“FOR socialist municipalism” reads the banner on the website of Beacon, an emerging Liverpool-based political movement made up of left-wing activists, trade unionists, academics and community campaigners.

Last month Beacon applied to the Electoral Commission to become a political party, but the group is not waiting around — and today a member of the movement will provide a socialist alternative for voters in the city’s Kirkdale by-election.

Peter Furmedge will be standing as a non-party candidate but on a Beacon Liverpool manifesto, reflecting the aims of a grassroots political movement looking to “rejuvenate local democracy” through municipalism and work in the community.

“I’ve always been interested in and involved in community activism, without ever wanting to be a politician,” says Furmedge.

“But there is only so long that any of us can talk about what has gone wrong and watch it happen without stepping up.

“As a resident, with friends and family across Kirkdale, I believe I can make a difference.”

He will be standing against candidates from Labour, Conservatives, Greens, Liberal Democrats and the Trade Unionist & Socialist Coalition for a seat that is vacant after Labour councillor Malcolm Kennedy resigned.

Furmedge is also one of the directors at local non-League football side City of Liverpool FC (COLFC), whose work in their local area through a separate arm of the club, COLFC in the Community, also reflects the aims of the Beacon manifesto, using football as the vehicle.

Speaking of football, Beacon believes it is time activists in Liverpool stop being used as political footballs by parties who are becoming distant both in terms of their London location and their wider understanding of Liverpool and its surrounding area.

There is increased disillusionment with the Labour Party (even if not necessarily with local Labour MPs) among the left in Liverpool at a time when younger activists and community workers aren’t always seeing their everyday efforts and campaigning reflected or understood by decision-makers and London-centric politics.

This was only exacerbated when the byline of Labour leader Keir Starmer appeared on a column in the Sun newspaper.

In a statement last month announcing Furmedge’s candidacy, Beacon reflected these local views.

“Too often, London-based political parties have treated some of the city’s best community and workplace activists as political footballs, to be kicked whilst trying to gain favour with the likes of Rupert Murdoch and The Sun,” they said.

“Words, no matter how strong, are not enough.”

Beacon’s manifesto consists of clear and actionable commitments to improving the lives of people in the communities it already represents and supports at grassroots level.

These commitments include a social housing programme, generating community wealth through land trusts, opposing austerity and campaigning to improve the area’s public transport systems which would, in turn, facilitate a greener city region.

Their aim is to accelerate the Green New Deal in the Liverpool area which would create opportunities for useful, rewarding apprenticeships and jobs.

“We have to do much better than to continue wasting time arguing about who controls the tired, old, one-dimensional political parties in Westminster,” Furmedge adds.

“Beacon Liverpool is about us, ourselves, in our communities and at work, defining a future in which the resources of the region are used for the good of all of us in the region.

“We can develop a green future with good jobs, real apprenticeships, decent and affordable housing and, most importantly, hope for young people in neighbourhoods like Kirkdale.”

Where the current government has failed to provide support, people in communities across the country have stepped up in their absence.

Most will have done so not with any political allegiance in mind, but simply because action needed to be taken to support their families, their friends’ families and their most vulnerable neighbours.

These efforts were ramped up during the pandemic when local activities became even more vital for mental and physical wellbeing and for things as basic as groceries and provisions.

Foodbank schemes are another example of communities stepping in to provide for those in need and these types of emergency measures were needed long before the pandemic when communities were at a crisis point as a result of austerity and cuts.

Liverpool MPs have campaigned for support in Westminster as much as they can but they can sometimes hit a brick wall in terms of actually getting things done back in their constituencies.

A lot of their most valuable work is also focused on supporting local initiatives away from Westminster.

This focus on local people and grassroots participatory democracy is something advocated by Beacon. It is a way forward, building on positive things already happening locally and making sure there are fewer roadblocks and better use of resources so more can be achieved.

“It’s on all of us to play an active role in shaping our community and participating in our local politics and Beacon Liverpool will be a vehicle for that,” added Furmedge in a statement.

“This is not about another politician promising to do things to an area, this is about someone wanting to move political barriers so that we can all collectively bring about the changes we want and that Kirkdale needs to see.

“My experience in the community and in supporting and enabling community action, together with my commitment to the area, are what I will bring to the table and I’m confident that Beacon Liverpool can change politics for Kirkdale and the city as a whole, for the better.”