Significant participation regulation

The municipality of Rijswijk has a new participation ordinance. The municipal council unanimously adopted this on March 26, 2024. In the regulation, the council and council record agreements about the involvement of residents in local policy. Necker supported the municipality of Rijswijk in drawing it up. With the regulation, Rijswijk anticipates the proposal for the Strengthening of Participation at a Decentralized Level Act, which is currently before the Senate and which obliges municipalities to draw up a participation regulation. Necker previously helped the municipality of Ommen in drawing up a participation framework and regulation.

Participatory process

A participation regulation can be an important legal anchor for good participation. At least, if the principles are in line with the municipality. And if the council, the council and the organization really live these principles. This is not possible if you enter the municipality name in a model ordinance. But only if you go through a participatory process in which the principles of good participation are immediately applied. This creates a meaningful participation regulation.

“I am happy with our new participation regulation. During the council discussion, there were compliments from several factions for the way in which the regulation was drawn up: it was a collaboration between Rijswijkers, the municipal council and the Municipal Executive. During the process of its development, we had good discussions have been held about participation; not incident-driven but really about principles and principles. What do we find important about participation and when is participation successful? I expect that the regulation and its elaboration in the new participation policy will help us in the near future to achieve this good, fundamental to continue to have conversations,” said wholder Armand van de Laar, portfolio holder for participation within the Rijswijk council of mayor and aldermen.

Four steps

Necker has developed an offer with which every municipality in the Netherlands can obtain such a participation ordinance; with the initiative at the council and/or council and in collaboration with residents. In Rijswijk we did this in four steps:

1. What’s already there?

The process started with: taking stock of what Rijswijk already had in terms of participation policy and tools. Not an extensive evaluation study, but a quick scan. We also made choices together about the process: when do you involve the working group and when the entire council? In this way we take into account the usual working methods and current events in Rijswijk

2. Know your residents!

Involving society in drawing up the participation regulation: that is the idea of ​​the flash poll among residents. Because who knows better how they want to be involved than society itself? In a flash poll of fifteen questions, the residents of Rijswijk could indicate how they wanted to participate. There were general questions about involvement, questions about local issues and a number of dilemmas. 286 residents completed the questionnaire. This provided the city council and municipal executive with insight into the participation wishes of Rijswijk residents.

3. In conversation

We then organized a workshop for the entire municipal council. The portfolio holder from the Municipal Executive and the officials involved were also present. This interactive workshop was intended to gain insight into the (desired) role of the municipal council with regard to participation. Based on stimulating dilemmas, we also discussed the way in which they can fulfill that role meaningfully, with a view to the participation regulation. Afterwards, council members, the responsible councilor and civil servants indicated that they were pleased with the fundamental discussion about participation. We also presented the results of the flash poll and discussed the recognisability and lessons for contact with residents. We went home with a bag full of luggage to finalize the Rijswijk participation regulation.

4. The regulation

The final step involved writing a participation ordinance that matches the wishes and culture of the municipality. This will be submitted in draft to a representation of the municipal council. During the meeting we will go through the entire participation regulation together and immediately make the desired adjustments. At this stage we also facilitated a working session with the entire Municipal Executive in which the consequences of the principles and principles of the regulation on all portfolios were discussed. This means that the regulation does not only belong to the portfolio holder, but to the entire council.

The next step: drawing up policy

The municipality of Rijswijk has now also asked us to support the next step, namely drawing up a participation policy and communication policy. A great follow-up, to which our interim participation advisors are happy to use their expertise.