Communities
Grenfell council adopts participatory budgeting
The council at the centre of the Grenfell Tower tragedy has used participatory budgeting for the first time as part of a new strategy.
A wealth of benefits
Community Wealth Building is too commonly seen as ‘local procurement’, but this seriously misses its breadth and potential impact, believes John Tizard.
More power for the people
Margaret Bolton argues that it’s time to establish a Community Wealth Fund to devolve decision-making power and resources to the residents of the communities that have been ‘left behind’.
Communities hold the key to children’s social care
Pawda Tjoa says community-led approaches to early intervention should offer valuable lessons for policy-making on a national scale – and now is the time to ‘nurture the local initiatives that are already making a difference’.
Rooted in the real world
Director of the New Local Government Network, Adam Lent, talks to Ann McGauran about the impact made by the think-tank during his three years of leadership and the next steps for empowering communities.
Funding communities at the coal face
Areas like Bassetlaw need a change of approach by Government that delivers investment in hard-to-measure community assets, argues David Armiger.
Food keeps new arrivals on their feet
Cllr Ahsan Khan explains how Waltham Forest LBC’s Welcome Meals initiative builds on its ‘proud history’ of helping new residents build connections and find vital support.
Unlocking the potential of towns
As councils and their partners grapple with how to ensure the attention on towns brings real local change, Pippa Coutts of Carnegie Trust UK urges them to focus on local solutions.
Breaking down that segregation (a little)
It has not been the best advertisement for our democracy and most people will be glad it’s all over, writes Dan Corry. So why does he think the General Election process always does some good?
Basildon’s big ambitions
As Basildon’s 70th birthday year comes to an end, Joe Reay says the celebrations provided the perfect opportunity to rebuild the sense of civic pride that’s vital to a successful place.
The public want to see clear improvements across neighbourhood services
Paul O'Brien says the public will be fairly unforgiving if, having raised their expectations on public spending during the election campaign, they don't start to see evidence of this happening locally..
'Safe places' needed in Greater Manchester to divert youth from violent crime
Communities in Greater Manchester feel there is an urgent need to create safe places and strong relationships to divert young people from violent crime, new research has found.
‘Ten years or life’
New research aims to understand the drivers of recent hikes in violent crime involving young people in Greater Manchester as perpetrators and victims – and has come up with insights and recommendations. Ann McGauran reports.
It’s party time
With just a week to polling day, the race to form the next Government is nearly over. Here Paul Marinko tries to help the sector navigate the web of policy commitments for local government on offer after 12 December.
Post Christmas blues
We all know that local government’s reputation as a bunch of jobsworthy killjoys is completely unfounded. Well, mostly.
Once upon a place...
Susan Parsonage says the stories local leaders tell have tremendous power to remind us of our common purpose of transforming lives and places.
Can the party leaders cut through to the issues that matter most?
In the context of moving into almost presidential-style elections with a huge focus on party leaders, how will they cut through to speak to the issues that matter to people most, asks Claire Kober.
Making the most of our cultural assets
The three councils of Lancaster City, Barrow and South Lakeland are coming together to pilot a new model that 'aims to capture and maximise our individual and collective cultural assets', says Lawrence Conway.
The Market leaders
Kevin Foster explains the purpose of the East Sussex Social Value Marketplace – an online platform that enables the public, private and voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sectors to raise their needs so that contractors can respond.
Social value must be more than a ‘jumble sale’
One of the challenges businesses often struggle with is how to deliver social value, writes Andrew O’Brien. He says there is also a danger that focusing too heavily on an exchange or marketplace leads to treating social value as a ‘jumble sale’.