The Government announced the new Plan for Neighbourhoods £1.5bn funding pot last month, which I'm sure will be very welcome news for the 75 selected communities who will each receive up to £ 20 million of funding and support over the next decade. 

The principle of targeted regeneration has many examples of success and with AC having been appointed advisors to over half of the New Deal for Communities (NDC) programmes upon which this new Fund is said to emulate and build (Ah, I remember it well, despite giving away my age a little!), and their legacy programmes, many of which are still ongoing success stories today, there are also some lessons to be learned.  

Local empowerment is key to ensure spending is by and for those communities, in accordance with community priorities. Aware that Neighbourhood Boards need to be confirmed before 23 April, local authority accountable bodies and those Boards then need to ensure in creating their Regeneration Plans, they will be listening and accountable to their communities, not be rushing spend to hit grant deadlines, and will be creating asset backed development to drive long term sustainability from the outset - way beyond the ten year programme.  

Citing the Fund prospectus, “To fix the foundations of those places most left behind, we need a long-term strategy to regenerate, underpinned by plans that address demographic shifts and cultural change. No one knows the priorities of the community better than those who live and work there, which is why our Plan for Neighbourhoods will empower local people to take back control of their future with a long-term, flexible funding pot of up to £20 million of funding and support over the next 10 years.”  

Whilst 10 years may seem a long time, time surely flies when you're having fun, and funding programmes come to an end. So I guess my plea is to listen and learn from experience, including the lived experience of the community, and take a long-term view.  Many of us may still bear some battle scars, but there will equally be many tales of success to celebrate and learn from, and it would be a real shame if we lost or didn't listen to that experience.

For more information on how we might be able to help your community (or for a cathartic conversation about the NDC programme!), please get in touch.