Owning the Future: Co-op Party Conference 2020

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Programme

Saturday 10 OctoberSat 10 Oct
Sunday 11 OctoberSun 11 Oct
Monday 12 – Friday 16 OctoberMon 12 – Fri 16 Oct
Saturday 17 OctoberSat 17 Oct

Morning

10:00-10:15	Welcome Welcome by Joe Fortune, General Secretary of the Co-operative Party Add to your calendar
10:15-10:45	Keynote In conversation with Keir Starmer MP Join Labour Party Leader Keir Starmer for a wide-ranging "in conversation" event with Preet Gill MP, Vice-Chair of the Co-operative Party Parliamentary Group, and also Rebecca Harvey, Editor of Co-op News. Add to your calendar
10:45-11:15	Keynote Shadow Chancellor Anneliese Dodds MP Introduced by Ruth Hall, the newly-elected Vice Chair of the Co-operative Party NEC. Add to your calendar
11:15-11:30	Welcome Address by Jim McMahon MP, Chair of the Co-operative Party NEC Add to your calendar
11:30-12:15	Panel Co-operatives through Covid Meet the co-operators innovating on the ground through this crisis. From emergency food to cycle co-ops, the last few months have shown that, whatever the challenges we face, there are co-operative solutions ready to lead the way. Cllr Eve Holt: During lockdown, Eve has worked with the Unicorn Co-op to deliver groceries and other essentials by bike to people who were self-isolating or shielding. Cllr Joanna West: Joanna helped to develop a partnership between the council and the Central England Co-op, to get food to people unable to leave the house. Heather Powell: Heather is a member of the North Wales Music Co-op, who have launched an online service through lockdown so that pupils were able to learn from home while schools were closed. Cllr Nick Small: Nick set up a partnership between the council and a cycling co-op, Peloton, to provide free home deliveries on cargo bikes. Paul O’Hara: Drive, a taxi co-op in Cardiff, have offered discounted rides to NHS and other key workers, and free deliveries for grocery shopping for vulnerable customers. Laura Newlands: Laura is a member pioneer for the Co-op Group in Beith and Kilbirnie. During Lockdown she has been busy organising volunteers to make face masks for stores and communities around Ayrshire Martyn Holmes: Martyn co-founded Bunker Housing Co-op with others in Brighton looking for more affordable, sustainable homes – and completed their firs two wooden eco homes during lockdown. Add to your calendar

Afternoon

12:15-13:30	Panel Owning The Future: Ideas for a More Equal Recovery As we emerge from lockdown, faced with our worst recession on record and a looming second wave, we are at a crossroads. We can return to the unequal economy that characterised pre-Covid Britain, or we can create something better. The last few months have shown that we can respond to crisis with kindness, and communities – not corporations – have led the way. This panel brings together thinkers and policy makers to consider how we can regrow the economy and rewrite the rules governing it to create something fairer which reflects our co-operative values and principles. Speakers: Dr Wanda Wyporska, The Equality Trust Professor Andres Velasco, Dean of School of Public Policy, LSE Anna Birley, Policy Officer, Co-operative Party Luke Murphy, Head of the Environmental Justice Commission and Associate Director for the Energy, Climate, Housing and Infrastructure Team Chair: Nick Crofts, President of the Co-op Group National Members Council and Labour & Co-op councillor in Liverpool Add to your calendar
13:30-14:00	Keynote Cancelled: Mayor Andy Burnham Labour & Co-operative Mayor of Greater Manchester
15:00-17:00	Social Awards and Quiz Sit back, relax and meet with your fellow co-operators for our conference social! We'll be giving out our annual awards to outstanding co-operators, followed by our big Co-operative Quiz! Join our own Emma Hoddinott and quizmaster Ian Murray MP and show off your smarts to win a prize. With: Ian Murray MP Cllr Emma Hoddinott Add to your calendar

