In a major speech on empowering communities on 19 March Hazel Blears called on local authorities, community groups and the public to give their views on expanding plans for participatory budgeting across Whitehall including policing, health and youth services giving people a greater say over the issues they most care about.
Ideas will be developed through the forthcoming community empowerment white paper in the summer and will explore:
- Giving people a direct influence over how cash pots to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour in their area are spent. These schemes will bring communities together to take a stand against unacceptable behaviour and make sure the police and local authorities tackle their main concerns.
- The potential for using kitties to get more people involved in commissioning local community health services, building on pioneering work by Southampton PCT.
- And the Department for Children, Schools and Families will be building on the positive contribution young people are already making through the Youth Opportunity and Youth Capital Funds, influencing local youth and leisure activities, particularly in the most disadvantaged areas. They aim by 2018 that young people will have a direct say in a quarter of all money spent on things to do and places to go for young people.
The strategy also sets out for the first time how councils can give this opportunity to people in every local area by 2012.
Pioneered in Brazil 'community kitties' or participatory budgeting involves local people in spending decisions through public meetings and votes to set local priorities and fund projects and services.
Suffolk is one of 22 local authorities across the country that have signed up as pilots under the Government's drive ranging from a few thousand to several million pounds. The new strategy announced by Ms Blears will show how nearly 400 councils in England can use this approach and meet her ambition for every principal local authority to take this up by 2012, giving people greater ownership of their neighbourhoods, and shaping services around their needs.
Ms Blears also said that using community kitties will be one way for councils to show they are meeting the powerful new duty to involve local people in all key decisions coming into force in April 2009.
Hazel Bears said:
"Local people that use services day in day out know how they need to be improved, whether tackling gangs and crime, giving young people places to play or improving leisure activities and the local environment.
"But community kitties don't just lead to better services, they give local people the opportunity to influence the future of the place where they live, generate civic pride and bring our communities together with a common purpose.
"This new strategy shows how councils can make greater use of community kitties both across the country and into the services people care about most so that every local area can benefit from this opportunity by 2012. This consultation is inviting views from councils and communities on how to achieve this."
The consultation closes on Tuesday 10 June.
