The Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action (NICVA)
THE CIVIC FORUM
4.2 One of the issues which has concerned the 4 R.O.'s is the exclusion inherent in the choice of sub-sectoral groupings. The full spread of groups listed under Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 which requires public authorities to have due regard to the need to promote equality of opportunity are not named as sub-sectoral panels, specifically excluding lesbians and gay men. Groups representing rural community issues, unemployed people, homeless people, Irish language groups and community arts groups have also registered their feelings of exclusion. The 4 R.O.'s took account of this exclusion in the final selection mechanism.
4.3 The 4 R.O.'s met with Dennis Haughey and Dermot Nesbitt, the Junior Ministers in the Office of the First Minister / Deputy First Minister on 31 January 2000, just prior to the suspension of the Assembly, to present our initial selection mechanism.
4.4 The 4 RO's have worked to develop supporting documents for the process of selecting nominations for the Civic Forum including:
* Advert for sub-sectoral panels
* Advert for nominations for civic forum members
* Registration form for sub-sectoral panels (and for other interests not
covered by panels)
* Application form for nominations for membership of civic forum
* Role and job description - sub-sectoral panel
* Job description - for nominees to civic forum
* Confidential equality monitoring form for nominees
* Criteria for selection / election to be used by panels
* Code of Conduct
* Accountability paper
* Equality checklist
5 SELECTION PROCESS
The model and process for Civic Forum nominations is as follows:
5.1 Public advertisements and use of all available databases to encourage groups to join as many of the sub-sectoral panels as they wish and to register if they feel their group is not reflected in the 11 panels. The interest from other groupings, which do not fit within the sub-sectoral panel structures, including gay and lesbian groups, will be actively sought.
5.2 The 4 RO's will run four information seminars throughout N Ireland to bring together anyone interested in registering for a sub-sectoral panel, plus others who feel their interests are not met by a sub-sectoral panel, and for general information. The aim of the seminars will be to ensure a shared understanding of the principles and processes involved in the selection procedure.
5.3 The 4 RO's will hold a Civic Forum Panel Conference to which all those who have returned a registration form for a panel, or indicated that they feel their interests are not met by the panel structure, will be invited. The Conference will provide a full briefing on the selection process.
5.4 Selection Committees of between 3-5 people for each of the 11 panels will be agreed at the Civic Forum Panel Conference. These selection committees will operate the selection / election process for their panel. (These people will be individuals who are not themselves standing for nomination.)
5.5 Sub-sectoral panels will each decide how best they should develop an organisational structure within their panels in order to support the participation of their sector and accountability of their nominees to the Civic Forum.
5.6 Public advertisement and use of all databases to invite individuals to seek information packs and application forms for civic forum membership.
5.7 No member of the original selection working group from the 4 regional
organisations who is going to stand for nomination as a representative to
the Civic Forum will be involved in the selection process once the advertisements
for nominations have been issued. |
