The Olympics. Really?

It seems a bit strange that the Olympics started this week. To me, anyway. But, Go Lionesses! For the next few weeks, Clare will be adding "and Northern Ireland" every time she hears a commentator say "Team GB".

Conduct in public life has also been in the news with the publication of the report into former Prime Minster Cameron's lobbying on behalf of the now-collapsed company of which he was a share holder, Greensill. The report states that "there is a good case for strengthening" the rules. I'll say.

What are these rules, you might well ask? There are seven principles in public life, also called the Nolan Principles. Sadly, nothing to do with these Nolans.

The principles are selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty, and leadership and apply to anyone who's a public office holder, elected or appointed.

Charities aren't public bodies but, clearly, the public has an interest in how they're run. The NCVO developed the Charity Ethical Principles which were published in 2019 and intended as "a framework for the ethical execution of charitable purpose". They are: beneficiaries first, integrity, openness, right to be safe. I'm not sure how many charities have adopted these or versions of them. Given the amount of poor behaviour that keeps coming to light at charities, I wonder if these need strengthening too.

Ethics (or values) are too often simply a set of words written down on a web page somewhere, having been agonised over through lengthy consultations, and are then never really looked at again. Then there's some form of ethical crisis and I'm left wondering why the organisation isn't abiding by its own stated standards of behaviour.

What I'd like to see is leadership teams (and former and current Prime Ministers) proactively and regularly assessing whether the way they are working day to day, and their future plans and activities - and those of all their staff - fit with their stated ethics and, if not, why not, and what they're going to do to change things. Make it a standing agenda item.

It was also Lambeth Full Council this week. The Youth Council's annual update presentation was the best bit, as always.

A few weeks ago the House of Representatives voted to remove statues of Confederate leaders who advocated for slavery from the US Capitol. For example, this guy was indicted for treason and is on a plinth, not in the bin.

Interesting and useful links 🖇️

Earlier in the week I went on a visit to Central Hill Day Centre, which serves Lambeth residents with dementia or other frailties. I wrote a blog about it

"Some corporations called on DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) consultants for help, but clumsily issued social media statements before receiving advice". This is a brief listen on how the world of DEI consulting has changed over the last 12 months.

Day of the Week 📆

It's ten years since Amy Winehouse died.

Here are 20 of her greatest songs

What am I reading? 📚

When my mother died, an old school friend very kindly sent me two books about grief that she highly recommended. I turned to one of them this week: Grief Works: Stories of Life, Death and Surviving by Julia Samuel.

What am I watching? 👀

I watched Uprising, a series of three documentary films from Steve McQueen covering the New Cross fire which killed 13 young Black party goers in January 1981. The cause of the fire has never been explained.

What am I listening to?👂

I thought this was an interesting podcast from Fullfact factchecking the culture wars and whether they really are the most important issue of these times.

They also explore how polls can be manipulated to tell stories.

Joy-giving things 😍

I went to Standen House with some friends and looked at a wonderful view over Ashdown Forest.

Have a great weekend. Go and look at a view!

Lucy

If it’s your first time reading this newsletter, find out more about me here.

I write this newsletter because I believe in sharing ideas that help us work towards a truly equal world, particularly in the workplace.

Share it with your friends so they can read it too 📣

ChangeOut is created by Lucy Caldicott. You can find more about my work at ChangeOut.org. If you’re looking to have a chat about culture, leadership, purpose, equity, or a facilitated team discussion about any of those things, get in touch. You can also find me on Bluesky, Instagram, and, LinkedIn.

If you like what you read and you'd like to show your appreciation in cash, you can do that here. I'd be very grateful!