Jonathan Ellis

The ABCs of APPGs

APPGs are a curious part of the Westminster Parliament’s business, but can be a great channel to support your policy influencing work.

All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) are a curious part of the Westminster Parliament’s business. They are informal groups of MPs and Peers who come together, on a cross-party basis, on particular topics and issues. What makes them unusual is that while they are comprised of MPs and Peers, they have no official status in Parliament. However, for anyone seeking to influence the policy agenda, they can be a very useful way of getting your issues and concerns on the agenda.

In this post, I’ll be looking at how APPGs can help you in influencing the policy agenda and getting your issues and concerns on the agenda. Even though APPGs do not have an official status, they can have considerable influence.

Although I focus on Westminster, the same principles apply to equivalent groups (known as Cross Party Groups) in both the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Senedd, and All-Party Groups in the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Types of APPG

There are broadly two types of APPGs in Westminster – country specific groups, and subject groups. The subject groups cover an enormous range of interests, ranging from the Eurovision Song Contest to War Crimes, and everything in between. You can access an up to date list of APPGs on the Parliament website.

There is also a wide variety in what the groups do and how they operate. Some are focused on serious policy discussion and influence, while others are much less formal and are arguably more like social groups for parliamentarians.

For anyone trying to influence the policy agenda, there are broadly two main ways that you can work with APPGs. The first is to provide the secretariat for a group close to your interests, and the second is to engage with APPGs as a stakeholder.

Providing the secretariat to an APPG

APPGs often outsource the support and coordination of their work to other organisations. If you have the capacity, offering to provide the secretariat for a group can be a really effective way of supporting the work of the group.

If you are fortunate enough to be appointed as a group’s secretariat, it means that you’ll be working closely with the chair and officers (the MPs and Peers) of the group to set meeting agendas and plan the group’s activities. Here are my top five tips for making an APPG a success in influencing policy.

Tip 1: Make sure you’ve got a good Chair and Officers

You need a committed and effective Chair and Officers. The officers of the group will quickly become your most engaged group of parliamentarians. In an ideal world, you’ll want them to be open to writing letters to Ministers, tabling Parliamentary Questions and hosting Westminster Hall debates, among other things. Invest the time and energy in building your relationship with them – it really will be the making of an effective group.

Tip 2: Make it active

I’ve seen so many APPGs over the years that have just ‘plodded along’ with occasional meetings which people go to out of little more than a sense of duty. In contrast, active groups, who meet regularly and who provide lots of opportunities for wider stakeholders to get involved, are much more likely to build interest and support.

Tip 3: Hold interesting meetings

It seems obvious to say, but it’s really important that the meeting topics are interesting and engaging, and that they attract and engage a wider audience. There’s little point in meetings which are only attended by the APPG officers and a handful of stakeholders. I’ve seen so many APPG meetings over the years which effectively preach to the converted and therefore have little wider influence. You want people to feel challenged, energised and involved from the discussions at APPG meetings, not just hearing the things that they already know or think. Getting interesting external speakers, particularly people with lived experience, can really help with this. And don’t forget that you can invite Ministers and officials too.

Tip 4: Run inquiries

One of the really effective ways that APPGs can have an impact on the policy agenda is to run inquiries. Running an inquiry in which stakeholders are invited to submit written evidence, and where the APPG can hold oral evidence sessions (a bit like a Select Committee would) can be a really effective influencing tool. Publishing a report from the inquiry with recommendations carries some weight, and can be a really impactful way of influencing. Sometimes, such APPG reports can even generate media interest – something worth talking to your media and comms colleagues about. It’s important to note, of course, that supporting such inquiries and producing reports can be quite time and labour intensive, so you’ll need to think carefully about your capacity to do so, and be quite targeted in how you use this approach.

Tip 5: Don’t forget the admin!

Even though they have no official status in Parliament, there are very strict Parliamentary rules about how APPGs must be set up, registered and run. As the secretariat for the group, it’s your job to work with the Chair to make sure that the APPG stays within the rules with regard to meetings and activities, and the necessary reporting. It’s all too easy to slip up and find yourself on the receiving end of a telling off! Serious breaches of the rules can even result in the APPG being de-registered.

