A great share by Baroness Sharon Bowles on the conceptual “Right to Request Ownership” - a policy idea originating in Graeme Nuttall’s Nuttall Review 2012 - a series of voluntary or proposed mechanisms that different bodies have since picked up.

This piece helpfully brings back the focus squarely where it belongs: the E in EO - Employee.

At the heart of broad-based employee ownership is the principle of economic democracy — and democracy, in any form, only works when participation is broad, meaningful, and accessible.

EO has historically developed as an owner-facing conversation, but the real power of the model lies with employees. That means our platforms, programmes, and public dialogue must be genuinely accessible: to the broad-base employees in EO businesses and to the millions working in non-EO firms who deserve the right to understand this pathway.

Non-EO employees deserve access to the knowledge and structures that make EO possible — whether through trust-based models or employee share ownership. And the broad-base of employee-owners already in EOBs deserve a seat at the table where decisions about the future of the companies they own are being shaped. To borrow a phrase from the care community: “Nothing about us, without us.”

Good EO relies on a clear separation of responsibilities between management and trustees — not just theoretically, but in practice. The sector must reflect this distinction in how we communicate, govern, and design platforms. It cannot simply be claimed; it must be demonstrably embedded.

If EO is to grow as a movement, on a par with mutual cousins – cooperatives and financial mutuals - we have to bring it not only to owners but to the boroad-base of employees with equal vigour.

Manchester — and the North as a whole — with its deep roots in cooperative and mutual traditions, is well placed to lead a truly broad-based Festival of Ownership. A movement that empowers employees to learn, connect, and shape the future of EO together.

An open, collaborative, and accessible platform that invites in non-EO employees as well as the broad base of existing employee owners beyond trustees and management.

The next phase of EO must build powerful, practical platforms where the broader base of employees who create value are fully included in designing the systems that distribute it.

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