Can Medway make you happy?
A new live forum for real conversation and real action on Medway’s future
Steven introduces our newest experiment in doing democracy differently: the Local Democracy Café. Find out what it’s about, who’s joining us, and how to grab your seat…
Over the past few years, we’ve hosted plenty of live events at Local Authority Towers, from two Medway Council leadership debates to last year’s General Election hustings for all three local constituencies. Hundreds of residents turned up to quiz the candidates, and we even managed Medway’s only Police and Crime Commissioner hustings. Along the way, we’ve also held our own Medway Question Time events, welcoming guests from across our towns to tackle the big issues facing local life.
Those events have always shared one thing: the questions came from you. But if we’re being honest, the ability for audiences to respond, challenge, and shape the conversation in the room has had rather mixed results.
The Local Democracy Café is our latest experiment in doing democracy differently. An open, interactive forum designed not just for discussion but for action. Each café will bring together local leaders, experts and residents to talk honestly about Medway’s future and to find practical ways to make it better.
We’re starting with three trial cafés, each built around a single theme. The format might evolve as we go, but the spirit will stay the same: Local people talking openly about what matters to Medway and how we can turn ideas into tangible outcomes.
Our first Local Democracy Café takes place at 7.30pm on Thursday 23 October at MidKent College, and we’re starting with a deceptively simple question:
Can Medway make you happy?
The event begins with a 45-minute panel discussion, followed by a second session where the conversation turns to the audience. You’ll be able to respond to what’s been said in real time, as we explore what happiness means in Medway today.
At the end, we’ll gather the thoughts, ideas and priorities raised during the event and share them publicly, with the aim of turning discussion into tangible local action.
Our panel for the first café includes:
Cllr Teresa Murray, Deputy Leader of Medway Council, who says she’s “pleased to be coming to talk about what makes people happy, because that is important to me.” For Teresa, happiness comes from “walking in the park, hearing about new jobs and investment, and seeing events like the recent dance festival bringing people together.”
David Stokes, CEO of The Halpern Charitable Foundation, who points out that “around the world, the happiest countries aren’t necessarily the richest, they’re the ones with the strongest communities.” He hopes the café will deepen understanding of the ties that hold Medway’s communities together.
Natasha Boardman-Steer, creative practitioner in health and wellbeing, who reminds us that “there are so many factors that can affect somebody’s happiness: health, mobility, housing, past trauma, food and finances.” For her, it’s about having the resources, educational, spiritual or economic, to handle what life throws at you, and recognising how “your perception of where you live can impact who you socialise with and whether you access the care you need.”
So, can Medway make you happy? And if it doesn’t, what would it take?
Next week, we’ll dig deeper into the themes behind that question, ahead of the event itself. Then, at the end of the month, we’ll share the insights, stories and ideas that come out of the first Local Democracy Café.
Attending the café is free, but booking is essential. You can reserve your spot via Eventbrite.
We hope you’ll join us for the start of something new and help us find ways to make Medway a little happier, together.