Engaging as a stakeholder

If you’re not able to offer to provide the secretariat, or there is an existing group with an existing secretariat, all is not lost. Engaging with APPGs as a stakeholder can also be a really effective influencing tool. Here are some tips and tricks for how to do that effectively.

Tip 1: Attend meetings and ask questions

All APPGs must hold regular meetings, and those are normally open to the public. It’s well worth going along to hear more about what the group is working on. Where appropriate, you can also ask questions – which can be a good way of highlight an issue that is important to you.

Tip 2: Submit evidence

Where APPGs run inquiries or reviews, they will often ask for evidence from stakeholders. As they are not official parliamentary groups, it’s not uncommon for stakeholders to give such requests a lower priority than they might for a call for evidence from a Select Committee, for example. However, submitting evidence can be a really good way to get your messages across, and with lower overall engagement, there’s a greater chance that your voice will be heard.

Tip 3: Offer speakers

APPG meetings often have external speakers on particular topics and themes at their meetings. It can be a good idea to get in touch with the organisation providing the secretariat for the group and offering up speakers and presenters for future meetings.

What has your experience been of APPGs (or their equivalents in the other nations)? What do you think makes for a good and effective APPG? Let me know in the comments below.

Coming up next time: I’ll take a look at how to use evidence to support your influencing work.

Influencing together: Top tips on working collaboratively to influence policy

Working collaboratively can be a powerful way to influence policy. In this post, I’ll take a look at some tips to make collaborative working a success.

I’m a great believer that working together can be a powerful and effective way to influence policy. A consensus view is much more likely to get cut through with ministers and officials than a variety of different voices speaking independently.

But good collaborative working is hard to do in practice. In this post, I’ll be exploring how to use collaborative working to achieve policy influence and change.

Why work together?

In a previous post, I talked about the importance of relationships in influencing policy. Relationships are also important when you want to work with others to achieve a common policy objective.

Speaking with one voice on an issue will undoubtedly increase the impact of your message with decision makers. It demonstrates consensus and agreement

There are lots of different types of what I will call ‘policy collaboratives’. It might be several organisations working together on a joint campaign, mobilising supporters in a very vocal and visible way. It might be a more formal coalition coming together to raise the profile of an issue, for example, during an election campaign. It could be a group of organisations coming together to undertake or publish research or policy advice. Or it might be a less formal partnership between organisations operating in a similar space but who want to make sure that they don’t inadvertently cut across one another’s work. All of these policy collaboratives have one thing in common – they depend heavily on trust and confidence.

Policy collaboratives can be a highly effective way of influencing policy. They can be especially helpful for smaller organisations who might not have as much capacity for policy work to increase their influence, or for giving a voice to harder to hear voices.

So, what are my top tips for making collaborative working a go-to tool in the policy influencing toolbox?

Tip 1: Have a clear aim

It’s really important to have a clear and measurable aim that you can all agree on. It might be a specific legislative change that you’re seeking, or a specific policy commitment that you want government to make. I’ve seen so many policy collaboratives over the years who fail for the simple reason that they can’t clearly articulate what they’re trying to do, or who have an aim that is so high level that it’s impossible to break it down in to anything concrete or specific. Not only does that undermine the positive impact of working together, it also increases the risk that your partners may walk away if they can’t see value in working together.

Tip 2: Identify your partners

Who is it that you want or need to work with? And how broad or focused do you want your collaborative to be? A lot will depend on what you want your collaborative to achieve. As a general rule of thumb, the more partners you have, the harder it will be to agree specific and measurable aims and objectives. Conversely, if you want to demonstrate strength in numbers, a broader base collaborative will send a powerful message.

Tip 3: Establish some ground rules

With some clear aims agreed, you need to be clear how you will work together. For example, will you meet regularly? How will information be shared? What is expected of each of the partners? It’s important to recognise that different partners will probably have different roles to play depending on what they can bring to the collaboration. Some may be very active, while others might be quite passive. It’s important to be clear about that upfront to avoid problems further down the line.

