Saturday 18th June saw the latest annual gathering of local equality groups affiliated to The Equality Trust. The main focus for the day was about how local action can tackle inequality in a direct and practical way.
After an update from Sean Baine for The Equality Trust, the main morning session featured excellent guest presentations from the Living Wage Foundation, Fair Tax Mark and Pay Compare campaigns. Amy Hulme, Emily Kenway and Stuart Hill, respectively, outlined how local groups could get involved and support these campaigns, all of which have a key contribution to make in tackling inequality.
Amy emphasised how local campaigners are the best messengers for helping local businesses to see the benefits of paying a Living Wage, and Stuart discussed the importance of pay ratio transparency so that consumers can use their spending power to support companies with smaller pay gaps. Emily reminded us that tax is at the heart of a fair society, so we should support businesses which don’t look for loopholes, but pay the right amount of tax, at the right time, and in accordance with the spirit of the law.
The main session in the afternoon saw the local groups share details about their current work and also the opportunities and challenges of local equality campaigning. The participants were able to learn directly from each other’s experiences about what worked best and to discuss different ways of campaigning that they had perhaps not thought of before. Groups shared tips on the use of social media to engage with wider audiences and the recipe for successful public events, and discussed intersectional inequalities of race, class and gender.
The final session of the day gave the participants the chance to step back and discuss some big picture aspects of inequality when Stewart Lansley talked about his new book A Sharing Economy which discusses how social wealth funds could help the UK tackle inequality and poverty. (You can see the video of his presentation on our Facebook page – apologies for the sound quality – and view his slides.) Stewart Lansley’s proposals on deconcentrating capital ownership, changing how credit is created and raising the wage share generated much discussion, and local groups were enthusiastic about the role for grassroots campaigning to help whet the political appetite for several of these reforms.
We would like to thank all the participants and all the speakers for their contributions to an inspiring day. The Equality Trust is hugely grateful for the work of the local groups in highlighting and tackling the issues of inequality and poverty in their areas. It makes a real difference to the impact of our campaign for a better, more equal UK.
If you want to get involved in local equality campaigning, just get in touch with us at info@equalitytrust.org.uk and he will be able to help you every step of the way.
The Equality Trust Team