Facilitating political engagements

How we can help

Our years of experience in democratic engagement has shown us that nothing beats face to face interactions between constituents and their elected representative – a fact that only becomes more pressing in an increasingly online world. In-person (or video-call) conversations can break down stale scripts by re-introducing the human stakes to important political dialogue, leading to greater understanding, better relationships, and more representative policy outcomes.

At Hope for the Future, we help communities and have their voices heard through constructive, creative and impactful engagements with politicians. We run constituency meetings, roundtables, hustings, greencarding events and lobby days, or we design something new and bespoke.

1. Constituency meetings

Constituency meetings can look like a sit-down with an MP, councillor or other local politician, but can also involve going on a walk, grabbing a coffee, or inviting politicians to events. They allow constituents to have in-depth conversations with their representatives, finding common ground and building shared understanding of issues. Hope for the Future provides support to secure constituency meetings, coach constituents through the process, and co-develop agendas, research and preparatory material for the meeting itself. 

2. Roundtables 

One step up from a constituency meeting, roundtables are a chance for multiple members of a community to meet with one or several elected representatives. They provide an opportunity for a wider range of voices to be heard, whilst still allowing for deep engagement between politicians and constituents. Hope for the Future provides outreach, constituent training and coaching, and even facilitation to ensure an open and constructive conversation. 

3. Hustings 

Democratic elections require opportunities for candidates to hear from their potential constituents, and for constituents to hear candidates put forward their leadership vision. Themed hustings, where communities put questions forward to a panel of political candidates, provide ideal opportunities for this interface.

Hope for the Future supports the design and planning of hustings, ensuring that the right candidates are engaged, electoral law is followed, the right chair and facilitation is secured. In addition, we provide post-event support to help attendees hold successful candidates to account for the commitments made during the hustings, helping to ensure these events act as a springboard for long term relationship development between communities and leaders. 

4. Greencarding/Lobby days  

Why not take your supporters’ voices directly into the halls of power, by working with Hope for the Future to organise a greencarding or lobbying event for your campaign?

‘Greencarding’ is Westminster’s process for allowing ordinary people to enter parliament and request a meeting with their MP. A ‘Lobby Day’ is an opportunity to bring supporters and communities directly to the halls of power to interface with politicians en masse. Lobby days give activists something empowering and practical to do, whilst sending a strong, collective message to politicians that their constituents are willing to travel all the way to where they work to deliver their message. 

Hope for the Future can help with organising greencarding or lobbying days, liaising with parliaments and other legislatures, and contacting elected representatives in advance. In addition, we provide training in advance to ensure constituents make the most of their interactions, and provide on the day support to coach attendees through their interactions. 

Take your message directly to politicians

If you want to get your community interfacing directly with decision makers, we would love to hear from you. Get in touch to discuss which form of political engagement most fits your campaign or cause.