I’ve also seen policy collaboratives put under a lot of strain by individual organisations going off and doing things outside of the collaborative and without any advance warning to the other partners. One particular example sticks in my mind. One of the partners published research via a press release on a topic that was central to the aims of the collaborative, and only let the other partners know on the day of the launch! It took us all by surprise, and eroded the trust and confidence within the collaborative. Don’t get me wrong – there is nothing wrong with different organisations having their own priorities and projects in the fringes of a shared endeavour. But being able to share intelligence is really important to making such a collaborative work.

Tip 4: Decide who leads

One of the hardest things to agree is who will lead the collaborative work. If you’re trying to present a united front on a particular issue, there seems little point in then having multiple points of contact for parliamentarians or officials who might want to talk to you. But it can be hard to ‘let go’. Afterall, whoever is the coordinator or lead for a policy collaborative will inevitably be perceived as such by the people that you are trying to influence. Which leads me nicely to tip five.

Tip 5: Park the egos

One of the most important but hardest things to do in any policy collaborative work is to park organisational (or sometimes even individual!) egos. It’s not unusual for collaborative partners to have an element of healthy competition between them – after all, all organisations are trying to demonstrate to decision makers that they are the most authoritative and best placed to help them. Entering in to a policy collaborative, however, requires everyone to leave the ego at the door, and to agree to work together on the shared objective. Doing so helps to build trust, and makes it more likely that you will achieve your goals.

Tip 6: Have a clear plan

It’s really important that you are clear about what you are going to do. Are you, for example, going to produce joint briefings, press releases or statements, or hold joint meetings? Having a clear plan will also help you make sure that you’re involving the right people. If you’re planning joint media statements, for example, getting your media and communications colleagues involved at an early stage is a really good idea.

Tip 7: Agree a timeline

Just as important as having a clear aim is clarity about how long you will work together. Is it an open-ended collaboration (in which case the aims will need to be regularly refreshed and updated), or is it a specific, short-term collaboration (such as working together to promote an amendment to a bill before Parliament).

Tip 8: Review regularly

Review the progress that you’re making regularly. Your aims might need to be tweaked or adapted if there has been any policy movement. It’s also important to review whether the collaborative is still needed – I’ve seen many examples over the years of this kind of policy collaborative continuing long beyond its useful life, leaving the participants with the thankless task of trying to find a purpose.

Collaboration works

In my experience, policy collaboratives with clear aims, a healthy way of working and a high degree of trust and confidence between the partners can be a really effective way of influencing the policy agenda.

What would you add to this list? What is your experience of collaborative policy influencing work? Let me know in the comments below.

Coming up next time: How can All-Party Parliamentary Groups help you to achieve your policy objectives?

Drowning in paper? How do you decide which consultations are worth bothering with? And how do you make a submission that will be listened to?

Responding to consultations is bread and butter for anyone involved in influencing policy. In this post, I’ll take a look at how to make sure that your voice is heard

Responding to government consultations is bread and butter for people working in policy roles. If you’re not careful, it could be all too easy to do nothing but, surrounded by piles of paper and post-it notes.

So how do you decide which consultations to respond to, and which you can ignore? And what are the best ways to go about putting a submission together?

In this post, I’ll be looking at how to approach government consultation processes, and some of the tips and tricks to make your voice heard.

What is a consultation?

This might sound like a fairly easy question to answer. But the reality is that there are lots of different types of consultations that government (and their associated arm’s length bodies) might issue from time to time. Being able to spot the difference will help you decide which ones to prioritise, and which you can safely ignore.

In 2018, the UK Government Cabinet Office published an updated set of principles to support the civil service on how to run consultation processes (which are substantially watered down from previous versions). It provides useful insight in to how such processes are planned and organised from the government’s perspective. In reality, I’m not convinced that the principles are always used by officials when planning such processes.

