Skip navigation

Citizen Advisory Groups

Brief Description:

Citizen advisory groups involve 10-30 members of the public who sit as a committee to inform and advise decision making.

Description:

Advisory groups can take many different forms depending on the exact purpose of the group.

The group needs to have access to relevant information and may meet either over a couple of days as a one-off event, or regularly over a longer period.


Used For:

When seeking direction from citizens over a specific issue or set of issues.

Suitable participants:

Can be a representative sample of the local population, representatives of particular groups (for example older people) or specific individuals, such as community leaders .

Cost:

Medium

Costs of the events themselves are usually not high, but the cost of recruiting, supporting and rewarding the participants increases costs.


Time Requirements:

Allow a minimum of three months to set up and run a citizens advisory group.

When To Use / What It Can Deliver:

Can create effective and on-going dialogue that allow issues and concerns to be explored in depth, and ideally addressed, while the participants are still involved.

When Not To Use / What It Cannot Deliver:

Do not set up an advisory group if you are not willing to take on board their advice and recommendations.

Strengths:

  • Helps the service provider understand the user perspective.
  • Can provide an early warning of potential problems and be a useful sounding board to test plans and ideas.
  • Regular meetings over an extended period of time gives participants a chance to get to know each other, which can help discussions.

Weaknesses:

  • Requires a long term commitment from participants; hence recruiting and retaining participants can be difficult.
  • Can appear exclusive to those who are not included.
  • Involves only a small number of people and therefore does not provide statistically significant data.
  • Participants can become less representative over time, advisory groups may need to be renewed regularly.

Origin:

External advisers to government decisions are not a new phenomenon. However over the past decades it has become increasingly common for citizens rather than just established experts to fill this role.

Case Studies:


Related Methods


Restrictions In Use


None

Further Information

http://www.mkweb.co.uk/local_plan_review/documents/201205_CAGOW.pdf

Popular Methods
21st Century Town Meeting
Citizens Jury
Deliberative Polling
Open Space
Participatory Appraisal
Participatory Budgeting
Webcasting