Unlocking local pride in the north

Fostering pride in local areas will play a key role in reducing local and regional inequality across the UK. Liam Gregson, member engagement manager at Northern Housing Consortium (NHC), explains how the NHC brought together residents to find out what makes people feel proud of where they live.

When the government published its Levelling Up white paper in 2022, one of the key missions it set out was to enhance people’s ‘pride in place’. The government said that, in order to boost local growth, it was essential to restore a sense of community, local pride and belonging.

And while levelling up is all about ending geographical inequality, conversations happening in Westminster can still feel a long way away from northern England. We needed to put people who live here at the heart of that conversation, ensuring that their voices were heard.

So Northern Housing Consortium set out to involve communities from across the north, to find out what they thought about the places they call home.

What does ‘pride in place’ mean to them? What do they think could be improved about where they live? And how can housing organisations, like Northern Housing Consortium’s members, play a role in driving improvements?

Hearing views from across the north

Between July and August 2023, people from communities across the north took part in workshops to share how they felt about where they lived.

With the help of five northern housing associations – Blackpool Coastal Housing, Karbon Homes, Live Housing, MSV Housing Group and Yorkshire Housing – locations such as Bensham,  Moss Side, Skipton, Prescot and Blackpool were visited to hear about what made people feel proud of their area and most importantly what needed to be improved.

What gives us pride in where we live?

People spoke of three key areas contributing to pride in their local areas, including: access to basic services; a sense of community and involvement in decision-making; and the local environment.

They identified things within each of the three areas that required improvement, such as more opportunities for young people to help shape the local area, and better use of green spaces to benefit mental and physical health.

Where there were strong community links, people felt incredibly proud, wanting to build on those areas further. And having physical spaces to use, such as community hubs was also seen as important too.

The NHC also heard about how people wanted to see their local area reflect everyone that lives there and to not only celebrate its heritage but also the people who make up the present-day community.

People are already proud of where they live. And they want to help drive change

Overall, we came away with the realisation that, on the whole, people are already incredibly proud of their local areas. And that sense of pride drives a desire to be involved in improving where they live. Yet people don’t always know how to play a part.

People told us they wanted to be involved in local decision-making more, but that they often felt powerless when the organisations driving change were faceless or fragmented.

Quite simply, they didn’t know where to start or how they could fit in.

Making people’s ideas a reality

So now people have shared their views, how can we act on them?

Residents were quite clear that we should be more joined up in the way different organisations work together, especially housing organisations, local government and community groups.

So when we published the findings of our Pride in Place consultation, we included recommendations for better ways of working.

Because housing organisations are more than just landlords. They’re uniquely positioned to work with communities and act on their recommendations, for example by providing physical spaces as community hubs and by offering clarity on what actions local people can already take on their own to improve green spaces in their area.

Other areas of improvement will include working more closely with community groups, leading on the creation of neighbourhood associations, and creating routes for young people to be involved in all projects, giving them a greater stake in the community they are part of.

In essence it’s communication and collaboration that will continue to put the heart into those communities.

(Image: Northern Housing Consortium)

The role of businesses

People also told us that they want to celebrate local businesses and to see national government support small enterprises. They felt a sense of pride when businesses had an active presence and provided good jobs in their local communities.

Businesses can contribute in other ways too by supporting community events and making buildings available for public use.

Talking to national government

Our Pride in Place report also included recommendations for national government and we have shared these with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

Our aim being to continue ensuring the results of this work are heard at parliament and by the full range of organisations that are involved in shaping where we live.

I know that, when we break down the barriers between people and between organisations, we can drive change. And when local authorities, community groups and housing organisations work together, we can make great things happen.

We hope this work provides a framework which can be used in other parts of our region and beyond to make sure that the voices of people in the north – and the voices of people in all communities across the UK – are heard when it comes to shaping where we live.

Find out more and read the Pride in Place report at northern-consortium.org.uk/pride-in-place.

Case study: Masterplan for regeneration taking shape in Brandon, County Durham

SITE REGENERATED: Off-gas homes have been built on a former pub site in Brandon, Durham. (Image: believe housing)

Nestled between rolling countryside and awe-inspiring Durham, the village of Brandon has much to offer its residents.

But in 2021 believe housing, which manages more than 900 homes in the village – that’s almost a third of all homes in Brandon, recognised some of its properties in the centre of the community no longer worked for the business or customers.

So, it took a fresh look at the place through residents’ eyes. Following extensive consultation, a masterplan for regeneration was created and is now shaping believe housing’s investment in the community’s future.

120 hard-to-let flats and small, poorly designed bungalows, which no longer suited the tenants they were built for and required significant investment, were demolished.

Customers affected were helped to find and settle into new homes which better met their needs, and they are happy with.

In place of the demolished properties, believe housing hopes to provide 110 energy efficient new build homes. This includes a plan for 98 bungalows and family houses of different tenures on the cleared site, designed to feel safe, maximise green space, and which connect with the rest of the  village, the local school and neighbouring shopping precinct.

A derelict pub site nearby has also been transformed with the organisation’s first off-gas new build scheme, where all 12 homes are rated EPC A with air-source heat pumps, solar panels, and EV charging points as standard.

Local contractors are delivering all the new build schemes, ensuring local labour and supply chains benefit from more than £30m of investment.

And investment in believe housing’s existing homes in Brandon is also underway. Part funded by the government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, it is making homes warmer, healthier, greener, and more cost effective to run and plans are being drawn up to improve the curb appeal of other properties.

Believe housing also enhances places like Brandon through its wider work such as partnering with police to tackle anti-social behaviour, supporting customers with jobs and training, and grant funding not-for-profit projects such as a football club, diverting teens from anti-social behaviour and creating volunteering opportunities.

Kate Abson, director of development at believe housing, said: “By understanding the area’s character, its strengths and weakness and, importantly, residents’ needs and aspirations we are shaping our work in Brandon to help restore residents’ pride in the village and ensuring it continues to be a vibrant, sustainable place where people want to live.

“Echoing many of the Northern Housing Consortium’s Pride in Place findings, we’re increasing the range of high-quality affordable housing, enhancing the appearance of the area, making the best use of green spaces to support health and bring people together, improving connectivity, and creating opportunities for residents.

“With our regeneration masterplan for Brandon we aim to bring about long-lasting positive change that will improve customers’ lives and support the community.

“Get that right and the community cohesion and social capital that follows can help reduce local and regional inequality and move closer to believe housing’s vision of life without barriers.”