Agenda item

An opportunity for all Aldermen to formally feedback on any key points from March Annual Wardmotes.

The Aldermen took the opportunity to reflect upon the annual Wardmotes held in March.

The Deputy Chairman noted that the Grand Court of Wardmote would meet at the rising of this Committee where the formal resolutions put forward by respective Wardmotes would be received but felt that it would also useful to reflect more generally on the running and relevance of the Wardmotes and consider whether there were any consistent messages arising from these. Aldermen were asked to comment on how long their Wardmote meetings had lasted, how many had attended and what matters were raised.

During the course of discussion the following points were raised:

·       The Ward of Billingsgate had seen approximately 25 attendees – a record number;

·       The Wardmote had lasted for 30 minutes;

·       There were disadvantages of terming the meetings as ‘Wardmotes’ as many struggled to understand what this meant – some Aldermen had done their own marketing around the meetings to try and explain the purpose and relevance of these meetings. The historical importance of the terminology was recognised but it was felt that more explanation around this was certainly needed;

·       The Ward of Bassishaw had attracted over 80 people and the meeting had lasted for over an hour – the level of engagement here was tangible different to in previous years;

·       LinkedIn had been used to promote some Wardmotes which had proved successful, particularly with the business community;

·       An Alderman praised the work undertaken by the City in terms of re-engaging the electorate around the all-out Common Council elections in March 2022 in terms of a baseline and stated that this should continue to be leveraged;

·       The Ward of Portsoken had attracted approximately 50 attendees;

·       An Alderman commented that it was not helpful to hold Wardmotes the day prior to an election, particularly when many voted via postal vote ahead of time;

·       The Ward of Dowgate had had 26 attendees. The Alderman commented that her Ward often invited guest speakers along to Wardmotes and ensured that the electorate were made aware of this in the letter sent to all in advance – on this occasion the speakers had been from the Police and Fire Service. The Wardmote had lasted for 1 hour 15 minutes on this occasion;

·       The Ward of Cheap had attracted approximately 40 attendees (around 10% of the electorate). The Ward team had marketed the Wardmote in advance and had also encouraged the submission of any questions in advance so that those attending could be provided with full responses to these;

·       It was felt helpful to continue to hold all Wardmotes at the same sort of time in order to gain a useful overview of issues concerning the City electorate;

·       The Ward of Aldersgate had attracted around 50 attendees and the Wardmote had lasted for around an hour. The Alderman commented that he had hoped to see more for a residential Ward. He added that he and his Ward colleagues had also advertised the meeting in advance.

·       Where elections were contested, pre-election husting were now held in the Barbican and organised by the Barbican Association so that Wardmotes the day prior to elections were not the only opportunity for the electorate to meet with all of the candidates;

·       The Ward of Farringdon Without had a particular issue on timing given that many of their constituents were Smithfield Market traders – it therefore tended to be held at 12 noon;

·       An Alderman commented that an agenda circulated to all in advance was helpful in terms of encouraging attendance;

·       The Ward of Farringdon Within which had an almost 50/50 split of business and residential voters had met at 12.30pm. Around 30 had attended the Wardmote with some representatives from businesses who had not previously attended present. The turnout was approximately 2/3 business and 1/3 residential. The Ward had also held and would continue to hold informal meetings with the electorate throughout the year;

·       It was commented that it was useful to invite the dedicated Ward Police Officer to attend Wardmotes where possible;

·       The Ward of Bishopsgate had attracted 17 attendees, although the Aldermen commented that the vast majority of his constituents chose to engage with him via email;

·       An Alderman commented that many electors had suggested that it would be extremely helpful to have Wardmotes livestreamed in terms of increasing attendance and engagement – he had therefore queried whether the forthcoming election Wardmotes for Castle Baynard in July 2023 might serve as a useful pilot for this;

·       The Ward of Broad Street had seen 35 attendees;

·       The Ward of Queenhithe had also attracted 35 attendees. The Wardmote here had coincided with the opening of the River Walkway which had also encouraged attendance;

·       Some Aldermen spoke in favour of exploring hybrid Wardmote meetings as well as livestreaming. It was noted, however, that many venues may not have the infrastructure to facilitate this and that the Guildhall might therefore be considered as a future venue;

·       The Ward of Cripplegate had held a bi-election Wardmote and had also held two hustings beforehand, ahead of postal votes being submitted;

·       The Ward of Cripplegate had attracted 50 attendees and was attended by all Ward Members. They also held quarterly Ward meetings with the electorate;

·       The Ward of Walbrook had attracted 20 attendees which was up on previous records. The meeting had lasted for over an hour;

·       Issues raised across Wardmotes included tall buildings, cyclist behaviour, bicycles and e-cycles, potholes, the City’s Capital Programmes, post-COVID reinvigoration of the City’s retail offering and vacant retail units, the Elizabeth Line, streetscaping, broadband connectivity and speed, the City’s Green targets and their feasibility, the night-time economy, nitrous gas cylinder and vape disposal, black taxi access to Bank Junction, litter and street cleansing, night-time antisocial behaviour, crime, policing, the Barbican service charge, Beech Street tunnel, rough sleeping, the City’s Transport Strategy, pavement drinking, Culture Mile, new BIDs, the Liverpool Street Station redevelopment, the redevelopment of Smithfield Market and the Museum of London/London Wall West.