Creating space for community control

Slashed council budgets are leading to more public spaces being placed in the hands of local people. Clare Goff looks at a new guide that explains how it’s done

As public sector spend dwindles, the transfer of assets from the public to community ownership is growing. While buildings are the most common assets moving into community hands, the benefits of public space transfers are becoming more apparent.

Transfers range from huge swathes of open land to small local plots and are a means not only of revitalising green spaces but also of building and reinvigorating communities.

In 1999 Torbay Council set up a charitable trust to manage almost 500ha of its land, a move which dramatically increased volunteering. Northamptonshire Council worked with many organisations to help create a series of ‘pocket parks’ across the borough managed by local people.

England has a strong tradition of community stewardship of green spaces and new legislation, a move towards the Big Society and increased demand for local food-growing sites is likely to fuel further interest in community takeovers of land.

Cabe Space and the Asset Transfer Unit have produced a booklet to guide local authorities and community groups through the process of transferring public spaces. Community-led Spaces: A Guide for Local Authorities and Community Groups sets out the issues involved in transferring public space assets, explores the opportunities and constraints involved in different types of public space, and highlights best practice for community groups and local authorities considering asset transfer.

THE BENEFITS OF TRANSFERRING PUBLIC SPACES
Due to the protected status of most public spaces – which prevents them from being sold or redeveloped – parks and green spaces usually have no financial value. Heeley Development Trust was given a 125-year lease on a piece of land from Sheffield Council in 1997; what was formerly a green desert is now the well-loved Millennium Park. But as finance manager Simon Bartles says, it is of no monetary value to the trust.

The white horse at Heeley Millennium Park in Sheffield.

‘The Millennium Park is a fantastic asset for the community which the trust is very proud of. But in isolation, with unfunded ongoing maintenance requirements and zero valuation in accounting terms, it could be seen as a liability for the organisation.’
So what are the benefits and value in transferring public space to community ownership?

Parks and green spaces that have been transferred often attract greater resources than is possible through unprotected council budgets. Independent trusts taking on the management of parks can generate their own income and are often better able to maintain public spaces and survive economic downturns. Volunteer time spent in parks and open spaces adds up to between £22-28m across England each year, according to research by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (Cabe). Many of the benefits of asset transfer come from harnessing the passion local people have for their green spaces, as the Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust has found.

Set up by the council to manage Torbay’s natural resources, Dominic Acland, its director, says that the formation of the trust has been ‘key to unleashing the real potential of Torbay Council’s countryside assets’.

‘Charitable status has helped us motivate and enthuse local communities, so we’ve seen volunteering increase at least four-fold and our fundraising ability has been massively boosted.’

Community ownership of public spaces also allows community groups and local people a way into greater involvement in shaping their local area or getting involved in local decision making. Even temporary or ‘meanwhile’ uses of land have proven to generate enthusiasm for greater community control, and asset transfer projects in general smooth the way to more effective working partnerships between local authorities and residents. Transfers can also boost local employment and improve skills in areas where there are currently skills gaps, including horticulture and landscape design.

All of this adds up to stronger, more, confident communities taking pride in their local environment and playing a greater role in their local area.

And by linking up the benefits of public spaces over an entire city – feeding in policy from transport to climate change adaptation, health and education – councils can maximise the benefits of their public space beyond that of a single asset transfer deal.

UNDERSTANDING DIFFERENT TYPES OF PUBLIC SPACE
Playing fields and sports facilities are one of the most popular public spaces to be transferred; in Bury in Greater Manchester 70% of outdoor sports facilities are now self-managed by local sports and community groups. Amateur sports groups are exempt from business rates and are able to tap into a range of funding.

Cemeteries are often underused assets with potential for greater use, and green spaces around social housing estates offer a huge opportunity for social landlords to work with residents. The Growing Kitchen Residents Group on the Wenlock Barn Estate in Hackney, for example, shows what is possible.

The transfer of local green spaces into community hands has proved to be a powerful way to engage and involve residents in housing estates.

Playgrounds have a long history of community involvement but those planning to take on or create new play areas need a basic understanding of the regulations and legal obligations, including health and safety, insurance and inspection.

Waterside spaces could soon be opened up for asset transfer and more opportunities for volunteer involvement when British Waterways moves from state ownership to become a ‘civil society organisation’.

New developments can also bring opportunities for investment in public open space beyond the development itself and the new community infrastructure levy may provide a potential source of funding for public open spaces.

TAKING A STRATEGIC APPROACH TO ASSET TRANSFER
Though over a quarter of local authorities now have asset transfer policies in place, a recent survey by the Asset Transfer Unit found that few included guidance specifically related to public spaces. Ensuring updated information and a procedure is in place for all potential transfers is the starting point for local authorities exploring the issue. The feasibility of all sites to be considered for transfer need to be assessed, and councils should offer a range of options for groups wishing to take over ownership, from full ownership to ‘friends’ groups or volunteering opportunities.

