Following yesterday’s much anticipated Theresa May speech we now have some clarity about the direction of Brexit travel. But are her twelve priorities for negotiating Brexit ‘bold’ – as described by some – or, as described by others, the kind of ‘wishful thinking’ we see in la-la land? If nothing else, we live in times of great uncertainty as Mrs. May and colleagues negotiate for two years until we emerge stronger or belittled, or somewhere in between. During that time it will be easy to replace clear projections with hopes and dreams or platitudes. Is it going to be ‘global Britain’ or ‘little Britain’, a ‘shared society’ or big society or no society – la-la-la. Not a good time to plan ahead for services, businesses and charities.
Let us remember, that there are some certainties that can still help to strengthen the foundation of our organisations. We are certain that there is a need to help which is getting greater. We have good relationships with service users who are telling us what needs to be done. There is greater community consciousness, and some tools that communities can use to do their own thing in reality, not la-la land. Britain is still one of the largest economies – there is money around, we just need to find different ways of accessing it.
What then needs to be done? We are being told that society is more divided so there are bridges to be built. In Hackney where I live that means bridges between communities that have become more divided as the area has become more gentrified. With more affluent families move in,
As I end this post, please forgive me Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling: you have transported us into the La-la Land that I can absolutely live with, a bit of well deserved escapism for all my chums after a day of hard work trying to make society a better place by tackling stark realities.
Susanne Rauprich 