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Category Archives: Locality
Locality 2015
Jericho Road had a fantastic time at the Locality 2015 Convention in Liverpool. We caught up with old friends and made new ones, discovered some great projects and sold a lot of tea towels! We heard from some inspiring speakers … Continue reading
Posted in Jericho Road Solutions, Locality
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Sitting in a ditch watching stars
After a good start with weekly blogs I seem to have fallen into Abeyance. It feels like a ditch I want to climb out of. It’s been a stunning couple of months – which is probably why I feel like … Continue reading
Delinquent ownership – a PS about the council role
When it comes to dealing with derelict and disused buildings and land, Councils are in a practically impossible position (but that’s quite normal for local government!). They have a set of ‘powers’ that are theoretically available but technically complex. In … Continue reading
Posted in Jericho Road Solutions, Locality, Policy, Thinking
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Precious Buildings at Risk through Irresponsible Ownership
In this country we would never let someone drive a car that was uninsured or dangerous. That’s why we have the MOT system and DVLA to keep records of car ownership. Yet we allow hundreds of owners to keep buildings … Continue reading
Posted in Jericho Road Solutions, Locality, Policy, Thinking
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Tackling irresponsible ownership
Tackling irresponsible ownership Continue reading
A month on the Jericho Road
So it’s been a month since launching Jericho Road Solutions and I’m in reflective mood. I chose to leave a good job at Locality and start out on my own because I want to be directly involved in local transformations … Continue reading
Pier-to-Pier peer learning
I think we just won a competition on the basis of a good pun. But my co-conspirators say it’s because what we’re doing is really important and worthwhile and brilliant. Could be both?! I’ve always been a believer in peer … Continue reading
Posted in Hastings Pier, Jericho Road Solutions, Locality, Seaside
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Speech at the launch of Jericho Road Solutions, 15th May 2013
Welcome, and thank you for coming to wet the baby’s head. I’m going to revisit a speech I first gave in November 2010 which was the first time I used the Jericho Road quote. Goes to show you never know … Continue reading
Chicago 5: Generations of organizers
Friday 18th November 2011 Jim Field (left), Director of Organizing at the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, says he’s from the Alinsky generation and gives me a copy of the 1972 Playboy interview. He says lots of the first wave … Continue reading
Posted in Community Organisers, Locality, US trip
Tagged chicago coalition for the homeless
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NYC 2 – Occupied Wall Street, Good Old Lower East Side & University Settlement
On Thursday I went to see whether the original #Occupy is as well organised as Occupy London Stock Exchange, which I visited just before coming away on this US trip. I was much reassured by the similarities. Apart from the … Continue reading
Posted in Community Organisers, Locality, US trip
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New York City 1: Queens Community House
[From La Guardia airport on the way to Detroit, 12 Nov 2011] I have spent the last 4 days visiting a community organizing development programme in New York City which has striking similarities to our emerging home-grown Community Organisers programme … Continue reading
Posted in Community Organisers, Locality, US trip
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Homage to Yorkshire
Generally I love an underdog. Schooled in Deptford with Millwall’s slogan “no one likes us we don’t care”, I live in Hastings where official research shows that once you get here you love it but those who don’t visit think … Continue reading
Posted in Just Me, Locality
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Demob happy – fragments
Off tomorrow to Prague to celebrate 10 yrs with DH (v dear, not quite H). Very excited, but before I go, I need to record a few fragments of conversations from today: I’ve been to JRF’s ‘Communities Under Pressure’ report … Continue reading
Posted in Community Allowance, Just Me, Locality
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Compulsory Purchase
Today Greg Clark announced an exciting new piece of guidance but you won’t find it without dogged persistence, or a bit of help. The guidance is designed to help local communities deal with abandoned buildings and irresponsible private ownership of … Continue reading
Decentralisation & the DTA
David Prout (Director General for Communities, CLG) at #DTAconference10 yesterday described: 4 kinds of decentralisation – centralised decentralisation (government says how to do it) – eg GPs, elected police commissioners bottom-up decentralisation (seeking additional decision-making powers) – eg community-based budgeting, … Continue reading
Posted in Community Allowance, Just Me, Locality
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DTA conference 2010
Just spent two and a half days in Derby for the DTA conference 2010. Absolutely shattered now but I really enjoyed it and there’s been good verbal feedback. Hurtling southwards with Ray and Lesley from the Hastings Pier & White … Continue reading
Posted in Locality
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Spinning Plates 