback from people that they have responded to scrutiny
22. Showing scrutiny responds to public concerns i.e. from residents groups
23. Sharing the number / impact of call-ins
24. Allowing public questions and social media at meetings to let people see what scrutiny is doing
25. Analysis of task and finish work to show what difference it has made
26. Inviting media to meetings
27. Using a recommendations tracker
28. Capturing media reports about scrutiny work
29. Having conversations with partners about the difference scrutiny has made
30. Public consultation on what scrutiny has done / should be doing
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Here's to the joy of workshops!

The link for the CfGS conference is here: https://www.cfgs.org.uk/panel-members-and-workshop-hosts-at-the-cfgs-conference/​

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Dear scrutineer,

Here are some reflections that I hope you will find helpful. They are mainly about local government and parliamentary scrutiny, but I hope that these ideas are useful for the wider scrutiny collective. Yours, Dr Dave Mckenna

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