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ACRE’s new toolkit for Community Led Planning provides step-by-step guidance for communities who want to take action and produce a holistic plan that will guarantee the sustainability and wellbeing of their neighbourhood.
The new localism rights designed to empower communities are unlikely to be effective without a firm foundation to build on. This new toolkit from ACRE enables local communities to become stronger and more resilient, by working together to research the needs and aspirations of their community and agree upon a range of different actions that will improve their neighbourhood. Where communities pursue a Community Led Plan, they will be able to put the localism rights to good use, maximising their benefit for everyone locally.
The toolkit builds on guidance previously published by ACRE for Local Authorities. ‘Making the most of Community Led Planning: a best practice guide for local authorities’ showed how local authorities are already supporting this approach to localism by examining the role they can play at each stage of a plan’s development. This guidance was endorsed by a range of different national organisations and included a foreword by Greg Clark, Minister for Decentralisation at Communities and Local Government.
But this is not just another toolkit placed on the web – it comes with the backing of highly experienced practitioners from within the Rural Community Action Network (RCAN), who will give support to community groups looking to embark on a journey of self development. RCAN members will use the new toolkit with communities to guide them through the process of developing high quality Community Led Plans that are empowering, inclusive and bring about tangible benefits for everyone involved. They will also show communities how to use the localism rights to make their plan more effective.
Phillip Vincent, ACRE’s Team Leader for Community Led Planning and Housing said:
“We hope that our new toolkit will benefit rural and urban communities alike; helping them to become stronger and more resilient during challenging times. But this isn’t about people pursuing single issue actions for their own benefit. It’s about a much broader and inclusive process of empowerment whereby whole communities are supported to work together, better understand each other’s needs and play a more active role in shaping the future of their neighbourhood. We are confident that Community Led Planning is the gold standard for delivering localism; preparing communities to take advantage of the new rights.”
The new toolkit uses the LEAD framework for Community Led Planning developed with Action for Market Towns (AMT).
Sections of the new Community Led Planning Toolkit are FREE to download from ACRE’s website:http://www.acre.org.uk/our-work/community-led-planning/NEW+CLP+Toolkit
Notes for Editors:
1. Community Led Planning can be defined as a step-by-step process that enables every citizen to participate in, and contribute to improving the social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeing of their local area. Already undertaken by approximately 4,000 communities across England, it represents an unparalleled opportunity for people to take responsibility for making things happen locally, rather than waiting on others to do it for them. ACRE | Our Work | Community Led Planning
2. ACRE has traditionally provided support to Rural Community Action Network (RCAN) members who help facilitate Parish Plans; a type of CLP frequently used by rural parishes.
3. Making the most of Community Led Planning: a best practice guide for local authorities was published by ACRE with Action for Market Towns (AMT) in July 2011.It examines the practical ways that local authorities have already sought to empower communities to take action locally by making the most of Community Led Planning (CLP). ACRE | Our Work | Community Led Planning | Resources | Local authority guidance
4. The Rural Community Action Network covers the whole of rural England through the work of 37 local member organisations, eight regional bodies and ACRE. The local member organisations are all independent charities, largely county-based. As local development agencies, RCAN members have been facilitating social change in rural communities for decades by providing tailored and comprehensive support to rural communities to enhance their quality of life and access to services. With a strong focus on local advocacy and brokering relationships between rural community aspirations and local government strategies, RCAN members enhance the role of community action and self-reliance in rural areas across the country. ACRE | About RCAN
For more information about ACRE’s new Community led Planning Toolkit, please contact:
Phillip Vincent
Team Leader (Community Led Planning and Housing)
p.vincent@acre.org.uk
01285 653477