A duty to consult

There are some consultations that the government has a legal duty to issue – these are normally fairly technical consultations where there is a responsibility to regularly consult with stakeholders. One example of such a consultation is the annual consultation that is issued on the detail of the NHS Standard Contract which is used for any providers delivering NHS funded care. If you have technical expertise, or something specific that you want to see changed, it can be relatively easy to have some influence on these, as officials are specifically looking for input on the detail.

A fait-accompli?

There are then some consultations which are simply tick-box exercises which allow the government to say that they canvassed views. A tell-tale sign of one of these is a consultation which is issued to gather views on a subject that the government has already been quite vocal about the approach that it is planning to take (the consultation on proposals to make COVID vaccination a condition of deployment in health and care services in England is a good example of one of these, even though that was eventually reversed). Another tell-tale sign of one of these types of consultation is that they often have very short windows for responses (best practice is to allow respondents 12 weeks to submit responses, but in reality it is often much less. For tick box consultations it can sometimes be as short as a couple of weeks).

Seeking expert input

The third type of consultation is one where the government is genuinely interested in gathering input and expertise to help them take some policy decisions. Consultations about developing or updating guidance (where expert professional input will be essential) is an example of this kind of consultation.

This isn’t to say that this is the only type of consultation that you should bother with. Deciding which consultation process to engage with will depend a lot on how relevant the consultation might be to your priorities or interests. Sometimes, even if there is little prospect that your comments might change the government’s mind, it can be important that you are seen to respond and make your voice heard. It can help build your profile and your reputation as an important stakeholder.

The growth of consultation surveys

In recent years, there has been a noticeable growth is consultation surveys, where government issues a consultation with an associated survey to gather responses. This is, of course, designed to make it easier for the poor officials who have to collate responses and pull together summaries of the key themes. Much easier to do that by counting up the number of yes/no answers to a very specific question than to have to read lots of narrative explanation.

Consultation surveys definitely have a place. They’re particularly helpful where some of the decisions that government has to make are quite binary in nature – for example, should we do X or Y. They are less helpful when trying to deal with some complex issues which don’t lend themselves to distilling down to a narrow binary reply. However, in recent years they appear to be increasingly popular with government as a way, presumably, of reducing the administrative burden of analysing submissions. It also helps the government to guide respondents to the answers that it wants to see. This brings me on nicely to the next question.

Should you just answer the consultation questions?

In my opinion, the short answer to this is no.

Sometimes, the questions that are not asked can be more important than those that are. Structuring your response around the consultation questions will obviously make it easier for officials to collate your responses. However, there are sometimes important issues that the government has not yet considered, and that do not fit within the framework of the consultation questions being asked. On those occasions it is perfectly acceptable (and arguably important) to step outside of the question framework and to offer a narrative response. Consultations often have an email address, or mailing address, where narrative responses can be sent, even if the consultation is being run as a survey.

What makes a good response?

A good consultation response is clear, concise, and evidence-based. Although it can be tempting to write War and Peace on a topic that you are very knowledgeable or passionate about, like any communication, it’s important that you get your message across succinctly and clearly.

When it comes to evidence, quantitative and qualitative evidence are both equally important. As I said in a previous post, evidence is king when it comes to making a persuasive argument. That evidence might be evidence about cost and benefit, but could equally be case studies, examples and the voices of people who might be affected.

Maximising your impact

Responding to the formal consultation process can be an effective way to make your voice heard. To maximise your impact, there are a few other things that you can do.

As I have said in previous posts, influencing policy is all about relationships. One of the best ways you can maximise your impact in a consultation process is to get in touch directly with the officials leading the process. They will be keen to learn as much as they can to inform their advice to ministers. It’s quite common for there to be workshops run in parallel to the written consultation process, which can be a good way to find the right people to talk to.

It can also be useful to get in touch with other organisations who might be responding to the consultation too, to see whether there are any common or shared messages that you can both reinforce or help to amplify. The more responses that make a point, the more likely that point is to be heard.

Sometimes, there might be opportunities to use your response as a hook for some media work. This will work best where the issue at hand is particularly newsworthy or interesting, and where you have a strong and clear line. It can help to reinforce your wider campaign messages. Talk to your communications and media colleagues who will be best placed to advise.

