Click here to skip to content

Welfare Reform on the Web (February 2001): Community Regeneration - UK

AIMING TO BREATHE NEW LIFE INTO MANCHESTER'S ABANDONED EAST SIDE

S. Jones and A. Pike

Financial Times, Nov 13th 2000, p.4

Reports on the pilot urban regeneration company involved in reviving deprived areas in East Manchester. Regeneration companies are predicted to prove a central initiative of the forthcoming urban renewal white paper.

A BLIND EYE TO REALITY

B. Campbell

Municipal Journal, Nov 24th-30th 2000, p.11

Neighbourhood regeneration projects have in the past failed to have a lasting impact due to failure to include a strategy for economic development and failure to tackle underlying social problems such as domestic violence and abuse.

CHANGING CULTURES AND BUILDING SHARED OWNERSHIP

C. Ashworth

Local Economy, vol.15, 2000, p.256-261

To be sustainable, regeneration needs to be based on genuine partnerships. Presents experience of Nottingham Partnership Council which has striven to create not just a regeneration organisation but a participatory democracy in which residents work on a basis of equality alongside members of the voluntary, business and public sectors.

COMMUNITIES IN THE BALANCE: THE REALITY OF SOCIAL EXCLUSION ON HOUSING ESTATES

D. Page

York: York Publishing Services, 2000

Residents identified as being vulnerable to social exclusion were likely to be poorly educated, low-skilled and demotivated, with low aspirations and expectations. Despite those vulnerable to social exclusion being in a minority, the norms and values of this group were perceived as defining an estate culture which dominated the common areas of each estate, and coloured its reputation in the neighbourhood. In all areas studied the biggest single issue identified by residents was the anti-social behaviour of young people. Public services can play a crucial role in preventing social exclusion by:

  • keeping vulnerable people connected to mainstream society;
  • providing support to vulnerable families and children at risk;
  • maintaining a visible physical embodiment of civil society in areas where mainstream values are breaking down.

ENTERPRISING COMMUNITIES: WEALTH BEYOND WELFARE

Social Investment Task Force

London: UK Social Investment Forum, 2000

Presents five recommendations aimed at securing £1bn worth of private investment in depressed areas over five years:

  • tax incentives to encourage investment in community development;
  • provision of £100m of match funding by government;
  • disclosure of lending activities by banks;
  • more support for community financial institutions;
  • more latitude for charitable trusts to invest in community development.

ESTABLISHING COMMUNITY FORUMS THAT MAKE A DIFFERENCE

C. Khamis

Local Economy, vol.15, 2000, p.264-267

Article examines why community fora have emerged and why they are important for ensuring that regeneration works and is sustainable for people living in poor neighbourhoods. Then outlines some lessons on how such fora are most effectively built, looking at some issues that regularly need to be tackled during their establishment and management.

EXCLUSIVE COUNTRYSIDE? SOCIAL INCLUSION AND REGENERATION IN RURAL AREAS

M. Shucksmith

York: York Publishing, 2000

Urges the government to introduce grants to enable unemployed young people in rural areas to buy a car, and calls for means tested help with the costs of road tax and insurance.

HOPE CAN RISE AMID VIOLENCE AND SQUALOR

P. Valley

Independent Review Supplement, Dec 1st 2000, p.5

Discusses how self-help activities organised by local people can improve the quality of life on sink estates. Such schemes both provide services and build up the competence and confidence of those involved.

MAINTAINING COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT IN REGENERATION: WHAT ARE THE ISSUES?

M. Taylor

Local Economy; vol.15, 2000, p.251-255

Partnership is a central theme of New Labour's policies in the regeneration field. Local partnerships now involve councils, the community, business and voluntary organisations. For community involvement to be effective, a citizenry which is informed and which has organisational capacity needs to be established and maintained. Paper argues that to build this capacity three issues need to be tackled:

  • shifting public sector cultures;
  • addressing real tensions;
  • developing institutional capacity.

NEIGHBOURHOOD AGREEMENTS IN ACTION: A CASE STUDY OF FOXWOOD, YORK

I. Cole, E. McCoulough and J. Southworth

York: York Publishing Services, 2000

There is growing interest in neighbourhood service agreements or estate contracts as a way of promoting greater resident involvement in service delivery. An evaluation of the Foxwood Neighbourhood Agreement in York found that they can effectively promote service accountability to local communities and develop dialogue between residents and service providers. Residents' involvement is however likely to require continuing, if modest, levels of support. The ideas behind neighbourhood agreements can help form a basis for the development of local service partnerships and community plans envisaged by the National Strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal.

OUR TOWNS AND CITIES: THE FUTURE

Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions

London: TSO, 2000 (Cm 4911)

Sets out a comprehensive, systematic vision for delivering urban revival, dealing with everything from business and leisure to education and design.

SOCIAL CAPITAL AND SOCIAL CHANGE: WOMEN'S COMMUNITY ACTIVISM

M. Gittell, I. Ortega-Bustamante and T. Steffy

Urban Affairs Review, vol.36, 2000, p.123-147

Community development organisations (CDOs) are the primary vehicle for development in low-income neighbourhoods and can be examined in terms of the degree to which they increase citizen participation and civic capacity and stabilise and revitalise neighbourhoods through the creation of social capital. Study provides more insight into how localism affects social change through activism and coalition building among women-led groups and the circumstances under which interaction and joint action occur.