Co-chairs reveal group aims for 2025-26

Filed under: General

Co-chairs Cath Palgrave and Martin Price have revealed Better Streets for Birmingham’s aims for 2025-26 at the group’s annual general meeting, held last night on 31 March 2025.

At the meeting, members also voted in favour of applying to change the group’s legal structure to a Community Interest Company (CIC).

Our aims for 2025-26

The aims are centred around three themes:

• presence
• growth
• community empowerment

Aim 1: Stabilise the organisation structure so that Better Streets for Birmingham is protected and continues to exist

We will achieve this by:

• Applying to establish our legal structure as a CIC
• Allying with WalkCyclePlay charity – which allows us to tap into a bigger funding pot and to apply for funding through it

Aim 2: Help us and communities to talk about problems and solutions in a simple way, so that more people can talk about the change needed and options available

We will achieve this by:

• Reviewing our language, focusing on outcomes before technical solutions and telling the story of the ‘why’
• Restructuring our website around this work

Aim 3: Raise the profile of issues, so that we re-establish our presence in the media

We will achieve this by:

• Raising the profile of transport issues for the 1-year before the election milestone; publishing a BSfB transport manifesto for 2026; Lobbying local party leaders
• Marking the first anniversary of the road safety emergency
• Running public actions using the Action Network platform, including helping people write to their elected representatives

Aim 4: Grow our supporter base, so that we have a more meaningful voice across the city

We will achieve this by:

• Growing our supporters through Action Network, social media, public meetings and subgroups
• Centering our area subgroups around constituencies and establishing relationships between groups and elected representatives so they can work together

Aim 5: Work with schools and supporting organisations to target school-related traffic, so that we reduce local motor traffic across the city

We will achieve this by:

• Writing a guidance pack that outlines how to apply for street closures
  for play streets
• Partnering with Modeshift, Solve The School Run and similar organisations
• Engaging with schools (leaders, governors, PTAs and parents)
• Writing and taking assemblies and lessons to deliver to schools

Committee vacancies

There are four vacancies on the committee which members can apply for. The deadline for applications is the end of 13 April 2025.