The Bank’s outreach programme is designed to enable members of the public to share their experience of the economy. It also allows them to ask questions about the Bank’s policies and decisions, therefore holding the Bank to account.
This report provides a summary of the discussions that took place from March 2023 to February 2024. As with the previous report, it focuses on the impact of higher inflation, and responses to it.
It has been compiled on behalf of the chairs of the Citizens’ Forum panels who play an important independent role in the delivery of the panels for the Bank.
Introduction from the panel chairs
We are volunteers who serve as independent chairs of citizens’ panels across the UK that make up the Citizens’ Forum. This forum has around 4,000 members. Our role is to make sure everyone who takes part in the panel meetings has their voice heard.
The cost-of-living squeeze continues to affect many across the UK, and this report summarises the key themes from our conversations with these panels. These were held both in-person at venues across the UK and as virtual events.
It also includes summaries from the discussions the Bank had with third-sector organisations and the people they support through a programme of Community Forum events, as well as discussions with younger people aged 16–19. The latter are pilots of a new youth engagement programme.
This report covers the period from March 2023 to February 2024. Over the year, the people we spoke to shared their views and experiences about the challenges associated with the continued rise in the cost of living and the impact it has had on them, their households, and their communities. As many of us are deeply involved in our local communities, many of these issues were familiar to us, but hearing these testimonies firsthand still made quite an impact.
The Bank uses the information it gathers at these events to track how public sentiment changes over time. This sits alongside other key economic indicators to provide a full picture in a timely way.
In this report, you will see how the information gathered at these events is used to inform important policy decisions that the Bank makes.
We thank everyone who has participated in outreach events and shared their views and experiences so openly with us over the past year.
We look forward to hearing from and meeting more of you soon.
Denise Bentley, Chief Executive, First Love Foundation (Greater London) | Bridget Blow CBE, Non-Executive Chair, England Netball (West Midlands) |
Rae Brooke, Chief Executive, Community Foundations for Lancashire and Merseyside (North West) | Jonathan Cheshire, Sail Training International (Central Southern England) |
Sheila Fleet, Director, Sheila Fleet Jewellery (Scotland) | Sarah Green, Chief Executive, Newcastle Gateshead Initiative (North East) |
Kate Hainsworth, Interim CEO, Children’s Heart Surgery Fund (Yorkshire and the Humber) | Julie Hawker MBE, Joint Chief Executive, Cosmic (South West) |
Ruth Marks, Chief Executive, Wales Council for Voluntary Action (Wales) | Ross Martin, Adviser, ScotIncGrowth Ltd (Scotland) |
Josephine McCartney, Chief Executive, Kent Community Foundation (South East) | John McMullan, Vice Chair, Northern Ireland Housing Executive (Northern Ireland) |
Dame Susan Rice, Chair, Scottish Water (Scotland) | Caroline Taylor, Chief Executive, Essex Community Foundation (South East) |
Martin Traynor OBE, Small Business Crown Representative (East Midlands) | Romesh Vaitilingam, Editor-in-Chief, Economics Observatory (South West) |
UK outreach events: March 2023 to February 2024
The images below illustrate where the Bank hosted events between 2023 and 2024, and includes the names of the senior Bank officials in attendance.
