Transforming Neighbourhoods

Transforming Neighbourhoods was a two-year programme of research, innovation and practical action designed to encourage a major devolution of power to neighbourhoods and communities in England. It ran from April 2005 to March 2007. Drawing on its success, the Young Foundation has now launched the Neighbourhood Action Network.

The programme was run by the Young Foundation and supported by a consortium of 15 local authorities: Birmingham, Camden, Haringey, Knowsley, Lewisham, Liverpool, Newham, Sheffield, Staffordshire, Suffolk, Surrey, Tower Hamlets, Wakefield, Waltham Forest and Wiltshire; and the Department for Communities and Local Government, the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, Community Alliance, the Housing Corporation, the Improvement and Development Agency, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, and Local Government Association.

The programme involved four workstreams:

• Research – to understand how power can be successfully transferred to communities, learning from international and UK case studies
• Practical projects – in 15 local areas to support community empowerment and improve neighbourhood working
• Influencing policy – drawing on experience and evidence from local projects to develop policy recommendations for central and local government
• Innovation – developing practical tools for neighbourhoods to use including FixMyStreet, a website for people to report broken infrastructure to their council, and Neighbourhood Know-How.

Why neighbourhoods?

Recent polls show that 61 per cent of people in England do not believe they can influence decisions about their local area. Our research shows that people most want to tackle the problems that affect their everyday lives, in particular, neighbourhood grime, community safety and providing facilities for young people. These are issues where local knowledge, action and influence can make the most difference to effectively solving problems and involving people in decision-making. 73 per cent of people say they would support changes to give neighbourhoods greater control over some services and budgets.

There are many good examples of neighbourhoods being given powers to make things happen locally, but the Young Foundation has concluded that these opportunities should be available to communities everywhere. We propose that all neighbourhoods should be given new powers to:

• Act on very local issues, like having control over small budgets to tackle problems with public spaces, crime and grime
• Influence decisions about other local services like street cleaning, recycling and youth services, through local action planning and partnerships with decision-making powers
• Hold service providers and councils to account – being able to publicly challenge the decisions made by public agencies such as police and planners
• Deliver very local services like street cleaning or play centres, as parish councils currently do.

Transforming Neighbourhoods: A collection of stories about community empowerment arose from the Transforming Neighbourhoods Consortium and is a collection of stories from the Young Foundation about innovative and inspirational neighbourhood initiatives. It can be purchased from our publications page.

For press coverage of the book please see:

Guardian Patrick Butler 10 October 2007

New Start Editorial comment 10 October 2007

New Start article 10 October 2007

Public Net 1 November 2007

For further information please contact Melissa Magallanes, melissa.magallanes(AT)youngfoundation.org