The Create Streets Foundation is launching ‘No Place left behind’, the Commission into Prosperity and Community Placemaking. This is chaired by Toby Lloyd, the former head of policy at Shelter and Housing Advisor to the Prime Minister.  It focuses on under-valued areas and takes as its mantra that no place should be left behind.

This is possible thanks to the kind financial support of Power to Change, Local Trust, Karbon Homes and support in kind from the Legatum Institute.

Read Cycling Uphill, the inaugural research report for the No Place Left Behind Commission.

Read the Sunday Times article on the launch of the Commission.

Our call for evidence is now closed.

You can view the questions here

Terms of reference

The purpose of the Commission into Placemaking and Community Prosperity is to help improve the quality of lives lived in under-valued neighbourhoods, by promoting policies and practices that can improve place, health, happiness, wellbeing and a sense of community and agency.

The Commission’s focus will be on approaches that can empower local communities, such as community led housing and asset ownership, community business/locally-led enterprising, co-operative action, better planning, regenerative development, design and stewardship.

The Commission will gather evidence from the public, private and voluntary sectors to develop practical policy solutions and best practice recommendations for improving life in under-valued neighbourhoods.

The Commission will necessarily work in the 2020 policy environment subsequent to the recent election and the political upheavals of recent years, and will seek to contribute positively to on-going policy debates about rebalancing both the economy and national political life.

Aims

To gather evidence. The Commission will gather evidence to understand the scale and nature of the challenges facing under-valued neighbourhoods, and identify opportunities to tackle these.

To develop workable ideas to support place, health, happiness, wellbeing and a sense of community in under-valued neighbourhoods. The Commission will challenge current practices, policies and behaviours to develop pragmatic solutions to the challenges identified.

To advocate for steps to improve place, health, happiness, wellbeing and a sense of community in under-valued neighbourhoods. The Commission will act as a champion and advocate for better placemaking, community-led housing and stewardship.

To inform central, regional and local government policy and spending decisions. The Commission will seek to steer public investment decisions towards effective, empowering interventions.

To influence government agencies, landowners, housing associations, local planning authorities, community-led housing groups, charitable donors and others involved in shaping local places. The Commission will tailor communication of its findings and proposed solutions to suit multiple audiences in order to build wide consensus on positive strategies for regenerative development.

Commissioners

Toby Lloyd was Shelter’s Head of Policy from 2011 to 2018 and was the Prime Minister’s Special Adviser on housing and local government.

Toby Lloyd
Commission Chair

Mary Parsons is Chair of the Town & Country Planning Association and Regeneration and Partnerships Director at Lovell Partnerships.

Mary Parsons

Miatta Fahnbulleh is Chief Executive of the New Economics Foundation. She has a wealth of experience in developing and delivering policy to empower communities.

Miatta Fahnbulleh

Vidhya Alakeson is the founding Chief Executive of Power to Change, an independent trust established in 2015 to support the growth of community businesses across England.

Vidhya Alakeson

Andre Reid is the founder of Kiondo, a design research studio aiding developers, local authorities & social organisations to design with communities.

Andre Reid

Nicky Chance Thompson is CEO of the Piece Hall in Halifax.

Nicky Chance Thompson

Andy Reeve is Director of Regenerative Economics at Civic Square, a research lab focusing on building and investing in civic infrastructure.

Andy Reeve

Kathryn Eames has 15 years’ experience working in local government in regeneration and development, with particular expertise in community engagement.

Kathryn Eames

Paul Fiddaman is Chief Executive of Karbon Homes.

Paul Fiddaman

Jennifer McKevitt is Chief Executive of Back on the Map, a community business with £4.7M of residential, commercial and land assets in Hendon, Sunderland.

Jennifer McKevitt

Dave Boyle is a consultant specialising in helping community groups raise patient equity capital and has worked with over 50 groups, helping them raise £13M.

Dave Boyle

Caroline Gore-Booth is Project Manager at Giroscope, a self-help housing project based in Hull.

Caroline Gore-Booth

Melissa Meanis Director of We Can Make at Knowle West Media Centre in Bristol, focused on developing new kinds of citizen-led housing.

Melissa Mean

Matt Leach is the CEO of place-based funder Local Trust.

Matt Leach

Gareth Swarbrick is Chief Executive of Rochdale Boroughwide Housing. He led the transformation of RBH from local authority owned ALMO into the UK’s first tenant and employee owned mutual social landlord.

Gareth Swarbrick

Rachael Orr is the Director of PlaceShapers, the network for more than 100 community-based social landlords.

Rachael Orr

Stephen Brien is Director of Policy at the Legatum Institute, a thinktank researching the pathways to lifting all people out of poverty.

Stephen Brien

Nicholas Boys Smith is founding Director of Create Streets, a think tank and consultancy leading or supporting many urban design and community co-design projects.

Nicholas Boys Smith

Catherine is the former founder and CEO of the National CLT Network and has over 17 years experience in advocacy campaigning and housing and regeneration policy and practice.

Catherine Harrington

Rose Grayston has 10 years of experience in providing policy, research and strategic communications services to progressive campaigns and their leaders.

Rose Grayston
Project Manager