XI CONEXIONES Y SOLUCIONES:
NADA SE PUEDE CONSEGUIR SIN COLABORACIÓN
The Kendray Initiative is run by the Kendray Initiative Board formed by a group of residents, local service providers and councillors. The board controls a proportion of funds allocated for redevelopment of the area to plan and operate projects. With receipt of funding for Neighbourhood Management they have employed a Neighbourhood Management Team to support their work and deliver longer term benefits.
‘…physical change has come about as a result of the positive energy and commitment of residents …the most important ingredient however, has been community support that was responsible for engendering trust and confidence necessary to initiate dialogue’
Ian Smith, the Neighbourhood Manager, Kendray Initiative. Ian Smith has worked with the community for over a decade.
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A proportion of finances allocated for the redevelopment of the area are used to fund the Kendray Initiative which has actively produced an estate redevelopment plan that promotes community aspirations, neighbourhood engagement and employed a neighbourhood manager.
Skills and knowledge gained by the community KEY
The impact The motivation Actions taken by the community The issues
Others who got involved Sources of community support
Selling and letting
People who have a long-term interest in an area are more likely to become involved in community activities and to take responsibility for the area’s maintenance. First-time buyers and shared ownership occupiers are likely to have the highest interest in making an area work. Short-term tenants in private rented properties are less likely to feel a strong sense of community. Tenants tend to be more transient than owner-occupiers and less inclined to get involved in community activities. In view of this, it may be sensible to impose agreements that limit the number of properties sold for subsequent private renting, or that limit the number that can be sold to a single buyer. In addition, management and neighbourhood bodies can help to promote cohesion on mixed-tenure developments by working across tenures. Residents from all backgrounds and occupancy types should be given opportunities to become fully involved in community activities. This will help to minimise social exclusion and promote integration.
5.3.2 Encouraging community management
Empower neighbourhoods to plan for the future
Encouraging communities to shape their environment through voluntary sector and service delivery contributions helps to empower neighbourhoods to plan for the future. As well as providing community benefits, this can help individuals gain improved confidence, new skills and training. It can improve their health and help them meet other residents.
Forums and similar organisations give people a voice in expressing their views on local issues. Groups can represent people with disabilities, young people, traders, transport users, senior citizens and many more. Such organisations are usually non-party political. Their executive or management committees make policy and plan events, benefiting from their members’ intimate local knowledge. Local groups are often brought together through shared interests. These can include: taking over a management company, improving the quality of neighbouring
developments, and establishing child care facilities, setting up car-sharing schemes, having a bus stop moved nearer a community centre, having a pedestrian crossing provided on a busy road, securing standing representation on matters concerning community care, keeping a local police station open and improving concessionary rates for evening and day classes.
Contribute through residents’ associations
One of the most effective forces for change in a
neighbourhood is the residents’ association. These work with the council and other organisations in promoting positive change. They may become the main representative body for consultation on major projects. In many cases they provide residents with the knowledge and experience to progress to other forms of resident involvement, such as a tenant management organisation. The local authority may be willing to provide grant funding to an association on the basis of the number of members it has and the proportion of residents who have joined. Other funding may come from community events, membership subscriptions and the National Lottery Board.
Examples of issues taken up by residents’ associations are: providing local expertise for neighbourhood management, lobbying for change on major issues of concern to the community, providing information to residents about local issues, social and welfare organisations, and raising public support for efforts to tackle vandalism, harassment and anti-social behaviour.
A residents’ association or forum can be set up through the following process:
• Bring together interested residents to discuss issues of concern and establish the level of support within the community
• Tell people about the forum or residents’ association and encourage people to get involved.
• Organise a meeting for all residents to discuss the issues, and how the forum or residents’ association will be organised
• Establish a steering group or residents’ panel • Prepare a constitution
• Hold a launch meeting to elect a committee (with a chairperson, secretary and treasurer) and adopt the constitution
Getting businesses involved 081 082
A Business Improvement District (BID) enables businesses in the area to lead on and develop their own area
improvement plans. A BID proposal is developed through research and consultation. The proposal is then voted on and businesses decide whether to pay a levy in order to fund the improvements. This additional levy is ring-fenced for the area to fund the extra services and improvements identified in the proposal. Each BID operates for a maximum of five years before a new vote has to be taken.
MANAGING QUALITY PLACES 5.3
The Waterloo Quarter Business Alliance (WQBA) is the Business Improvement District (BID) based in the historic retail area immediately south of Waterloo Station, separated from the bustling South Bank by victorian railway viaducts and the Grimshaw Eurostar terminal. Once a thriving shopping district with a street market over one mile in length, the area has declined through post war planning that interrupted pedestrian connections, demographic changes and a lack of investment in upkeep of the urban fabric in one of inner London’s poorest boroughs.
The BID has set about reversing this decline by strategically focusing investment over a sustained period to enable retailers