But if we change the way we work, together we can build a fairer society in which everyone can enjoy a good life.

We explain this below, but if you want to read the full publication, download our PDF.

The Covid-19 crisis has shown, if it wasn’t obvious already, that some things in this country are in a sorry state, and have been for a long time:

• We live in an ‘us and them’ society, where other people are seen as the problem.

• Deep-seated inequalities and injustices continue, but are swept under the carpet.

• Too many people and places are ignored and left behind, and it is they who are suffering most in the pandemic.

• When people need help in their lives, services and systems too often let them down.

• From food poverty to climate change, we address things only when they’re in crisis.

There are of course also things that are right about this country and many people are already working to change what’s wrong, and we can learn from them. The crisis has also shown glimpses of a kinder, more collaborative society, where connection and community flourish and where organisations on the ground work well together. 

But the risk is that the old way of doing things will reassert itself after the crisis ends and in the fall out existing inequalities will only get worse. The opportunity for something better will pass. And our individual efforts to put the principles of a Better Way into action will not be enough to achieve the fundamental change that will deliver a fairer society.  

Over 2020, our network has been building on our 2019 Call to Action for a Better Way, working together to identify how we can deliver the change we want to see. This has shown that it is not only what we do, but also how, and four things have shone through, which we have brought together in our model for a Better Way, as shown here and explored in our new publication.

 Any of these can be the starting point, but doing them together will make each more effective. This is a journey of discovery without pre-determined outcomes: we travel with others hopefully, trusting others to help us achieve a better result.

In a Better Way, that is what we do: joining forces within and across sectors, learning and sharing, but also working together on common problems; listening to each other and identifying better ways to listen to others; sharing our own power and building new alliances; forging relationships between ourselves and finding ways to do this more widely.

This rallying call is aimed at anyone who may find inspiration in these four things, not just those who choose to join our network. But if you’d like to join us, please do.

Learn more

Read the publication in full