Skip to content

attheedge

Martin Johnstone's Website

  • Home
  • About
  • What I can offer
  • Musings
  • Get in Touch
Poverty truth event

“Some things are so urgent ….

5 years ago musings
Share
  • F
  • T

“Some things are so urgent that we can’t afford to do them quickly.” There is an inherent contradiction in this statement but also a deep truth.

At times quick decisions need to be made and procrastinating costs lives. Other times our immediate, short term responses – natural though they may be – do not serve us well in the longer term. We will doubtless have experienced both during the COVID19 pandemic and we are likely to see both again in our attempts to recover from it.

Over recent months it has been encouraging how much consensus there has been, at least in terms of rhetoric, about the need to Build Back Better. There is a broad recognition that the trajectory we were on was failing too many, driving inequality and destroying the planet.

One of the challenges which those enabling and leading the build back better movement face is the requirement to both respond quickly and to take time and to act deliberatively. There is no doubt that an ‘Overton’ policy window has opened to make the case for radical economic and social change – e.g. building a green economy, creating universally accessible and affordable superfast broadband, recalibrating social care – but also that it could close rapidly. There is also a perceived need to act now before more damage is done. However, there is also a risk that by moving too quickly many of those whose interests were not represented (or even acknowledged) previously will continue to be overlooked.

This is one of the perennial problems of policy development, implementation, and evaluation. Put simply, those whose lives have been most harshly impacted by policy and practice remain largely excluded from the development of the very policy and practice supposedly designed to tackle current injustices. There is, therefore, a need not just to build back better but, to build back WITH.

Over the last few years, a growing number of Poverty Truth Commissions have emerged in different parts of the UK. The commissions bring people with direct, lived experience of poverty together with civic and business leaders in a shared task to address the symptoms and causes of poverty. The commissions always begin with those who experience poverty – they meet as a group for several months before others are invited to join them. It is their struggle that substantially sets the agenda. This is slow work. It is about building understanding and relationships – empathy across and between different spaces – before a commission is capable to move on to developing solutions. One of the people who has helped to develop the Poverty Truth Network says it often feels more like cooking a Sunday roast than a microwave dinner. You can’t rush it.

Recently a small group that has been involved in different Poverty Truth Commissions came together to discuss how to build back with. One person pointed out that it has taken coronavirus for many of us to realise what had been obvious to her and others for many years: things were not working the way they should for people like her and for millions of others. We spoke of digital inequality; poor mental health; isolation for some and overcrowding for others; escalating levels of food insecurity; the struggle to look after our kids. We recognised that for those able to work from home during the pandemic, fewer opportunities to spend money may well mean that savings have increased in recent months whereas for others increased household costs have thrown people even further into debt.

Unless people who bear the scars of failed policy and practice are there when decisions about the future are being considered, there is the overwhelming likelihood that past mistakes will be repeated.

We do not underestimate how challenging this way of working is. But it seems to us inconceivable that it is possible to create a just asylum system without the involvement of asylum seekers and people who are fearful of losing their jobs to them. We won’t successfully create a society where young people can flourish if they are excluded from the design of that society. We won’t develop a sustainable benefits system without the insights of people who require its support.

These things are obvious but, in our experience, it is astonishing how often they are overlooked or paid lip service to. We have lost count of the number of times that we have heard it said: “It would have been good to involve more people with lived experience but there simply wasn’t the time.” However, if we are honest, we need to recognise that for too many of us who hold positions of power, there was not the time because we did not believe that the insights of others were as worthwhile as our own.

Time clearly matters. For some now is the time to really listen rather than jumping to inadequate and incomplete solutions. This is about slowly, and with others, growing in confidence, finding our voice, and sharing our expertise. One of us spoke about how, through the course of the pandemic, he had played a regular part in advising the local authority on how homeless people could be more effectively supported, knowing the issues from the inside. This was only possible because, as part of a Poverty Truth Commission, he had begun to recognise his own worth.

These stories are not unique. The Poverty Truth Network is one of a range of groups that nurture such wisdom and help it to inform policy and practice. But such groups are still a  minority, even amongst progressive organisations who are often understandably impatient for change.  

The model for establishing a Poverty Truth Commission is about designing a system, not just a one-off policy programme. Systems thinking is deliberately slow and iterative, enabling friendships, insights, policy and practice to grow sustainably over time. We recognise that this way of working is also joyful, and that joy is an essential element in what will be the long, ongoing journey towards a sustainable and better future. The arc of history may well bend towards justice, but it is a long arc.

“Some things are so urgent that we cannot afford to do them quickly.”

This piece arose out of a conversation on the need to Build Back With between Alex Campbell, Hugh Douglas, Andrew Grinnell, Lee Hemsworth, Martin Johnstone,  Shirley Rigby, and Imogen Tyler. They are all involved in the work of the Poverty Truth Network.

It was originally published by Involve as part of their series of blogs looking at “democratic responses to COVID19.”

You can find out more at www.povertytruthnetwork.org or by contacting the Network at: info@povertytruthnetwork.org.

For further musing:

Follow me on Twitter and Instagram

Book me to speak

Related topics:

Build Back Better, Build Back With, COVID19, democracy, Involve, Poverty Truth Network

Living @ the Edge

About this time of year, we are normally walking on the northern tip of Skye. It’s not been possible this year but it has got me thinking. It has got me thinking about what living @ the edge really looks and feels like.

Previous Article

Can we all just slow down, please?

I have been reading Roman Krznaric’s wonderful new book, “The Good Ancestor: How to Think Long Term in a Short-Term World.” It has certainly got me thinking.

Next Article
  • Home
  • About
  • Get in Touch
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2025

Design: Yellow Tractor

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPTRead More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Analytics" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional1 yearThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Necessary" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-non-necessary1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Non-necessary" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to store the user consent for cookies in the category "Others".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to store the user consent for cookies in the category "Performance".
wordpress_test_cookieSessionTests that the browser accepts cookies.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
CookieDurationDescription
comment_author_{HASH}347 daysUsed to tracked comment author name, if “Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.” is checked
comment_author_email_{hash)347 daysUsed to tracked comment author email, if “Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.” is checked.
comment_author_url_{hash}347 daysUsed to track comment author url, if “Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.” checkbox is checked
NID183 daysWe use Google ReCaptcha v3 to protect our contact form on the website which sends a NID cookie to Google.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
CookieDurationDescription
CookieLawInfoConsent1 yearNo description
SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by CookieYes Logo