[ Skip navigation links]
Start of content
[ Top of page ]

In safe hands: neighbourhood management governance, Bournemouth

Page: 1/6
The approach to governance adopted by Springbourne and Boscombe West neighbourhood management pathfinder has allowed it to tap into a deep-rooted sense of community pride, remarkable in an area with a highly transient population. Residents form a majority on its board of 15. But though they all serve in a voluntary capacity, the pathfinder was keen to ensure that their aspirations and priorities reflected those of other local residents. Last year, four of the eight resident positions were put to the ballot. In 2005, the remaining four seats will be contested
In this featured project case study:
(click on a link to jump directly to that section)
the neighbourhood management office - external view showing logo The shop front of Springbourne and Boscombe West's local office, just steps away from the main shopping precinct

'HAVING AN election created a mandate not only for the residents on our board but for the whole board and management process itself,' says chair Don McQueen, a resident of the area where Springbourne and Boscombe West neighbourhood management operates. The project is one of a minority of neighbourhood management schemes in England that have opted for election over selection for their board members.

Neighbourhood management operates here with just a small core team of paid staff - three full-timers, including neighbourhood manager Sue Bickler, and one part-timer. There is also a housing project worker and a one-year government office secondee. Their work is overseen by a board of 15 volunteers, including representatives from the council, health authority, local businesses, police, voluntary sector and faith groups.

The board is the project's main decision-making group. It also has overall control of the £3.5m allocated to it over its seven-year lifespan. Four subgroups of board members, staff and outside specialists, and local interest groups focus in greater detail on the core areas - health and education, housing, environment and community safety. The latter, says Sue Bickler, 'wasn't our group but it covers the same area so we use it.'

Beyond the subgroups, the project has set up a range of groups and forums with more specialised interests - a youth forum for 11- to 25-year-olds, the private tenants forum, the 50+ group, the traders association, street representatives, a ground workers group for voluntary, private and public sector front line workers, and a group representing the interests of the local black and ethnic minority population. And finally, there is a reading panel being set up - an ad hoc group that will check the readability of written and website material.


[ Next (2/6) » ]

[ Back to Empowering Communities ] | [ Sections index ] | [ Back to top ]

Login





Lost your password?
New user? Register!