Walsall Council accused of 'baffling' Lego training session

Councillor Matt Ward's creation featured a Lego Elvis driving a dog-drawn cart, and fly-tipping

A training session in which councillors were asked to make Lego models has been described as a "waste of time".

Members in Walsall were asked to use the toy to build their idea of a "resilient community" during a workshop on Tuesday.

One councillor said he was left "absolutely baffled" by the "patronising" session.

Council leader Mike Bird said Lego was used as a metaphor to demonstrate the need to build stronger communities.

The Conservative-run authority has launched the Walsall Proud Programme, which will see it spend £10m on consultants in a bid to transform the way the council works and deliver three times as many savings.

Part of the programme is the "resilient communities" model, which was the focus of the session run by an independent trainer.

The resilient communities model is part of the council's Walsall Proud Programme

The purpose of the approach is to bring the council "closer to the people of Walsall" and is aimed at local communities finding solutions to local issues.

Leader of the Labour group, Aftab Nawaz, said he went into the meeting expecting to be briefed "about the resilience model" but found it "a waste of time".

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Labour councillor Matt Ward's creation featured a partially built house, fly-tipping and a Lego Elvis driving a dog-drawn cart.

"To have senior councillors sitting there and playing with Lego is absolutely baffling," he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

"The whole session was patronising."

Councillor Bird said: "It was a one-off item in the workshop about what can you build. If you understand the whole concept of the meeting, it becomes very relevant."

Walsall Council said the workshop was developed in response to requests from councillors wanting more information on their role under the council changes.

A spokeswoman said the use of interactive tools was "a creative alternative, commonly used to engage audiences".