OWN THE FUTURE
News of the Civic Trust’s closure in April came as a
shock to civic societies across the country.
A lot of work has been going on to fill the gap with something better,
as Tony Burton from the Civic Society Initiative explains.
“Nowhere should be without its civic
society and no-one should be without the voice you can provide.”
This was the message from
the Prince of Wales to the Civic Societies National Convention in October and
it resonated with the delegates from civic societies from every part of the
country. Every civic society is part of
something bigger. Every local issue is a
national issue. Every local voice can be
part of a national voice. Working
together the civic society movement is one of the country’s unsung treasures
and with over 1,000 local organisations and 250,000 members it is a force to be
reckoned with.
The loss of the Civic Trust
has left civic societies without a champion in the corridors of power and
without the individual guidance and advice that can help each society
flourish. With generous support from
other national organisations like the National Trust and contributions from
over 135 civic societies, the Civic Society Initiative was set up in June to
help find a way forward. We have been
debating and discussing what might happen and how it might be funded in public
meetings, online debates and a major survey.
In three months we involved over 800 societies and had face to face
discussions with nearly 400 people. The
conclusions were presented in a special report – Own the future – to the October convention which was the first
gathering of civic societies for over 30 years.
It is clear that the country
needs effective and influential civic societies now more than ever before. The effects of insensitive development, weak
land use and transport planning and a lack of regard for heritage and the
identity and character of the villages, towns, cities and neighbourhoods of
England is diminishing them and all our lives.
People also want more of a say but find themselves left out in the
cold. The number of people who think
they can influence local decisions has fallen from 44% to 39% in the last eight
years. That is why local places need
powerful champions to defend them, to celebrate their history and to shape
their future.
It is also clear that civic societies need each
other. Together we’re stronger is truism
but no less true for that. The forces
that shape your local area depend as much on national priorities, policy and
funding as they do on local decisions.
Working together we can reach places in the corridors of power that
local action will never reach.
Civic societies are also looking for support and
advice on how best to make a difference locally and to strengthen themselves
with new volunteers and sources of funding.
This includes support for clustering together more locally than the
remote Government regions in some areas.
There are already moves to have three clusters in the South East and
cluster civic societies in Merseyside and around Wiltshire,
As a result, there is an
overwhelming call for a small new national body to lobby and campaign where it
matters, raise the profile of the movement and provide civic societies with
support and advice. It is also clear
that people want this new body to be independent and to be focused on meeting
the needs of civic societies. The Civic
Trust closed because it became remote and dependent on Government funding which
was switched elsewhere. The same cannot
happen again. Each civic society will be
asked to pay something like £2 or £3 per member to join and will have to decide
where to raise these funds. We accept
that this will be a challenge for a lot of societies. There are a number who
have low membership rates. We recognise this and that there may be a need for a
transition period. On the other hand some societies have already put up their
membership fees in anticipation of the changes being introduced. Others
recognise that they may not be valuing themselves and what they do by charging
such low fees. We are interested in hearing your ideas about how we can fund
the new body. What we do know is that we
can’t expect to find support from elsewhere if we are to be independent. It will have strings attached and is in short
supply.
The good news is that every
member of civic societies which join will receive the offer of a free day
access pass to any National Trust property.
This is worth up to £14 and if you are already a member then you can use
it to take a friend or relative who isn’t, so everyone can enjoy a good day
out.
In a small way we hope the Civic Society Initiative
has begun to give a taste of the benefits which could come – providing a
website, two information bulletins, raising the media profile, securing the
support of celebrities, building partnerships with nationally important
organisations like English Heritage and
the National Trust, helping civic societies get
together, securing funding, launching the Street Pride campaign against street
clutter, and lobbying on key issues such as the review of planning policy on
the historic environment.
The wheels to set up the new
national body are in motion. We hope to
launch in April. By joining in your
local voice will be stronger and you will be helping make every part of
For further information and
to keep in touch then send your email address to admin@civicsocietyinitiative.org.uk
and visit the website at www.civicsocietyinitiative.org.uk
where you can also download a copy of Own
the future.
Tony Burton