Conservative Future

Surrey CF Call for Change

guest author — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:34:23 +0000

By Rowan Cole

2010 has been dubbed the year for change by the Conservatives and people across the country, not least by students in Surrey who on Saturday 6th February visited the new state of the art Conservative Campaign centre GenEVA based at CCHQ in London. More students than ever before are supporting the Conservatives as it is clear that the other political parties do not represent realistic options for the future.

For many students this will be their first time voting and in this election students issues will be at the forefront. The Conservatives have policies on every issue affecting the country locally, nationally and internationally, but what exactly are they and how will they help students? If the Conservatives win the next general election they have promised to create an additional 10,000 University places, and will introduce an early repayment bonus on student loans.

Whilst at GenEVA the team phoned hundreds of people to seek their views on the local community and what they want to see from the next Government. What was clear to me when speaking with people is that David Cameron really is the man of choice for the vast majority. The Conservatives have already been proving themselves in Councils across the country and now is our chance to prove then same in National Government.

With a General Election not far off the team in Surrey are stepping up the pace to do their bit in helping turn the country blue. We are always on the lookout for new members and people that want to get involved, you can find out more at http://surrey.cfbranch.com/.

West Midlands CF – Do you want to join the Regional Team?

Laura Dodd — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 18:35:51 +0000

Do you want to help CF to continue to grow in the West Midlands? Do you have lots of ideas for how to improve CF in the Region? We want YOU!

West Midlands CF is looking for two people to join the Regional Committee, working directly with the Regional Chairman and Area Chairmen. If you feel that you have the qualities to take on either of these rolls, fill in an application form and return it to west.midlands@conservativefuture.com

The Events Co-ordination and Public Relations Officer will be responsible for coordinating Regional CF for campaign days and other social events. This role will also involve working with branch chairmen and the professional party. Good communication skills are a necessity.

The Admin, Finance and Fundraising Officer will directly support Area and Branch Chairmen with administration, including building up accurate membership databases and supporting the West Midlands Committee with developing and implementing new policies.

Successful applicants for either of these roles will need to be outgoing people with a lot of enthusiasm and the ability to work well in a team. Both of these roles are voluntary.

The deadline for applications is 6pm on Monday 22nd February.

Click here to apply for the Events Co-ordination and PR Officer role.

Click here to apply for the Admin, Finance and Fundraising Officer role.

Epsom & Ewell CF hosts ‘How to get the Young into Councils’

guest author — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:01:39 +0000

By Alex Clarke (Chairman EECF)

This month was a special month, as many of Epsom and Ewell’s Conservative Future’s Committee members had been recently told they had been successful in being selected to run for borough council. With that in mind we had organised for some young councillors to come along and tell us about how they were elected, about how they cope with the pressures of work and being a councillors, and mostly to provide us with their ideas on how to be a good a councillor for the residents whom you represent.

The list of those who made it to the panel is pretty impressive; Rowan Cole is the Councillor for Walton Central (Elmbridge Council) as well as the recently appointed CF Area Chairman for Surrey, Michael MacDonald who is the first conservative councillor for Trench (Tonbridge Council) in many years, and of course chairing the panel our very own Leader of Group and defender of Epsom and Ewell’s residents Cllr Sean Sullivan of Woodcote.

Each Speaker was invited to give us a quick 10 minute rundown on themselves and their own view before opening up the floor for questions. It was very interest to hear the different stories, and how they differed even where the conservatives are in the majority of the councils. However it was during the discussion, the questions and the eloquent but not verbose answers which really showed both the level of interest in the room as well as how the position of these councillors

This discussion/debate brought about a brilliant interplay of the differing views as held by the various members, with none, young or old not feeling perfectly at ease and able to offer a full opinion. This was brilliant as it allowed those whom attended, ranging from activists, to would be activists, and people who just were interested so came along; all voters and non-voters, it allowed everyone to express themselves and for the intricacies of local elections, local politics and most importantly perhaps local government to examined in detail.

All those that were there expressed a desire to see if Sean and Michael will come again soon, Rowan as CF Surrey Chair of course has a standing invite; many confirmed their wish to attend the next event, general election commitments permitting, at which a panel of composed of Professor James Boys (Richmond American University), Allan Sykes of the UKNDA, and guests, with myself Chairing will be discussing the future of the ‘Special Relationship’ and how the general election could impact upon it! Please wish me luck, or even better come along to see how I do! This will take place on the 26th of February at the usual venue, the Epsom Conservative Club; attendees are invited to arrive at 19:30hrs for 20:00hrs start.

