Have you ever thought about standing for Parliament?
Labour East launches BAME leadership programme
Have you ever thought about standing for Parliament?
The Labour Party Diversity Fund has allocated funding to East of England Labour to run a future candidates programme for Labour Party members who self-identify as being Black, Asian or an Ethnic Minority and who live in the six counties of Cambridgeshire (including Peterborough), Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.
The road to Downing Street runs through the East of England and we need to ensure Labour parliamentary candidates and future MPs reflect the ethnic diversity of Britain.
There is no shortage of talent in the region, however anecdotal evidence suggests Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority members either don’t think running for a winnable parliamentary seat is for them, or they feel the odds are stacked against them, and don’t understand the “rules of the game”.
As a result of the funding secured East of England Labour will run a leadership programme to provide training, peer support and coaching to prospective candidates. The programme will be run by an external partner and be responsive to the needs and requirements of the cohort. Each participate will agree a personal professional development plan by the end of the year.
East of England Labour are to inviting Labour Party members, who live in the six counties of the region, Cambridgeshire (including Peterborough), Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, who self-identify as Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic to apply for the programme. They are recruiting an initial cohort of 12 to 15 members. You will need to commit to attending a full-day quarterly workshop on a Saturday, as well as joining a monthly Zoom check-in meeting. There will be a requirement to undertake work between the quarterly sessions.
GMB London Region would encourage anybody who is eligible to apply by completing the forms at the bottom of this page, including an equalities monitoring form, which have been kept relatively simple. A small group of representatives from East of England Labour Regional Executive Committee will review the applications and select the initial cohort. The deadline for applications is midday on 1 February 2021. Please send the application and any queries to eastern@labour.org.uk
Labour East BAME Application form
Labour East BAME Leadership Monitoring form
