People want more opportunity and protection in the face of constant economy, political and social uncertainty from what’s going on in the world to what’s going on their doorsteps, from Brexit to Covid 19.
More often than not though, they don’t just want more efficient but faceless services, they want to be able to count on people for help, to talk to and live well in their neighbourhoods, to feel like they can be in control of change not having to adapt to it.
At times, the structures & processes of councils have created a sense that it’s only the council that can and should help people and the places they live in to grow and flourish, and be supported in times of crisis.
But on the ground, in our neighbourhoods, our staff, residents and other organisations that care about the neighbourhood often come together to fix things which services don’t see or cannot resolve, whether it’s a community coming together after a young boy has been murdered or setting up a street market to tackle lack of healthy food.
Neighbourhoods are the places where people live, work and play. Each has a distinct identity, strength and infrastructure. You can feel and breathe the culture of how to make change happen and the needs are rooted in the neighbourhood, you can test and see the changes.
We need to create spaces for people to deliberate and take action, support residents to better understand their neighbours’ lives, support them to help tackle difficult issues and mobilises the organisations around common causes.
