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Beware ‘burn-out’Campaigning, particularly in the long-term, requires stamina and determination. According to the Sheila McKechnie Foundation, it’s not uncommon for lead campaigners to suffer ‘burn-out’ and abandon their cause. “The burden must be shared among others,” Claire explains. “If a campaign could not survive the lead campaigner moving away or leaving the group, it’s not sustainable.”
Other pitfalls include lack of finances, and trying to run on too narrow a base of skills. Most campaigns need people who know about administration, planning, communications, fundraising and finance.
But the struggle is so often rewarded with success, and we owe much to all those campaigners who have worked passionately and tirelessly to bring about positive change, whether global, national or local.
And campaigning has many benefits aside from the outcome, according to Martin Vogel, Project Director of the BBC’s Action Network. “People become more involved in their local areas, making connections with others and increasing social capital,” he says. “By empowering people to influence things that affect their lives, campaigning can help to build strong, capable and positive communities.”
 Jean Sutcliffe, President of Gee Cross WI, campaigned to get safety barriers erected in front of the school and the playgroup.
For Jean Sutcliffe, campaigning is quite straightforward: “It’s a question of seeing a need and doing something about it.” Jean is a long-time campaigner in her local village of Gee Cross, near Hyde in Cheshire. Along with other residents, she has become increasingly concerned about traffic speeding through the village. “Two danger spots worried me – the playgroup and the school. Children can run straight out onto the main road. Three years ago a little playgroup boy was killed.”
Jean decided action was needed, and started a campaign, knocking on doors with a petition and lobbying at the District Assembly meeting in Hyde. “I asked for a speed reduction to 20mph, barriers outside the playgroup and school, traffic ‘watchmen’ that flash up your speed, and cameras in the village,” explains Jean, who is also President of Gee Cross WI. Within six months, barriers were erected in front of both school and playgroup, and watchmen and cameras are now in place. “I’m still lobbying for a lower speed limit, but I’m very pleased with the response so far,” says Jean. “If you pursue something hard enough you usually get a good result. And if not, you just keep at it!”
 Residents of Cloed y Glyn petitioned with success to prevent the erection of a mobile phone mast near the local school.
In July 2005, the week before school broke up for summer holidays, Vodafone sent notification to Mary Foster’s local school and to a few local residents and the pub of Coed y Glyn, near Wrexham, letting them know of their intention to erect a mobile phone mast. It was to be 13m high with a base unit of about a metre. Their intention was to place it within yards of a children’s play area, virtually opposite the school and people’s homes and almost on the pavement by a busy crossroads.
“There had been no prior information and there was only three weeks to appeal. The mums got together and printed around 300 leaflets to distribute in the area. They contacted local councillors, the assembly minister, an MP and other schools in the district, plus the newspaper,” said Mary, a member of Erddig WI. “They asked people to write or phone their concerns to the planning officer who wanted the application to go ahead. Petitions were gathered and 40 residents wrote to protest. At the August planning meeting the application was rejected.”
Vodafone’s subsequent plan to put up a smaller mast raised similar opposition from the community. Once more, people wrote to complain to the planning officer and there were speakers against the mast at the planning meeting. “I’m pleased to say that the application for a phone mast was voted against unanimously,” reported Mary.
 Sweet mile of success for the members of Lesbury WI, showing off one of the new lowered curbs in the village.
Annette Ord, secretary of Lesbury WI near Alnwick in Northumberland, remembers clearly how their pavement improvement campaign got started. “Our WI treasurer had been trying to push her grandchild around the village in a pram and she noticed how steep the kerbs were, and how difficult they were to negotiate with wheels,” explains Annette. With the backing of our WI, we started a campaign to get the kerbs dropped at certain places to allow wheelchairs and prams to cross the road more easily.”
Annette wrote to both Parish Council and County Council and was surprised to be contacted within weeks by the County Engineer. “The president, treasurer and I met him soon after to walk the pavements, so we could show him where we felt the kerbs needed to be lowered,” continues Annette. The engineer marked the spots, and within nine months, the kerbs were lowered, complete with tactile surfaces to alert visually impaired people.
“It was quite a painless campaign, and definitely worth doing,” concludes Annette. “We have a lot of elderly people in the village, and they, as well as wheelchair and pram users, are pleased with the improvement.”
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