Never ask a question you don’t already know the answer to

Responding to consultations is one of the most commonly used tools in the influencing toolbox. If the government is genuinely in listening mode, it can be a really effective way of getting your voice heard, and positioning yourself as a key stakeholder with something constructive and valuable to add.

Pay particular attention to what questions are being asked. As the old legal adage goes, never ask a question that you don’t already know the answer to. Sometimes this also applies to consultation processes – think carefully about the questions that you’re not being asked as much as those that you are.

What is your experience of responding to consultations? How do you pick which ones to prioritise? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Coming up next time: I’ll be exploring working with other organisations to achieve policy influence. Do coalitions work, or do they just water down your objectives?

Third-rate B&Bs and dried out sandwiches – are party conferences really worth it?

With the party conference season on the horizon, I take a look at whether they are an effective influencing tool

September is traditionally the start of the party conference season (at least for the Westminster based UK parties), so I thought now would be a good moment to take a closer look at how useful (or not) they can be as a tool to influence policy.

I’ve lost track of how many party conferences I’ve attended over the years, or how many third rate B&Bs I’ve had to stay in, or dried out conference sandwiches I’ve had to eat. But the big question for lots of organisations, especially those with limited resources, is whether party conferences are an effective tool for influencing policy and therefore worth the investment of time, energy and money.

As you may have guessed from the title for this post, I’m something of a party conference sceptic, but that’s not to say that they don’t have a place in the influencing toolbox.

They are all very different

The set-piece conferences of the UK political parties are all very different. Not just in terms of content, but also for the role they play in setting party policy. For Labour and the Liberal Democrats, for example, conference has a formal role to play in debating and voting on party policy. In contrast, for the Conservatives, conference plays a much more limited role in setting party policy. Understanding this is helpful when thinking about how best to approach conference season, and some of the tactics you might use.

Deciding which conferences to attend

Deciding which conferences to attend, and which to ignore, can be a tricky decision to make, and often comes down to whether your objectives are primarily short or longer term. If there is a specific issue that is live on the current policy agenda that is the focus of your work, then you might choose to engage only with the party conference of the party currently in government. If, on the other hand, you are seeking to build relationships on a cross-party basis for long-term objectives, then you might want to broaden your reach to other parties too. And don’t forget party conferences for nation-specific political parties too, especially if the issues that you’re most interested in are policy areas that are devolved to the Scottish, Welsh or Northern Ireland governments.

A networking opportunity

It goes without saying that the conference season is primarily a networking opportunity. But if you’re hoping that you’ll get opportunities to chat with ministers or shadow ministers in the bar after the main business has ended for the day, you’re likely to be a bit disappointed. In all the conferences I’ve attended over the years, that has only happened on a handful of occasions. But when it does, it can have quite an impact. Government ministers attending their party’s conference will be there without the officials who normally gatekeep access to them. Party conferences are overtly political events which the apolitical civil service cannot attend in their professional capacity.

A significant proportion of the people who attend party conferences aren’t party members, but are people like you who are trying to influence the policy agenda. And in my opinion this is where the true networking value of the party conference season is. It’s a great opportunity to make connections and to explore new collaborations with other organisations operating in the same field as you.

Ways to use a party conference to influence

There are a number of different ways that you might consider using a party conference as a way to influence the policy agenda. For most of us, the decision is likely to come down to the resources that we have available.

Attend as a delegate – the cheapest way of using the conference season as a tool for influence is simply to attend as a (non-voting, obviously!) delegate. This means that you’ll be able to attend fringe events and other meetings taking place as part of the conference programme. Asking well placed questions in fringe events, for example, can be a surprisingly effective way of giving your issues a voice.

