BUILDING A BIGGER WE
INSIGHTS FROM OUR NETWORK
Building a Bigger We draws on many years of network discussions.
It sets out big ideas for bringing about change.
And it brings these to life through 36 remarkable essays written by our members.
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The collection opens with a reminder of what we mean by a Bigger We - a very different kind of world in which:
Everyone is heard and believed in, given a fair opportunity to thrive, and the ability to influence the things that matter to them.
Every community comes together, looks out for each other, respects difference, and enables everyone to belong.
Society as a whole values and invests in everyone and in every community.
Obviously we have quite a way to go … but as we point out:
‘By learning from and inspiring each other, we can create greater momentum for the change we want to see. Individually we can lead the way. And by working together we can make the exceptional commonplace.’
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Below are the insights we’ve gained from the network, grouped around the four behaviours in our Better Way model and three new cross-cutting questions we’re exploring, along with links to individual essays which illuminate and illustrate these points.
Putting relationships first
Insights from our members:
Relationships: the first mile not the extra mile, by David Robinson
Putting relationships first in East Cambridgeshire, by Graeme Hodgson
Ubuntu! by Olivier Tsemo
The power of kindness, by Jenny Sinclair
Empowering people through user-led organisations, by Khatija Patel
Seeing people as the solution not the problem, by Edel Harris
Freeing up the front-line by liberating the method, by Mark Smith
Sharing and Building power
Insights from our members…
Power and solidarity: insights from entwined conversations, by Sue Tibballs and Sarah Thomas
Listen to the voice of people with lived experience, by Amanda Hailes
How to build equitable, inclusive alliances, by Sonya Ruparel
Building alliances around a common cause, by Lara Rufus-Fayemi
The power of imagination, by Athol Hallé
‘Servant leadership’: what I’ve learnt about power, by Jill Baker
Listening to each other
Insights from our members:
‘Radical listening’ is the way to radical change, by Karin Woodley
Never underestimate the power of really listening, by Samantha Abram
Reflecting the communities we serve, by Nasim Qureshi
How to bring about people-powered places, by Rich Wilson
Making space in research and policy for people with lived experience, by Lucy Holmes
Let’s think more like scientists, and include lived experience in research, by Liz Richardson
Joining forces
Insights from our members…
Why is collaboration like a street party? by Cate Newnes-Smith
Diving right into the community, together, by Clare Wightman
Joining forces, including with rivals, around a common cause, by Nick Gardham
Putting communities in the lead on health and social care, by Samira Ben Omar
Make front line teams the drivers of system change, by John Mortimer
To make a difference, we need to bring business on board, by Tom Levitt
Three cross-cutting questions
We’ve started to talk about a new kind of leadership where:
We become leaders not because we hold positions of power, but because we give power to others.
We deploy the four Better Way behaviours to build connection and community beyond our organisations.
We create the conditions for those at the sharp end to take more control.
But how can we counter the existing ‘command and control’ and managerial leadership model and make this new style of leadership more widespread?
Insights from our members…
A Better Way of ‘leading’ in the post-Covid world, by Nick Sinclair
More Tracy Daszkiewiczs and fewer James Bonds as future leaders, by Nadine Smith
Leadership and the pandemic, by Stephan Liebrecht
What I’ve learnt about leadership from a Better Way, by Laura Seebohm
We’ve identified that:
Our humanity can build bridges and move us to change.
Collective imagination can make a different future possible.
There are ways to make a different kind of space to listen deeply to each other, share our stories, and tell new ones.
But some people may feel this is a distraction or are uncomfortable with opening up. How can we overcome that hesitancy and mainstream these approaches?
Insights from our members…
Rewilding the imagination, by Phoebe Tickell
Unlocking humanity, imagination and creativity in the community, by Audrey Thompson
We’ve heard that many people at every level can play a part in driving change by:
Challenging and changing whatever stands in the way, including the deep-seated assumptions that can prevent us from being our best selves.
Calling out inequalities and abuses of power, and making sure everyone can participate on their own terms.
Assuming the best in others and seeing difference, conflict and division as an opportunity to pause, seek to understand, and find a fresh way.
But resistance to change is widespread, whether through culture, systems or practices. So how can we get better at overcoming the resistance and removing the roadblocks?
Insights from our members…
How we can bridge divides, by Neil Denton
Don’t build bridges from the middle, by Tom Neumark
Getting better at overcoming resistance, by Roger Martin
‘You’ve got to stop him hitting you in front of your children!’ by Kristian Tomblin
In the face of all the challenges, despair is not an option, by Duncan Shrubsole
The collection was published by Civil Exchange in May 2022, with support from Carnegie UK, Power to Change and the John Ellerman Foundation. We are hugely grateful to all the essay contributors, and to the hundreds of people who have generously shared their experiences and ideas at Better Way events leading up to the publication.