DTA unveils £250m vision for development trusts
A leading regeneration body says extra investment of £250m over three years from 2011 would provide the finances and capacity to create 500 more development trusts.
The call was part of the Development Trusts Association’s (DTA) new manifesto Transforming communities for good, which includes a series of recommendations on protecting the poorest areas during the recession.
It said the funding would allow extra cash to be generated through public grants, private investment and community shares, where money is raised through residents.
DTA also called for all new towns and big urban regeneration schemes to include options for the transfer of assets to the community through vehicles such as development trusts, along with expert advice and cash for start-up costs for these organisations.
Public bodies like local authorities and primary care trusts are being urged to provide ‘fair’ contacts to third sector organisations that have been commissioned to provide services.
More lucrative deals for community groups would allow them to improve their sustainability, independence and impact.
DTA said a new mechanism similar to Scotland’s community right to buy legislation, which allows areas with a population of less than 10,000 to buy land when it’s put on sale, should be introduced.
Business support services should be made more relevant to community enterprises.
The manifesto also reiterated calls for a ‘community allowance’ to be introduced allowing people on benefits to do short-term paid work in their neighbourhoods without being penalised.
DTA is part of the Create Consortium which is campaigning for the introduction of the allowance to help more unemployed people into work and regenerate communities.
Steve Wyler, DTA director, said: ‘The impact of the recession is being felt in all sectors. If communities and government fail to respond effectively and in partnership, our communities will become fragmented and demoralised.
‘Development trusts have been finding community-led solutions that stimulate local economies and revitalise local neighbourhoods for many years.
‘Our call on government is based on their success stories.’
Communities minister Baroness Andrews, who spoke at a DTA conference in London where the manifesto was launched, said: ‘Encouraging communities to grow and take power into their own hands is the best way of giving people a real say over the future of the places where they live.’
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