Hello
Thank you for taking the time to visit The Playback Project. This is a small operation hoping to have a big impact through the power of people. We hope to be a positive force for change. Below we share our origin story and the hope of turning negativity into positivity.
I care deeply about the community I live in. I have lived there most of my life. I love the people, the businesses, the memories.
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That all changed when I attended my first Parish Council meeting. I didn't have high expectations but what I experienced shocked me. Councillors told easily provable lies, they gossiped about people, they laughed at the public audience. Their tone was unprofessional and cruel. I felt like I was back at school, watching the bullies the playground.
I left that meeting feeling ashamed. These were democratically elected representatives yet their behaviour was troubling. Just as troubling, I noticed how the public gallery tolerated it. People stayed polite and quiet, even though councillors were not acting in their best interests. I began to understand why: people are afraid. Afraid of retaliation, afraid of being treated as an outsider in their home, afraid to speak up.
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That night, I felt patronised, bullied and heartbroken. They made me feel uncomfortable in my home.
I realised something important, I couldn't change them. Not on my own.
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But maybe, together, we could.
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That is how The Playback Project began.
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In England, the law gives citizens the right to record council meetings. The platform makes those recording public and can be a true record. If councillors know their behaviour is on the record, perhaps they will behave better.
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Over time, I hope this encourages a culture of integrity in local councils and attract people who want to serve with honesty, courage, and respect. Public office is not easy but how will we ever bring the right people into our councils if the culture is not changed.
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I cannot change the past experience that left me feeling silenced. But maybe together, this this platform, we can turn it into something positive: a tool for transparency, a source of better information, and a community resource that helps councils live up to the role they were elected to.