All of these events are featured in greater detail on our Facebook EECF page http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=108271599880 so please come and have a look or e-mail office@epsomconservatives.com for a full list of events and literature.

Epsom and Ewell Conservative Future is currently looking for a New Campaign Secretary; all are welcome to apply by sending about half a page of why they think they would good for the role…applicants have till the 10th of Febuary…all applications to be sent to me at AlexanderDouglasClarke@googlemail.com

How to write a Blog….

guest author — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:32:46 +0000

By Alex Clarke

First thing to say is that blogs are not scary literary mountains to climb; they are in fact possibly the easiest of writing as they are so personal and as yet so open. In my other life the moment I bring up writing I bring up planning…and it is the same with writing a blog, it is divided into roughly 4 sections:

Introduction – scene setting, this is usually depending on your topic either a quick sentence, or might end up being rather longer. If you are running a speaker event, its where you describe their career and background of the topic they are talking upon. If you are holding a fundraising event, the introduction is where you tell everyone what it is in aid of….with most CFs it might well be yourselves…which is fine.

Description – if you are running a campaign it is important to explain it, coherently – think about what you are going to say, then write it, check it and if you are anything like me write it again. If its event this is where you describe such as what things were on offer? Did you have crazy snooker: where a variety of obstacles are put on the table to make the game more interesting…you win if you manage to pot within a certain number of shots. Perhaps you went for the more traditional choice of apple bobbing…how successful was your MP if they came.

Conclusion/Summary – did you succeed with your campaign? Or did you achieve the goal for that part of the campaign, if you are writing about an event did the audience enjoy the speaker or did everyone decide the apple bobbing was more fun than crazy snooker?

Continuation – what will you be doing next? Always end looking to the future as it provides imputes and interest for people reading it to maybe come and join in – my own CF has done very well thanks to people reading the blog entries on the CF website and then coming down to see what we are up to.

The most important thing though for a blog is writing style…it must be approachable, it must be interesting, a blog is your advertisement for your CF and what it does. A well written blog which draws in the reader is your aim; or in the case this blog entry…one in which the reader is still awake and interested at the end.

The next most important thing is language chosen; you may have a degree in Medieval English literature; but writing your blog on ‘ye olde english’ is not going to be good for its readability! The same with text language, I would take LOL – as Laugh Out Loud my best friend swears its Lots Of Love; in the end it is better to just write everyone was laughing heartily – there is no word limit in a blog so my advice is let your language be complete and straight forward.

The benefits of regularly updating the CF website are not only the increased ‘e-presence’ of your own CF and the spreading of good ideas around to other CFs; but also the creating of a richer tapestry of CF activities nationwide.

To submit all you need to do is send it to Richard Jackson at the National Executive.

Good luck and if you have any other problems…I recommend you reading other peoples blogs and other entries on Conservative Future site.

For info and help on blogging email richard.jackson@conservativefuture.com

London CF makes waves in Watford

Clare Hilley — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:50:52 +0000

London Conservative Future spent the weekend campaigning in Watford for PPC Richard Harrington and the local action team. The event, which included a detailed campaign briefing and constituency profile session, saw a dozen activists spend Saturday and Sunday on the campaign trail in the top target seat.

Activists teamed up with the local Association and completed several canvassing and leafleting sessions, engaging with Watford residents and listening to their concerns. The group also got the chance to see the newly launched campaign minibus, which included the slogan ‘Vote for Change’ to show voters that the campaign was strong and working hard to win votes.

It was great to team up with the local action team and help the campaign get the message out to voters and make a difference. I know that in Richard, residents have a strong candidate who will make their voice hear in Westminster, fight for their interests and deliver real change to Watford.

The action weekend was part of London Conservative Future’s Target Seats campaign, whereby resources and activists are channelled into marginal areas to make a difference. Other aspects of the campaign include regional activists sessions and telephone canvassing slots of CCHQ’s state-of-the-art GENEVA canvassing studio.

New Regional Chairman for South Wales

Michael Rock — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 12:03:49 +0000

Michael Foreman is today officially standing down as CF Regional Chairman for South Wales. I want to thank Michael for all the work he has put in over the last year, and I wish Michael all the best for the future.

I can also announce that Grant Tucker will be taking over as the South Wales CF Regional Chairman with immediate effect.

He inherits a strong region and I know he will improve it even more. The recent election results show that Wales is an important target for the Conservatives, and Welsh CF will play a very important role in the coming months.