Host a fringe event – fringe events are a key feature of any party conference. They are an opportunity for delegates and others to explore specific issues away from the main conference floor and outside of the main conference business. Traditionally, lots of charities either host or participate in fringe events as a reasonably cost-effective way of giving their issues some profile. The risk with any fringe event is whether you’re going to get ‘real’ conference delegates attending and participating, and whether some of the targets of your influence might agree to take part and therefore be exposed to the issue that you’re trying to highlight. There is always a danger that you get low numbers of people attending, and that those that do are just people like you trying to have a voice at the event! Promoting your fringe event effectively is key.

Have an exhibition stand – having a stand in the conference exhibition is probably the priciest way to approach a party conference. It can cost thousands of pounds to book an exhibition space, and even more to come up with an interesting and engaging stand (you don’t want to spend all that money and have a pop up stand with a trestle table with some leaflets on it!). Having said that, conference stands can be a really great way to engage with delegates, and provide a platform for photo opportunities with ministers and shadow ministers who very often want to be seen to be engaging with exhibitors. A good conference stand is fun and engaging, has a clear message, and an ask of delegates. For small organisations, and for many charities, you need to weigh up both the cost, and the ethics, of such a big outlay.

Host a private event – Cheaper than having a conference stand, hosting a private event can be an effective way to get some serious face-to-face time with the key people that you’re trying to reach. You could think about organising a private dinner for a hand-picked list of attendees, for example. If you take this approach, you’ll need to decide whether to host that private event inside (expensive) or outside (cheaper) the conference secure zone. If you opt for inside the secure zone, you’ll find it easier to get people to come along. They may, however, be more reluctant to attend an event outside of the secure zone.

Are they worth it?

The question of whether attending party conferences is worth it is a difficult one to answer. For many of us, it will come down to the resources that we have available, and the cost/benefit assessment of whether we could achieve greater impact through other means.

On the plusses, party conferences are a great networking opportunity and a chance to build relationships that you might not otherwise have developed. If your budget allows, there are some fantastic ways to raise the profile of issues you’re interested in.

On the minuses, they can be very expensive, and in my experience, the direct impact that you get from them (in the short term at least) can be limited. Beyond the direct costs involved, there is the time and energy required to maximise your influence. I still have the emotional scars from three weeks of every autumn travelling around the country from conference to conference – time that could have been used in different ways.

Personally, I think that there are better and more effective ways to get your message across in a more targeted way.

If you do decide to use the party conference circuit as an influencing tool, I have two final pieces of advice. Firstly, book your accommodation early – things book up fast, and you could find yourself with limited options (I remember once being ushered in to an eight-bedded outhouse of a B&B in Bournemouth which was used primarily for stag and hen dos. While it was interesting to have a choice of eight beds, every single one of them was broken in some way!). And secondly, eat well – you won’t do yourself any favours if you try to survive on the catering provided at fringe events. Get yourself some fruit and veg!

What has your experience been of the UK party conference circuit? Has it been helpful to you in achieving your influencing goals? Let me know in the comments below.

Coming up next time: I’ll be discussing how to decide which consultation processes you should respond to, which you can ignore, and how to maximise your impact.

Top ten tips on how to influence government policy

Top tips for influencing government policy.

Trying to influence government policy decisions sometimes gets a bad rap. In the US, lobbying, as it is often described, is almost considered a dirty word, conjuring up images of corruption and backhand deals.

But in reality, governments need input and ideas from outside of the institutions of state. There are a lot of people and organisations with a lot of expertise and experience that can help governments make better decisions.

But where do you start?

Influencing policy is often seen as something of a dark art. In reality, it’s about building a strong case, and communicating it effectively.

Everyone loves a good ‘top ten’ list, so I thought that would be a good place to start. Here are my top ten tips on how to influence government policy decisions.

Tip 1: Work out who you’re trying to influence

It sounds obvious, but the first thing you need to know is who you are trying to influence. Not all decisions are made in Westminster. Responsibility for many aspects of life are devolved, so if you’re trying to influence health policy, for example, you’ll need to focus on the Scottish, Welsh or Northern Ireland governments. Some policy areas are reserved by the UK government, so you’ll need to work out who is responsible. It’s also true that not all decisions are made by ministers and government departments. Many arms-length bodies (in all four nations) have delegated responsibility for large parts of public life. You might also find that the responsibility is delegated to a local rather than national level.

