Surgeries

What is it?

Councillors report that although surgeries are a vital part of their role as Ward or "Frontline" Councillors neverthess they are often poorly attended and mean both councillor and citizen making a journey to a hall or meeting place which may be difficult to get to or require time to travel. As a consequence councillors look to technologies such as online meetings or virtual ward surgeries as a possible solution to these issues.

Why bother with it?

Saves time, cost of travel and potentially increases engagement.

Where can I find out more about it?

Both SUnderland City Council and Stockton Borough Council will be piloting forms of Online and Virtual Surgeries as a part of the Community Leadership and eDemocracy Project.