Croydon Council’s asset transfer project includes the transfer of green spaces on council-owned housing estates to communities living on the estates. It plans to pay £2,000 per asset for a feasibility study to consider its condition, accessibility, location, use, potential for community management, investment required and potential sources of funding. If an asset is transferred to a community group, support for the group would be provided by Croydon Voluntary Action.

Buckinghamshire Council has set out a mixture of management models for its green spaces and country parks and invited expressions of interest from local groups and trusts.

When considering an asset transfer proposal the impacts of the transfer on all sections of the community must be assessed and the broader picture identified. It is particularly important that those groups that normally have less influence on decisions are actively involved in the process.

HOW TO… CREATE A BUSINESS CASE FOR TRANSFER
Once a local authority has decided to consider an asset transfer both the local council and community group will need to develop a business case. The success of transfers can hinge on a well-thought-through business case, which can be divided into four themes.

1. Setting out what you want – the business case should clearly set out your objectives for doing an asset transfer and these objectives should ideally have been agreed and shared with all stakeholders. Key to this is agreement between the council and community group of a long-term clear vision statement for the site. This should set out broad aims from the transfer and what you want to see happening to the site in the future. It is important for local authorities to ensure that there is broad political and staff commitment to the transfer of the open space and that the community group or groups involved have the capacity and technical skills to support a transfer. Community groups wanting to get involved in a transfer will need to establish support levels within the community and consider how those who live and work around the site can be involved in it, particularly more marginalised groups.

2. Governance and accountability – the way that staff, money, assets and resources are managed will depend on a range of factors including the size and complexity of the space and who uses it. A governance structure should be devised to meet the needs of the project. A simple constitution might be right for a small community group overseeing an interim use for a small space but bigger projects will be need more formal structures.

Options include a community interest company (CIC), an industrial and provident society (IPS) a charitable trust or a company. ‘Incorporation’ to protect members from personal liability is also something to consider. There are a number of quality assurance tools and standards available for organisations, including the DTA’s Visible Standard.

The people who use or value the space should be able to hold the people running the space accountable and get involved in what they do. The adventure capital fund suggest a number of ways to ensure accountability including governing boards that include ‘community connectors’, elections held at regular intervals and a proportion of elected members should stand down each year, and proactive recruitment from hard-to-reach communities.

A community group taking on responsibility for a space will need to consider insurance and ensure it has access to the specific skills needed to manage a public space, including green space skills, community development and fundraising.

3. Finance – transferring public space has the potential to bring in new sources of grant income unavailable to local authorities but community groups need to be aware of the skills and time needed to fundraise and generate income. Local authorities may need to support the group in the initial stages to advise them and help them gain access to funds. It could also consider funding the group to help them lever in match funding. Experience shows it is easier to raise money for capital projects, such as building a new playground, and for people-based projects rather than for day-to-day maintenance costs. The Bankside Open Spaces Trust attracts grant funding for the space for its involvement of marginalised people in the project. The trust’s director Helen Firminger said: ‘Grant makers understandably tend to think that the council should be managing open space. It’s the people-based work that funders are interested in.’

A community group should explore the potential to securing a lump-sum dowry from the local authority or having a service level agreement with them to pay for maintaining the site in the early years.

Many groups have struggled to attract funding without a long-term lease for the site. The Tarvin Community Woodland Group turned itself into a trust in 2008, a move that helped secure the project’s future according to chairman Jim Grogan.

The business case must set out how the management and maintenance of the transferred open space will be paid for. An accurate record of running costs and a prediction of future cost provides a baseline for business planning.

Spaces are often transferred to community groups for a symbolic value, such as peppercorn rent. But any group taking on a public space asset must take account of the infrastructure, such as paving, railings, fences, benches and trees. Knowing their value will help establish a realistic estimate of future maintenance costs.

Cabe’s guide Making the Invisible Visible proposes a new framework for measuring the value of parks and green spaces which enables the methodical assessment of the quantity and condition of assets within spaces, planning over long-term periods and anticipation of expenditure.

4. Communications – when campaign group Park View 4U in Lytham in Lancashire was struggling to convince its local council of the need for new play equipment in a local field, it found a unique way to get its message across. It contacted Blackpool airport and a local pilot agreed to fly a plane over the park, free of charge, to film residents standing in formation spelling out the word ‘Help’. The film then featured in a video sent to funders, one of whom wrote back immediately with a cheque for £10,000.

Regular and purposeful communication starts with putting time aside to prepare an influencing plan. Different communication strategies will be needed at different stages and for different purposes, and an integrated publicity campaign will need to include both broadcast (raising general awareness) and outreach (building relationships and trusted local networks).