Welcome
Thanks for paying us a visit. This page explains the Bank of England Citizens’ Forum: what it is, why it matters, and how you can get involved through our panel events and online platform.
Who we are
We’re a public body but we’re independent from the Government.
We’re the UK’s central bank. Our job is to promote the good of the people of the United Kingdom by maintaining monetary and financial stability.
That means managing inflation – the rate at which prices rise – and making sure that the financial system, which includes banks and building societies, functions properly. We also issue banknotes and run the system that allows electronic payments to take place.
Find out more about who we are and what we do.
Why get involved
What we do affects everyone, so we’ve set up the citizens’ forum so we can listen directly to you. We want to hear what you have to say about jobs, pay and the cost of living. And we’d like to know about your experiences of the housing market and how easy you find it to borrow and save money. Taking part means you can put your views directly to people who make decisions that affect you. Our citizens’ forum members help us to understand how major events, such as Covid, affect people financially.What to expect
After you have signed up, you can get involved:
- through our exclusive member only online platform, The Economy Hub
- by attending an event in your local area
- by participating in a focus group session that explores a key theme or topic or by joining one of our large scale Q&A sessions with the Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey
Signing up and getting involved means you can:
- learn more about what we do and how the economy works
- meet our staff
- tell us what you think – your views are welcome and valued
How to apply
Anyone over 16 can sign up. We want our panel events to be as representative as possible. If events are oversubscribed, we’ll select a diverse range of people from all applicants.Apply to take part
Upcoming events
- Citizens’ Panel, Yorkshire and Humber, Wednesday 18 May at 6pm (virtual)
- Citizens’ Panel, Falkirk, Monday 30 May at 5.30pm (in person)
If you would be interested in participating in any of these sessions please sign up to our Citizens’ Forum community and details will be shared.
Everyone is welcome to join and all our sessions are free to attend.
What people say about being involved
Citizens’ Panel feedback from participants
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Information we collect
By this application form for Citizens’ Forums (“Forums”), the Bank of England (“we” or the “Bank”) collects personal data about you. This information includes contact details, varied demographic information and your opinions about the economy.
Why we need your personal data
We collect your personal data to evaluate public understanding of the UK economy and the Bank’s mission.
We also use your data to track how representative of the UK population our membership is.
This is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority of the Bank.
To the extent to which you provide us with any special categories of personal data, including diversity information, our basis for processing this data is that it is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest.
Your opinions may also influence how we conduct the Bank’s mission as relevant to the Bank’s policy, analytical, operational and supervisory work.
What we do with your personal data
Citizens’ Forum application
We use the information to develop our community, our events and ensure that we are representative of the UK population.
We use a third party provider, WorldApp (Diversis Capital), based in the United States, to provide the KeySurvey online application form. For more information about their security practices and privacy policy visit https://www.survey.form.com/privacy-policy.
If you choose to sign up to the Citizens’ Community online platform, The Economy Hub, this is provided by a third party provider, CitizenLab, based in the EU. For more information about CitizenLab’s security practices and privacy policy visit https://www.citizenlab.co/legals.We will keep your personal data for 5 years from your last interaction with us. If at any time, you no longer wish to be involved, you can let us know at Citizens'Panels@bankofengland.co.uk
Citizens’ Forum eventsIf selected to attend one of our events we will use your personal data to co-ordinate your attendance and for event management.
You will be required to bring proof of identity, such as a passport or drivers licence, to ensure access is granted to the correct people. Appropriate security checks may be carried out as deemed necessary by the Bank.
Further engagement
Whether you attend an event or not, we will contact you with alternative engagement opportunities, such as surveys, which may be of interest to you.
Any data you choose to provide may be linked to your personal profile to help us evaluate public understanding of the UK economy and the Bank’s mission.
Your rights
You have a number of rights under data protection laws (for example, you have the right to ask us for a copy of the personal data the Bank holds about you. This is known as a ‘Subject Access Request’). You can ask us to change how we process or deal with your personal data, and you may also have the right in some circumstances to have your personal data amended or deleted.
To find out more about those rights, to make a complaint, or to contact our Data Protection Officer, please visit our Privacy page.
You can request that we no longer use your personal data, by writing to us at the address below.
Outreach, Communications, TS-M
Bank of England
Threadneedle Street
London EC2R 8AH
Citizens' Forum news
This page was last updated 10 May 2022
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