Getting involved
Campaigning
The most important responsibility for the local party is to organise campaigns to elect Labour candidates in local, regional and national elections. Campaigns can include a number of activities from leafleting, to street stalls to knocking on doors and community surveys.
One of the most important activities is canvassing, especially in the period in the run-up to an election. This involves knocking on doors and talking face to face with voters. This allows us to identify Labour supporters we need to encourage to vote, and undecided voters who we need to persuade. Knowing where our supporters are means that there is a greater chance of getting them out to vote on election day.
Campaigning is a great way to support the local party and meet other members. If you have not campaigned before you will be paired with someone more experienced for your first couple of sessions, until you get the hang of it.
If you want more information about upcoming campaigning sessions or want more information about how you can be involved, contact us on hstpchairclp@gmail.com.
Branch and General Meetings (GMs)
The first port of call for many members is attending their local branch meetings. These will typically be held every month and all the members living within the branch will be invited to attend and participate. These meetings will often involve a mix of local politics, smaller policy debates, local activism, and campaign activity.
If you have practical suggestions about what your branch or the constituency should be doing or discussing, you should contact your branch chair and secretary. If you’re not sure who your branch chair and secretary are, please get in touch with our organiser at hstplabourorganiser@gmail.com.
Once a month, all Holborn & St. Pancras constituency members are invited to attend General Meeting (GM). These meetings are much bigger than branch meetings and often have speakers or policy debates. They are often attended by the local MP Keir Starmer who will provide a report back from Parliament and take questions, and by the leader of the council Sagal Abdi-Wali who reports back on Camden Council activity. These are held on the 4th Tuesday of the month. Although all members are invited to attend, only elected delegates are able to vote on constituency business.
Social and fundraising events
Throughout the year the CLP runs a variety of social and fundraising events, such as dinners, barbeques, quiz nights, drinks and other special events. Smaller, local social events are organised by branches. Social and fundraising events are a great way to meet and get to know other members of the local Party. Money made from fundraising efforts goes towards the cost of campaigning and towards running the local party.