Grant can be contacted at south.wales@conservativefuture.com

Welsh Conservative Party Conference 2010

Michael Rock — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 15:00:44 +0000

This year’s Welsh Conservative Party Conference will be held at the iconic Venue Cymru, Llandudno on Saturday, 6th and Sunday, 7th March 2010.

You can now register for a pass by downloading the application form here. You must get your application in by Friday 19th February.

CF members from across Wales will be going and I hope that other members and friends from across the UK will also be interested in attending.

Several members of the National Executive will be heading to Llandudno and there will be a CF reception during the weekend – more details on this to be announced soon…

There is a Facebook event for the Conference here.

I hope to see many of you there!

CCHQ Easter Intern Programme

Michael Rock — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 16:43:06 +0000

Staying in London or Birmingham this Easter?

Fancy helping the Conservative Party’s national campaign and helping make David Cameron the next Prime Minister?

The GENEVA Campaign Centre, based at CCHQ in London, and also in Birmingham, is running The Easter Intern Programme, to support the General Election campaign. We are targeting the marginal seats we must win to form the next Government.

Being an Intern at the GENEVA Campaign Centre allows you to:

Be part of the Party’s national campaign strategy
Meet The Shadow Cabinet, MPs, MEPs & PPCs
Take part in our incentive programme
Take part in our active social life
Enhance your CV.

Working at the GENEVA is worthwhile and fun, and both Centres are based in modern offices, with room to relax and enjoy yourself.

You will be paid daily travel expenses and given a £15 per day subsistence allowance.

If you want to find out more please email geneva@conservatives.com with “Easter Internship” as the email subject. Please attach a copy of your CV and two referees contact details.

GENEVA London is located on 6th Floor Millbank Tower, London SW1P 4DP.

GENEVA Birmingham is located at The Manor, Coleshill Manor Campus, Coleshill, West Midlands, B46 1DL.

Driving the Social Action agenda in 2010

Patrick Sullivan — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:44:56 +0000

Social Action is about people across the country doing their bit to help their local communities and building a better society for everyone. As Conservatives, Social Action is the very lifeblood of everything we believe in and stand for. That’s why I’m delighted to be leading Conservative Future’s National Social Action Programme for 2010, to help activists up and down the country engage in local projects and help make a difference in their areas.

In my previous role as National Campaigns Director, I met hundreds of Conservative Future activists who voluntarily gave up hours of their time not just on election campaigns, but on fundraising, community schemes and school projects that make a real impact on the day-to-day lives of communities. This experience was not only inspiring, it proved to me that Conservative Future activists are always ready to help make life better for those around them and deliver real change for the future.

I’m also delighted to announce the appointment of Tarasyn Whitehead-Patey as joint CF Social Action Coordinator, to help Conservative Future better engage with out local action teams on the ground across the UK. We are currently drawing up a detailed plan for the year ahead and will be liaising with our Regional Chairman to ensure all our efforts have maximum impact and success. It’s going to be an incredible journey, and I know that Conservative Future will once again deliver a first class programme of Social Action projects of which we can be truly proud.

Patrick Sullivan
CF Social Action Coordinator

Joint Seat Campaign between Yorkshire & East Midlands

Michael Rock — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 12:52:25 +0000

Yorkshire and Humberside and East Midlands CF are proud to announce a partnership to focus on Target Seat Campaign’s for the upcoming election. This will take the form of organised Campaign days being co-ordinated across the regions to boost our election activity.

Yorkshire & Humberside and East Midlands are also planning to work closely to develop join social events and Campaign Strategies. Given the vast Geography of the two regions and often Rural locations it was decided that with the number of Target Seats falling across or just on the boundaries that forming a co-ordinated response will help our push to Victory.

We are currently planning Joint campaign days in:

Cleethorpes: 6th of Feb
Brigg and Goole: 20th of Feb

Simon Cavalier-Jones, vice Chairman of East Midlands CF commented ” This will be a fantastic opportunity for us to pull together, to fight the next election with Confidence, greater numbers on the Ground and numerous opportunities to engage CF with new Members.”

Phillip Smith, Regional Chairman or Yorkshire and Humber CF Commented “A joint partnership agreement with East Midlands is a win win situation all round. I look forward to ironing out the details of a solid agreement with my chums Hamish and Simon in the next few weeks. The team here in Yorkshire are very excited with the idea of working closely with another successful Region supporting key seats we share in common that we have to win at the General Election.”

We are keen to hear from anybody who would like to get involved or could help with Transportation, please contact James Deighton, Deputy RC Campaigns Yorkshire at james.deighton@yorkshirecf.com