I never thought I would work in Local Government. I wanted a career in politics and I worked at Westminster for three and a half years. But what I found most interesting – and satisfying – about that work was the delivery aspect. You know, actually seeing results and making an impact. I wanted more of that. The ngdp promised me that opportunity. I suppose before I joined I had a misconception of what it would be like to work in local government. It can be quite stereotyped. But I felt optimistic when I did more research about it and I really felt like I’d be able to achieve things. It certainly hasn’t disappointed. In fact, it’s exceeded my expectations.
I’m coming to the end of the programme now and I’ve taken on a tremendous range of work over my two years. I think one of my favourite projects has been participatory budgeting. I enjoyed it because it didn’t just make a positive impact on the community: it empowered and engaged local residents. Effects like that are really long-lasting.
The project’s called ‘You Decide!’ and it gives residents the chance to make a decision about how we use part of a public budget. In this case, we gave people in Tower Hamlets a direct say in over £2.4 million of the core council budget. We held a lot of meetings to get people involved, ran presentations to tell them more about it, and then we gave them the chance to vote. When I started work on the project I was a Project Officer. Six months later I’m now the Project Manager and I’ll be staying on this project when I complete the NGDP.
Of course, I’ve faced challenges. Not just on this project, but since my very first day. That’s what it’s all about, though. So my advice would be to prepare yourself for that. Think long and hard about why you want to join the scheme – consider what you want to get out of it. Then, when you are trying to get around obstacles or when the pressure is on, you have something to focus on that will keep you going. Because every time you do something new or learn how to deal with a situation, you’re achieving something. And you’ll feel the rewards.