Tip 2: Describe the problem you’re trying to solve

It’s really important to be able to sum up the problem that you’re trying to solve clearly and concisely. If you can’t explain it in a few words, it’s unlikely that it’ll get the attention that it deserves. Us policy people can sometimes fall in to the trap of wanting to include too much detail. I find that some help from a communications or media colleague can really help concisely get to the heart of the issue!

Tip 3: Have good evidence.

It’s important to have good evidence to back up your argument. That might be evidence about the impact that the issue has on people, or evidence about the financial cost or benefit. The more evidence that you have, the more persuasive your case will be.

Tip 4: Tell stories

While hard facts and data is important, it’s also important to tell people’s stories. Showing how a particular issue affects people, ideally in their own voices, can bring an issue to life. Human beings are inherently social creatures, and stories help us to understand and relate to others. Politicians and officials are no different, and stories can be a really powerful tool, especially when we give a voice to people who are not often heard.

Tip 5: Offer a solution

I see so many organisations trying to influence government policy who just focus on the problem without offering a solution. Most of the time, governments want to fix problems and improve the lives of their citizens. Focusing on the negative will only get you so far. Don’t get me wrong, though. There is definitely a place for campaigns that highlight a problem. You’ll get more cut through with officials and politicians if you can offer some tangible potential solutions. You’ll get even further if you can show that implementing those solutions would be easy and in line with the government’s overall objectives. Which brings me to point six.

Tip 6: Read the room

Think about what the government is trying to achieve overall, and how your solution fits within that agenda and helps them to achieve their own goals. You also need to consider the wider context too. If the government is dealing with an economic crisis, for example, it’s going to be a tougher sell to persuade them to spend a lot of money on something (not impossible, but it’ll need careful thought). You also need to take politics in to account too, which brings me to number seven.

Tip 7: Tailor your arguments

When you’re working on a cross-party basis (which charities in the UK must do), you need to tailor your messages accordingly. A case for change that will persuade someone on the right is likely to look and feel quite different to a case for change to persuade someone on the left. This doesn’t mean that your overall objectives will be different, just the way in which you make your case. If you can find a sweet spot that unites different political parties, you’re more likely to be successful in achieving the change you’re looking for.

Tip 8: When dealing with politicians, personalise things as much as you can

Encouraging supporters to get in touch with their local politicians can be a really effective tool, particularly where you’re trying to raise awareness of a particular issue. One of the mistakes that I see many organisations make is in using what I describe as ‘identikit’ campaign tools – such as postcards, template letters or even online resources. Studies have shown that politicians really dislike this kind of approach, and are less likely to pay attention. An alternative is to try to personalise those contacts as much as possible. Encourage your supporters to tell their stories – it’ll be much more persuasive than a pre-printed postcard arriving in a politician’s office.

Tip 9: Take opportunities when they arise

It was Harold Macmillan who said that it was ‘Events, dear boy, events” which was the most difficult thing about being Prime Minister. So much of the political and policy world is at the whim of external forces, whether those forces are political, economic, social or technological. In influencing terms, this means that you have to be ready to take opportunities as they arise. I recall one issue that I had been trying to resolve for many years which was suddenly and unexpectedly resolved because the government at the time was looking for a quick win ahead of a general election. At a local level, the end of the financial year can also be a good time to find additional project funding, as public bodies will be eager to have spent their allocated budget before the year end. Be opportunistic – it can sometimes pay off.

Tip 10: Relationships matter

Influence is all about building relationships. It’s much easier to be heard if you’re seen as a trusted and respected voice. Of course, building relationships takes time, but it’s always worth the investment. Whether it’s being a helpful source of information for researchers working in an MP’s office, working collaboratively with officials on a complex issue, or building a relationship with a minister, at the end of the day, influencing policy is about influencing people.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. What have I missed out? What would your top tips be?

Coming up next time: I’ll be exploring whether attending party conferences can be a useful tactic, or whether they are a waste of time and energy.