Morning

10:30-11:45	Policy Debate Making Business Work for the Common Good The culmination of our 2020 policy process, we'll be discussing the ideas proposed in our 2020 policy paper (read it here) about corporate governance and making business work for the common good. Members are welcome to directly contribute to the debate if they wish, but anyone can tune in to watch this lively discussion! Chair: Policy Sub-Committee Chair Jonathan Reynolds MP Paul Monaghan Hazel Blears You? If you're a member, you can take part in the debate! Register your interest here. Add to your calendar
11:45-12:00	Launch West Midlands Co-operative Task Force Launch Join us for the launch of the report from the West Midlands Co-operative Taskforce, which has been exploring what kind of co-operative future we could build in the West Midlands ahead of the Metro Mayoral elections next year. Liam Byrne MP, Labour & Co-operative Candidate for West Midlands Mayor Add to your calendar
12:00-13:15	Policy Debate Connecting communities: from buses to broadband The culmination of our 2020 policy process, we'll be discussion the ideas proposed in our 2020 policy paper (read it here) about the physical and virtual infrastructure. Members are welcome to directly contribute to the debate if they wish, but anyone can tune in to watch this lively discussion! Chair: Policy Sub-Committee Chair Steve Reed MP Monica Lee, B4RN Laura Price, West Ox Community Transport You? If you're a member, you can take part in the debate! Register your interest here. Add to your calendar

Afternoon

15:00-15:30	Campaigning Campaigning against retail crime Join us for a quick campaigning session on protecting shopworkers, as our General Secretary Joe Fortune talks to our current #NotPartOfTheJob campaign and what you can do to end retail crime. Joe Fortune, General Secretary, Co-op Party Add to your calendar
15:30-16:00	Campaigning Campaigning for Food Justice Join us for a quick campaigning session on Food Justice, as we preview our new online tool to help you take direct action to combat food poverty in your area. Emma Hoddinott, Local Government Officer, Co-op Party Add to your calendar
16:00-16:30	Campaigning Campaigning to protect community spaces Join us to hear more about our Love It? List It! campaign on how to protect the community spaces like parks, pubs and post offices you love by listing them as Assets of Community Value. We'll talk you through how you can identify, list and even work towards owning the community assets you love. James Butler, Campaigns Officer, Co-op Party Add to your calendar

Monday 12 October

Lunchtime Session

13:00-14:00

Panel

Common decency

Far from being a great equalizer, Covid-19 has exacerbated inequalities. From food on our table and access to basic financial services to a decent wage for a decent day’s work, the things many of us take for granted seem further away than ever for millions. This session will hear from those at the forefront of change in their communities as well as the latest policy thinking on food justice, financial resilience, decent work and a real living wage.

Chair: Kate Dearden, Community
Karen Hurst, ABCUL
Cllr Kirsteen Sullivan
Peter Kelly, Poverty Alliance

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Evening Session

18:30-19:30	Network Discussion Co-operating for gender equality: how co-ops can drive female economic empowerment Hosted by our member-led Co-operative Party Women's Network. Chair: Ria Bernard Seema Malhotra MP Rebecca Harvey, Co-op News Add to your calendar

Tuesday 13 October

Lunchtime Session

13:00-14:00

Panel

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

Jobs should lead our plans for economic recovery, but with a focus on quality as well as quantity – higher wages, job security, and a say and a stake in the workplace. Learning from Italy’s Marcora Law, this panel will explore how employee ownership can and should be at the heart of a fairer economic recovery.

Chair: Meg Hillier MP
Brando Benifei MEP
Deb Oxley, Employee Ownership Assocation
James Kelly MSP

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Evening Session

18:30-19:30	Network Discussion A fairer environment: co-operation and climate change Hosted by our member-led Co-operative Party Youth Network. Chair: Marian Craig, Co-chair of Youth Committee Luke Pollard MP Dr Afsheen Rashid MBE Ishaa Asim Add to your calendar

Wednesday 14 October

Lunchtime Session

13:00-14:00	Network Discussion Impact of Covid-19 crisis on disabled community Hosted by our member-led Co-operative Party (Dis)ability Network. Chair: Cheryl Barrott Vicky Foxcroft MP Valerie Bossman-Quarshie Fazilet Hadi, Disability Rights UK Cllr Eleanor Southwood, Chair, RNIB Add to your calendar

Evening Session

18:30-19:30

Panel

The co-operative movement’s role through a second wave

As the country braces for a second wave, and many neighbourhoods are already in local lockdowns, the co-operative movement is poised to step up again. Just as co-operatives demonstrated our values through the first lockdown, helping to prevent hunger, support young people with learning from home, create new jobs, connect communities and tackle loneliness, this session will hear from the movement on their role in the months to come.

