they who twin, win

LONDON boroughs are developing economic and social links worldwide, offering chances for their staff to deal with issues far beyond local government boundaries.

The practice of local councils forming links with twin towns gathered pace after the Second World War Two as part of efforts to rebuild connections with France and Germany, but the concept has since been widened.

Tower Hamlets has built on its twinning agreement with Sylhet in Bangladesh to form a partnership funded by the European Commission and aimed at encouraging economic regeneration.

"Working with Sylhet has added an international dimension to my work," says Ansar Ullah, a regeneration officer with Tower Hamlets.

"It also involves coordinating activity with the Horsens municipality in Denmark, which is offering its expertise to Sylhet, and with the EC in Brussels.

"Many new challenges are presented. On a simple level, account must be taken of different time zones. And the weekend in Bangladesh runs from Thursday afternoon to the end of Friday, making Saturday or Sunday much better days for making contact as this is the start of their working week."

Making economic partnerships work also demands detailed knowledge of what your local authority does best, and of the most pressing needs of your partner town or city. "One of our senior managers recently visited Sylhet to advise on waste management," says Ullah. "Problems with disposing of rubbish on the streets there and a lack of hygienic landfill sites has meant health risks, and we were able to offer solutions based on our best practice on collecting and disposing of

refuse. Since no consultancy or other fees were required, it was very cost-effective help.

"The benefits of the link are also two-way. We have office space in Sylhet and send graduates for work experience. Ways in which the municipal authority there carries out its duties are examined and lessons learned. One graduate gained valuable experience training people to teach English."

Interpersonal skills, diplomacy, patience and a good turn of phrase when writing progress reports are all needed to convince colleagues and partner authorities that ideas suggested are worthwhile and practical.

Ullah also stresses the importance of learning at least a smattering of the language of partner regions, along with background knowledge of their customs.

"I arrived late at night in our partner town of Horsens. I was extremely hungry but found everywhere closed and no one on the streets who spoke English. More research would have told me that even fast-food places shut at 10pm and that while English is widely spoken in Scandinavia, not everyone has reason to learn it."

Sutton Council is twinned with four towns on the Continent: Charlottenburg/ Wilmersdorf and Minden in Germany, Gagny in the suburbs of Paris and Gladsaxe, which is part of Copenhagen.

"There is great enthusiasm worldwide for twinning links with London, which offers huge potential for social and economic links," says Richard Shortman, Sutton's head of committee services, whose department oversees contacts abroad. "Working as a town hall's link with twinned communities can be hugely satisfying in providing a gateway between different cultures. In our case, it involves bringing together Sutton-based groups with their counterparts abroad. These can range from school and theatre

groups to work-experience exchanges.

"Identifying opportunities for exchanging best practice is also an important part of twinning. One example was a conference on child care held in Gladsaxe."

Shortman also includes organisational and people skills as being vital to the twinning job, along with an intimate knowledge of the borough to meet requests from abroad for links on a vast range of subjects.

"We have matched everything from a brass band from Minden wanting to play alongside its equivalent here to a Boys' and Girls' Brigade from Denmark, who we linked up with local Sea Cadets," says Shortman.

"Lasting friendships are made in the spirit that gave town twinning such a boost after the Second World War.

The impetus then was to get people across Europe to learn more about each others' way of life and culture - with the ultimate aim of avoiding a Third World War."

Broadening the council mindset MORE than two million people work in local government - it's the UK's biggest employer.

Scores of careers are available, but willingness to serve the community is essential. Local government officers are covered by nationally negotiated agreements on pay, hours and pensions.

Recruitment is via application form and interview with professional qualifications or training required for specialist posts. Jobs are advertised locally and sometimes nationally.

Searches for vacancies can be carrried out on the official local government recruitment website lgjobs.com, which has advice on applying and career profiles.

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