EUKN - European Urban Knowledge Network - Urban regeneration through partnership: A critical appraisal

Urban regeneration through partnership: A critical appraisal

Introduction

Introduction This document is a summary of the main conclusions of a study of 27 partnerships in nine city-regions, identifying key lessons for better partnership, and critical issues about policy and governance which affect the future of Britain's cities.

Description

This document summarises the key conclusions of a study examining factors which influence the effectiveness of Britain's urban regeneration partnerships, and how they work within the emerging national policy context.

Case studies were carried out in 27 partnerships in eight city-regions in England and Scotland and in the Welsh Valleys. In each of these, a 'cluster' of partnerships was examined: a regional or sub-regional, a city-wide and one or more local partnerships. In addition to factors of effectiveness, what are called the 'foundations' of partnership were also examined.

Background information

An enduring need for urban regeneration despite thirty years of regeneration activity raises the question of whether we are organising ourselves as a society sufficiently to achieve regeneration over the next thirty.

Although there has been an explosion in the 1990s in the use of partnership as a means to regeneration, not enough is known about why some partnerships are effective and others are not. This document summarises a study which aimed to explore this issue.

Methodology

The study looked at 27 regeneration partnerships in nine city-regions:

East London and Newham,
Birmingham,
Greater Manchester,
South Yorkshire and Sheffield,
the Tees Valley and Middlesbrough,
the Welsh Valleys and Rhondda Cynon Taff,
Lanarkshire,
Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Conclusions

Local leadership and practical, long-term vision are vital in developing consensus.
A concerted effort is needed to involve business – few partnerships had real business involvement.
Regeneration programmes should: budget for community capacity building from the start; ensure that partners understand the need for community development; enter into formal regeneration and service quality agreements, or community plans; and measure success in terms of community skills and residents' views.
Important tasks are to develop a clear corporate approach in the local authority, and to promote local democracy and neighbourhood initiatives within a council decentralisation programme.

Contact info

Joseph Rowntree Foundation
publications@jrf.org.uk

Publication date

Project finished

//2000

Researcher

The research team was led by Professor Michael Carley at Heriot-Watt University, with Mike Chapman and Karryn Kirk; and Annette Hastings, Raymond Young, Alison More and Jo Dean at Glasgow University.

Links

Visit the Joseph Rowntree Foundation website

Download the 'Urban regeneration through partnership' Report (PDF, Eng, 42 KB)

Document type

research

Themes

Urban Policy > Social inclusion & integration

Keywords

Community development