Chair: Baroness Glenys Thornton
Paul Gerrard, Campaigns & Public Affairs Director, The Co-op
Karen Creavin, The Active Wellbeing Society
Jo White, Executive Director Co-op Futures
Stella Creasy MP

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Thursday 15 October

Lunchtime Session

13:00-14:00

Panel

Don’t moan, organise! Community-led high street revival

High streets are the beating hearts of our communities – but their decline is accelerating. Covid-19 and the threat of further lockdowns leaves much of the retail sector with an uncertain prognosis. But as panelists in this session demonstrate, the power to protect and revive our high streets and town centres is in our hands.

Chair: James Murray MP
Chris Clarke, Hope Not Hate
Hazel Tilley, Granby 4 Streets CLT
Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland and member of the Midsteeple Quarter

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Evening Session

18:30-19:30

Panel

Changemaking during Covid

There is a pressing need for change – but the ways in which we usually organise and campaign, from rallies to doorknocking, are no longer possible. But the last few months have shown us that we respond to crisis with co-operation, with communities across the countries coming together to help their neighbours or challenge injustice. This session will look at how we adapt and make change happen in different ways, learning from mutual aid groups, Black Lives Matter and a community kitchen.

Chair: Florence Eshalomi MP
Cllr Kemi Akinola, CEO Be Enriched and MD Brixton People's Kitchen
Andrew Ogun, BLM Gwent
David Howard, Howden Helpers Mutual Aid Group

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Friday 16 October

Lunchtime Session

13:00-14:00	Network Discussion BAME Communities and the Potential for Deepening Co-operation Hosted by our member-led Co-operative Party BAME Network. Chair: Dr Gregory Roberts Chrissy Meleady, Equalities and Human Rights UK Cllr Rupinder Singh Cllr Sanchia Alasia Add to your calendar

Morning

10:30-12:30	AGM Co-operative Party Ltd Annual General Meeting The last day of our conference will feature our Annual General Meeting (AGM), where our members meet to vote on crucial business for the year ahead. This event is open to Co-operative Party members only. Add to your calendar

Afternoon

13:30-14:30

Network Discussion

More than a night at the pub: protecting LGBTQ+ venues after Covid

Hosted by our member-led Co-operative Party LGBT+ Co-operators. Finish off conference with a virtual trip to the pub with our LGBT Network, who will be talking about how vital LGBT+ friendly venues are to their community and what we can do to secure their future.

Chair: Cllr Chris Penberthy
Tracy Brabin MP
James Lindsay, Royal Vauxhall Tavern

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All times are subject to change.

Register for conference updates

You can also get reminders when each sessions starts by joining "The Hive", our WhatsApp Broadcast List. Click here to join.

About Owning The Future

Join us from 10th-17th October for our first ever online conference

With a range of exciting keynote speakers, panel debates, workshops and more, we're excited to bring you Owning the Future – our first ever online conference.

We'll be bringing together co-operators from all over the world to show how we can emerge from this turbulent year with a new normal, where you can own your workplace, own your community and own the future.

Do I need to be a member of the Co-operative Party to attend the Owning the Future conference?

No! The main days of the Owning the Future conference are welcome to all, and you do not need to be a member to take part.

The only exception is our Annual General Meeting on Saturday 17th October, which is open only to Co-operative Party members.

How much does it cost to attend?

Our online conference is free for everyone! However if you would like to make a donation to the costs of running our online conference, you can do so here.

How do I attend the conference? Where is it?

Owning The Future will be taking place online so you can join us from the comfort of your own home. You can watch on party.coop/conference20 or on YouTube or Facebook. Need help figuring out how to watch, ask questions or otherwise take part? See our help guide.

Will Owning the Future be accessible?

The conference will be live-captioned for deaf and hard-of-hearing participants. If you have any other accessibility needs, please contact events@party.coop and we will do our best to accommodate.

Promoted by Joe Fortune on behalf of the Co-operative Party, both at Unit 13, 83 Crampton Street, London, SE17 3BQ, United Kingdom.
Co-operative Party Limited is a registered Society under the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014. Registered no. 30027R