Press Release: LOCAL LEADERSHIP MUST BE AT THE HEART OF REWIRING BRITAIN
- October 2026
Building Cooperative Governance: Free Learning Series for CCIN Members & Partners
- 8th Oct 2026
- Uncategorised
Rochdale Borough Council will be delivering a series of events exploring their policy project on building cooperative governance structures.
Rochdale Borough Council is taking forward the next stage of its CCIN Policy Lab work with four online webinair learning series around Co-operative Governance. Open to CCIN member councils, affiliates and the local voluntary, community, faith and social-enterprise organisations they work alongside, the sessions will explore practical ways to grow community power and create more inclusive decision-making.
Developed through Rochdale’s work on co-operative governance, the series brings together tools, techniques and discussion about how councils can create the conditions for shared ownership, agency and fairness. It is intended for councillors, officers, community partners, activists and residents who are interested in how power is shared locally — not simply how people are consulted.
The first three sessions will introduce practical approaches that participants can adapt and try in their own places. Materials and content will be made available after the sessions, supporting people to continue the work locally. The fourth session will bring participants back together to reflect on what happened in practice: what worked, what did not, how approaches were adapted, and what that tells us about co-operative governance.
Learning from the series will inform the Cooperative Governance Policy Project, helping to build a stronger shared evidence base for co-operative governance across the Network.
Session Details
Session 1: An Introduction to Deep Democracy
Date: Wednesday 11 November 2026
Time: 1pm–4pm
Deep Democracy is an internationally recognised approach, developed by Myrna Lewis, which helps groups make decisions and sustain relationships by ensuring that all voices are heard — particularly those that might otherwise be marginalised. Participants will explore the rationale for Deep Democracy, its relevance in a local government setting, and practical tools to begin using these approaches in their own area.
Session 2: Relational Public Practice
Date: Wednesday 18 November 2026
Time: 1pm–2.30pm
This session will consider why strong relationships matter to building community power and improving public outcomes. It will examine how New Public Management has shaped public services and, at times, constrained relationships between services, citizens and communities.
Drawing on local government research, the session will explore practical approaches to governance, leadership and collaboration that strengthen the relationships on which effective, inclusive and sustainable public services depend.
Session 3: An Introduction to Sociocracy
Date: Wednesday 25 November 2026
Time: 1pm–4pm
The way groups meet, make decisions and share power can either reproduce inequality or help to challenge it. Rooted in co-operative values, and with a nod to Rochdale’s co-operative heritage, this session introduces sociocratic approaches that support inclusion, belonging, shared responsibility and more equitable participation.
Participants will look at how power dynamics, meeting practice and governance arrangements shape whose voices are heard, before exploring practical tools for collaborative decision-making, learning and action.
Session 4: Insight and Impact
Date: Wednesday 20 January 2027
Time: 10am–12pm
The way groups meet, make decisions and share power can either reproduce inequality or help to challenge it. Rooted in co-operative values, and with a nod to Rochdale’s co-operative heritage, this session introduces sociocratic approaches that support inclusion, belonging, shared responsibility and more equitable participation.
Participants will look at how power dynamics, meeting practice and governance arrangements shape whose voices are heard, before exploring practical tools for collaborative decision-making, learning and action.
