Delegates attending this sustainable communities workshop at our Annual Conference on 13th October 2008 were challenged to think beyond the norm while considering what makes a sustainable community.
The workshop was chaired by Observatory Board member Rose Poulter, Strategic Director of the Sub-National Review Transition team at Advantage West Midlands.
The speakers were Rob Rowlands (CURS, University of Birmingham), Simon Murphy (Birmingham Coventry & the Black Country City Region) and John Walker (West Midlands Regional Observatory). The speakers looked at the subject of sustainable communities from different perspectives: urban and rural; community empowerment; and managed communities.
Drawing on references from the Kaiser Chiefs to Margaret Thatcher, Rob Rowlands highlighted examples of successful sustainable communities and the significance that housing has in developing such communities. He considered the other influences such as economic performance and the quality of the environment.
Simon Murphy and John Walker highlighted the issues around sustainable communities in urban and rural areas. Simon considered how the City Region is aiming to tackle the issues that are hindering the development of sustainable communities and John illustrated the key problems faced in rural areas, from affordable housing to an ageing population.
Delegates discussed the importance that schools can play in generating a sustainable community and how extended schools can contribute. Problems that disparities in wealth can cause were raised, as was the fact that affluence doesn’t necessarily lead to sustainability and often leads to less sustainable communities.
The debate also looked at how ‘facilitated’ communities were more likely to develop sustainably than ‘managed’ ones.
The session finished with agreement that a sense of place and feeling part of an area help residents to feel that their community is sustainable.
A full report from the workshop and updates to State of the Region will feature on this site shortly. The speaker's PowerPoint slides are available on the downloads tab at the top of this page.
Sustainable communities
Rose Poulter, Strategic Director of the Sub-National Review Transition team at Advantage West Midlands
Download Rose's presentation (PowerPoint, 150Kb)
Sustainable communities: opportunism and the opportunities missed
Rob Rowlands, Centre for Urban & Regional Studies, University of Birmingham
Download Rob's presentation (PowerPoint, 464Kb)
Sustainable communities: the view from the city region
Simon Murphy, Birmingham Coventry & the Black Country City Region
Download Simon's presentation (Powerpoint, 39Kb)
What makes a sustainable rural community?
John Walker, West Midlands Regional Observatory
Download John's presentation (PowerPoint, 252Kb)