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Main Facilitator

Input Phase

What do you need to mention as the Main Facilitator in the Input Phase?

  • Welcome everyone. Introduce yourself with a sentence or two.
  • Tell participants what this event is, i.e. a Community Assembly to “hear your voice on the question of …. ?”
  • Ask if anyone has any accessibility needs that can be met now or throughout the assembly process and tell people that if they would rather share these privately, they can speak to any of the volunteers. Ask all the volunteers to raise their hands.
  • Housekeeping:
    • Toilets and fire exits
    • hearing loop or other accessibility issues
    • check if objections to photos or video
  • Speak about the Agenda of the day including timings; ideally have this visible to participants either via material on the tables, or on flip chart sheet somewhere easily seen. Check if planned breaks might not work for any participants and offer chance to share needs privately
  • Introduce the assembly team and in a sentence describe their roles.
  • If you do not have enough note-takers, prepare the attendees for stepping forward or using post it notes. Inform tables that they will be asked to find a volunteer to take notes for their break out groups and the group facilitators will support that process, or that people will be limited in terms of the number of sticky note ideas they can offer, so that no voice dominates.
  • Go through hand signals
    • Want to speak
    • Temperature check
    • Speak up
    • Round up
  • Explain the three pillars:

Active Listening

Active listening is focusing on hearing someone all the way through to when they finish, before responding. It is also about overcoming our urge to start figuring out our response in our own mind whilst someone is still talking. Sometimes listening actively leads to shifts in our own focus. Assemblies recognise that no one person or group holds all the answers. It is through the collective wisdom of the crowd that we gain powerful intelligence about the issues being discussed. Active listening is also vital to enhance our capacity to empathise.

Trust the Process

Once the system and process for assemblies has been agreed on, it is essential that all participants be invited to trust the process, the facilitators and to trust the various working groups involved. Facilitators and assembly teams enable this trust, through sticking to the agreed process and ensuring that everyone follows the facilitators.

Radical inclusivity

Effective assemblies achieve radical inclusivity, where the emphasis is explicitly put on all being heard and valued equally. Explain that this means no voices dominate, so the collective wisdom of the assembly is harnessed. People can participate safely and openly without fear of judgement or ridicule. Radical inclusivity, therefore, also means being aware of potential barriers to engagement and working with those affected to enable their participation. For instance, those not comfortable speaking in groups may wish to make a note on a sticky note / piece of paper / draw their thoughts. Dominant voices will have the same time limits on sharing as those who are quieter. Sometimes the quieter voices have more valuable inputs.

  • Read Inclusivity Statement:

“We value all voices equally in the assembly, as our aim is to hear the wisdom of the crowd gathered here and not to have the assembly dominated by individual voices or groups. We recognise that confident speakers are not always right and that those who are not confident speakers will often have the most useful ideas or opinions to put into the discussion. This is why we value all voices equally and we ask you to do the same. We do not tolerate any calling out, abuse or shaming. We welcome all people but not all behaviours.”

  • Get the participants to agree with this set of guidelines with show of wavy hands
  • Tell participants where the results of this assembly will be going, or if there is going to be a follow up event/working group / assembly
  • Ask if there are any open questions so far
  • Let experts speak and hear testimonials

Deliberation Phase

What do you need to do as the Main Facilitator in Deliberation Phase?

  • Set up the groups – 8-10 (max) people in each group
  • Repeat the assembly question to every one. Ideally, have it visible on a flip chart or screen for everyone or on paper at each table; point this out
  • Make sure every break out group has a facilitator and note taker
  • Keep an eye on the time or designate someone to time-keep
  • Tell the break out groups ten minutes before when it is time to wrap up and decide on (eg three) key points to feed back to the whole assembly in the integration phase

Integration Phase

What to do as the Main Facilitator in the Integration Phase?

  • Ask a presenter from each group to read out their 3 statements / recommendations / asks. The main Note-taker / Facilitator will write on a flip chart visible to everyone
  • Check for clarifications needed from participants. NB NOT comments. If there is a need to vote on results of the assembly, Lead Facilitator takes a ‘Temperature Check’; they read out the different options to be voted on so the assembly can cast their ‘vote’ using ‘wavy hands’ for the option they like the best. The assembly note taker and lead facilitators watch for the most wavy hands; that point gets taken forward. Each person has three votes
  • The lead facilitator summarises the main results of the assembly. They then remind people of next steps again, e.g. results be sent out via email, to whom, any next assembly plans, creation of working groups. If flip chart papers have been used to gather ideas on each table, photograph these and inform participants they will be shared on social channels.
  • Express gratitude for the breakout group facilitators and note-takers, and for everyone who participated.
  • ‘Shout Outs’ are an open invitation for all gathered to call out brief notifications, such as upcoming actions or events. These should be short and arranged with the facilitators beforehand if possible. Allow no more than 10 minutes.
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