“This is a time for the pioneers and pathfinders of politics. Sandy Bruce-Lockhart was just such a pathfinder. We follow in his footsteps.” - Greg Clark MP, Minister for Decentralisation, speaking at the annual Bruce-Lockhart Lecture There is a new category at this year’s C’llr Awards that has been generating a lot of buzz: The Bruce-Lockhart Member Scholarship. This special award is part of the Bruce-Lockhart Leadership Programme which was established in memory of former Kent County Council Leader and LGA Chairman, Lord Bruce-Lockhart. The programme aims to develop the next generation of council leaders and chief executives by finding international best practice that can be applied locally. With this in mind, the winner of the Bruce-Lockhart Member Scholarship at the 2012 C’llr Awards will be awarded a £10,000 bursary, supported by Kent, Essex and East Sussex councils, to fund a project that will advance the cause of localism and government at a local level within the UK. In previous years, the Bruce-Lockhart Leadership Programme awarded a similar bursary to the winners of the Local Government Challenge. In this televised competition, contestants, split into two teams of five, were assessed on a wide range of skills, from communication and leadership to business acumen and problem solving. Rachel Allen, a business improvement officer from the London borough of Merton, was the first ever winner of the Local Government Challenge, and at the annual Bruce-Lockhart Lecture she provided a clear explanation of the personal and professional benefits that followed from her use of the £10,000 bursary: “I’ve used the Bruce-Lockhart Scholarship in two ways: to support the CSI (Customer Service Improvement) Guide project, and to support my personal and professional development. The CSI Guide project involved research with a range of private and public sector organisations, gaining ideas and best practice approaches that local government nationally could learn from, adapt and adopt.” “The scholarship also enabled me to gain the Prince2 Foundation and Practitioner qualification and undertake the Future Leadership Programme at Ashridge Business School. The opportunity to learn through these courses and develop skills through managing the CSI Guide project has been invaluable.” Rachel went on to eloquently outline the huge impact that winning the scholarship has had on her life: “I’m grateful not only for the practical impact the scholarship has had professionally, but also for the profound personal encouragement being selected as the first scholarship recipient has given.” Following this success, the Bruce-Lockhart Member Scholarship will be awarded at this year’s C’llr Awards to an elected member who has demonstrated clear potential for local leadership. This may include any of the following: Evidence of impact locally – within your ward, the borough as a whole and the council itself Evidence that you have influenced local policy Evidence that your voice has been heard nationally within the sector or that you have contributed to national debate Evidence that you have contributed to local government innovation Wider evidence of leadership in pursuit of professional, community or personal interests As part of the assessment, applicants for the Scholarship will also need to develop: A scholarship proposal which will promote the case for localism and government at a local level – a project worth up to £10,000 to be completed within the year with a presentation to the prestigious annual Bruce-Lockhart Lecture. As such, applications for this award must be made by the nominee themselves. For further instructions, and to download an entry form, please click here. The closing date for entries in this category is December 30th, 2011. For more information on the 2012 LGiU and CCLA C’llr Achievement Awards, please visit www.lgiu.org.uk/cllrawards, or email awards@lgiu.org.uk.
