Community ownership

They include a renovated Wigton Market Hall and Wigton Community Centre, which Allerdale Borough Council is handing over to a new development trust, the North Allerdale Partnership.

In a major acceleration towards ensuring that communities in every part of the country get a chance to run their own assets, Hazel Blears, MP for Salford, has announced a new target of 80 areas within two years. The fresh development will start with an extra 14 demonstration areas, on top of the 20 that already exist.
She will also announce the allocation of £2m to support the new pilots (part of £35m announced in late 2007 for empowerment initiatives).

An old town centre court house, a historic library and even a station yard are just some of the assets that councils are handing over to community-led organisations prepared to bring these iconic properties back to community life.
There are examples all over the country of how asset transfer can provide a home for a range of social enterprises, provide a meeting space for local groups, and give people an opportunity to learn new skills.

One of the most remarkable of the current pilots is Hastings Pier which has been closed for health and safety reasons since July 2006. The Communities Secretary said: “There’s no better advocate for local people than local people themselves, no service that can’t be improved by their active involvement. It’s been my privilege to see struggling estates and neighbourhoods made safer and cleaner thanks to commitment and courage of local residents.”

Speaking at the Plunkett Foundation annual conference on ‘Rural Social Enterprise’ in Cambridgeshire, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government said that community engagement was not just for inner cities: “Rural communities today face new challenges – an ageing population, some places seeing new migration for the first time and an ever-present need for local shops and services. Giving local people more opportunities to get things done for themselves will be a big part of the solution.”

She quoted examples of existing asset transfer pilots in rural areas, such as the district of Restormel in Cornwall and Ashfield in Nottingham, where a former stable which had been used as a schoolroom is currently being renovated.
The Communities Secretary also encouraged those living in rural areas to use their existing powers to have a bigger say over what happens in their community: “What better example could there be of local democracy in action than the parish council? These are local people, elected by their neighbours, knowing what their village needs, and able to levy a small precept to invest in it.

“That’s why we are giving the best parishes a new ‘well-being power’, giving them much more discretion to spend their money as they see fit – on everything from environmental projects, local services for the young or elderly, or getting involved in social enterprises.

“Participatory budgeting is another means of giving people a direct say over how public money is spent in their local area. It not only makes sure their priorities are being met; it’s a way of making them feel more able to say ‘this is my street, my estate, and I’m proud of it.’ Devolution right to the doorstep.”

The Opening the Transfer Window implementation plan was launched in May to maximise the transfer of public assets to communities in order to make services more responsive and create more confident empowered communities with greater civic spirit.