A stronger place

The importance of place is why local government exists; it’s why it is local. This is magnified, of course, by devolution, which is increasingly leading to areas having new powers, new representation, and a stronger sense of regional identity.

In changing times – as the effects of, for example, globalisation mean residents feel that local identity is being lost – this sense of place is all the more vital. Likewise, digitisation and budget cuts mean councils must work extra hard to be seen as champions of an area. With less resource to invest in the public realm, and more services going online, it’s more important than ever that the intangible aspects of “place” become ingrained in an organisation’s DNA.

Effective places tend to be described as flourishing or resilient. Decisions about local issues involve people and reflect the area’s collective identity and shared aspirations. There’s a strong sense of civic society, with interconnected communities and spaces for residents to meet. Neighbourhoods are cohesive and capacity is high.

Yet creating a place which fits this ideal is inherently complex and organic. Local authorities achieve it when the organisation is truly aligned with the needs and desires of the place. It happens when the council’s responses to problems match the personality of the area. It’s the product of leadership which is place-appropriate, genuinely understanding and enabling of communities.

Creating this sort of organisation won’t happen overnight. It relies on a change in mindset throughout the organisation. The whole council must start to see its role less as a municipal provider – interchangeable with any other council – and more as a proactive champion. A big part of getting this right comes through strategic communications, informed by research.

A serious effort to understand the personality of your community is a good place to start. Where do residents feel they come from? Do they say they’re from Bexley – or from Slade Green? What are the local things people are proud of? What’s the identity of your borough or county? Idyllic ‘Garden of England’ or ambitious home of ‘Great Expectations’? What type of place do people want to live in? How do people in your borough see themselves? What’s the personality of the place? Quirky and different? Sought-after and state-of-the-art? Untouched and traditional? Do residents see themselves sticking around? Or is there a high turnover of people? How diverse is the area? Do people see this as a good thing? How equal is the borough? What are the things that people share? The survey builder gives a more extensive list of  questions and issues.

Asking these types of questions will help you recognise the relationship between people and place. They go beyond the things that all places share, such as a desire for good services and safer communities, to help inform a deeper sense of what makes your place different.

This information obviously feeds into branding, sense of place and the overall narrative and vision, which informs everything you do as a council. It also has deeper implications for decision-making and spending choices, and the sorts of things you can ask of residents. If your residents are young and upwardly mobile for example, the things you can ask of them will be different to if they’re socially conscious retirees.

Leading place is, therefore, about creating an organisation that’s interdependent and cooperative with local communities. More than anything it relies on a deeper understanding of local people and their identity and personality.