Principles met
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Co-production
We will develop systems that enable citizens to be equal partners in designing and commissioning public services and in determining the use of public resources.
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Enterprise and social economy
We will promote community-based approaches to economic development that focus on supporting the creation of jobs, social enterprises and other businesses and providing an environment for co-operative and mutual enterprises to thrive.
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Innovation
We will embrace innovation in how we work with local communities to drive positive change.
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Learning
We will capture and ‘expand’ the experience and learning from individual projects and approaches in order to encourage broader application of co-operative principles within individual member Councils and across the Network.
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New models of meeting priority needs
In exploring new ways of meeting the priority needs of our communities we will encourage models, such as co-operatives and mutuals, which give greater influence and voice to staff and users. in designing and commissioning public services and in determining the use of public resources.
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Social partnership
We will strengthen the co-operative partnership between citizens, communities, enterprises and Councils, based on a shared sense of responsibility for wellbeing and mutual benefit.
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Walking the talk
As a membership organisation, we will make this statement of our principles operational by:
• Co-operation among members: Our members work together to help each other implement our values, sharing experiences and learning.
• Openness of membership: Full, Associate and Affiliate Membership is open to any qualifying Council, organisation or individual who shares our values and is committed to putting them into action.
• Co-production of the Network’s work: Members help shape the Network’s work programme and the content of events and written products.
• Action-focused: The network is a vehicle for helping councils translate co-operative values and principles into policy and practice.
•Membership-based: The network is majority funded by modest membership subscriptions from its member Councils, Associates and Affiliates.
•Non-party-political: Members share the belief that working co-operatively within and across communities holds the key to tackling today’s challenges.
In November 2025, the Royal Borough of Greenwich partnered with the University of Greenwich (UoG) to deliver the ‘Social Care Reimagined Hackathon’, a two‑day innovation event designed to explore co‑operative solutions for adult social care. The initiative emerged directly from the Royal Borough of Greenwich Co‑operative Commission, Together for Greenwich: Co-operation for the Future. The idea of holding a co-operative hackathon is in the first recommendation under the strategy.
The hackathon united UoG students who embraced co‑operative principles to create practical, community-focused solutions for one of the borough’s most urgent issues: delivering sustainable, ethical adult social care. Thousands of residents in Royal Greenwich depend on adult social care, yet current provision is mainly delivered by profit-driven private providers.
Central to the event’s purpose was responding to the Commission’s call for alternatives that empower communities, enhance public capacity, and move away from traditional profit-driven systems. The hackathon strongly aligned with the borough’s vision to embed co-operative values within local services, ensuring decisions are made with and by the people they impact. This approach reflects a broader political and strategic commitment to expanding democratic ownership and fostering resident-led innovation.
Royal Borough of Greenwich join forces with University of Greenwich students for the Care Re-imagined Hackathon
For further information contact:
Michael Cleary
Head of Market Quality and Sustainability, Integrated Commissioning for Adult Services
Royal Borough of Greenwich