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NAVCA CONFERENCE 2009
WORKING WITH LOCAL GOVERNMENT TO EMPOWER LOCAL COMMUNITIES
Isobel Mills, Deputy Regional Director
Government Office for Yorkshire and The Humber
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WORKING WITH LOCAL GOVERNMENT TO EMPOWER LOCAL COMMUNITIES
To cover:
• Community empowerment – what does it actually mean?
• Why is it so hard?• Why it matters: selling it to local government• Things to think about (aka what’s in it for you)
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Community empowerment – what does it actually mean?
• Democratic renewal• Improving services• Opening up decision
making• Reducing community
unease• Increasing civic
participation• Logical journey from
consultation and engagement
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Community empowerment – what does it actually mean?
• Measured through Places Survey
• About % of people who agree they can influence decisions in their local area
• Question sits alongside others around volunteering, satisfaction, “getting on well”
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Why is it so hard
• Subjective empowerment (extent to which people feel they have influence over local conditions and decisions)
• Social capital – bonding, bridging, linking
• Collective efficacy – petitions
• Co-production – involvement of third sector in service delivery
• Passage from horizontal to vertical participation
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Why it matters: selling it to local government (I)
• Duty to involve• New Equalities Bill• Comparison with peers• Important for CAA
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Why it matters: selling it to local government (II)
• Duty to involve only stat duty CAA assesses
• Keen to understand how a place “reads” its communities
• Seems to be a focus on needs – and aspirations
• Also that areas understand neighbourhoods and groups
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Why it matters: selling it to local government (III)
• In a time when resources will be tight you will want citizens to understand choices
• Service users are likely to be good co-designers of the services they receive
• About stronger, more confident communities
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Things to think about: what’s it in for you
• Participatory budgeting• Petitions• Transfer of assets• “Redress”• Young mayors• Cllrs Commission
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Things to think about: what’s in it for you
• Potential as facilitators of community devolution (TMOs, asset transfer)
• Service provision• Connector between
regional, sub-regional, local
• Horizon scanning
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Horizon Scanning
• A future without funding
• A future with substantial debt
• A future where local is likely to have primacy
• A search for new models of delivery
• Where radicalism will be welcomed?
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Finally…