Introduction
Neighbourhood Renewal in Northern Ireland
1.1 A quarter of a million or one seventh of Northern Ireland’s population live in seriously deprived parts of our towns and cities. The symptoms of deprivation are easy to identify and understand. People who live in deprived areas are much more likely to be out of work or, when they do have jobs, they are likely to be poorly paid. The economic stresses of unemployment and low incomes are closely linked to social problems such as, poor health, low levels of educational achievement and high levels of crime. Economic deprivation also leads to environmental problems, characterised by derelict buildings, undeveloped sites and poor services.
People living in the most deprived areas are more likely to depend on public services than the rest of society because of this they will be disproportionately affected by weaknesses or under performance in those services.[(]
Regeneration will improve the physical, economic and social needs of the towns and cities in Northern Ireland. Neighbourhood Renewal is a new approach to tackling deprivation within our communities in Northern Ireland. Although efforts have been made in the past, there has never been one Government programme that deals with every aspect of deprivation.
1.2 The Department of Social Development (DSD) is responsible for Urban Regeneration in Northern Ireland. The Department for Social Development set up a dedicated unit – the Urban Regeneration and Community Development Group (URCDG) – to develop and implement urban regeneration policies in Northern Ireland. This includes the social, economic and physical regeneration of cities, towns and villages. The group also promotes partnership between Government and the voluntary, community and private sector.
What is a Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy?
1.3 Neighbourhood Renewal is about closing the gap between the quality of life for people in the most deprived neighbourhoods and the rest of society. Neighbourhood Renewal has four interlinking strategic objectives;
· Community Renewal – to develop confident communities that are able and committed to improving the quality of life in their areas;
· Economic Renewal – to develop economic activity in the most deprived neighbourhoods and connect them to the wider urban economy;
· Social Renewal – to improve social conditions for the people who live in the most deprived neighbourhoods through better co-ordinated public services and the creation of safer environments; and
· Physical Renewal – to help create attractive, safe, sustainable environments in the most deprived neighbourhoods.
The Department of Social Development has identified several areas in Northern Ireland that meet the Neighbourhood Renewal criteria including the Kilcooley estate.
See Appendix I for a list of all the Neighbourhood Renewal Areas in Northern Ireland
How were the Neighbourhood Renewal Areas identified?
1.4 The DSD process for identifying the Neighbourhood Renewal Areas is as follows;
To target the most acute deprivation
DSD used the Noble Index of multiple deprivation in Northern Ireland to identify where he deprivation was worst. The most deprived 10% of urban wards as measured by the Multiple Deprivation Measure and the most deprived 10% of Enumeration Districts as measured by the Economic Deprivation Measure and not already contained within the top 10% urban wards.
1.5 In order for the Neighbourhood Renewal process to be a success a long-term view must be adopted. It has been recognised that a planning and implementation timescale of ten years will be essential.
Kilcooley Neighbourhood Renewal Area
1.6 The Department of Social Development identified the Kilcooley Estate in Bangor as a Neighbourhood Renewal area. Following the findings of the Social Audit North Down Local Strategy Partnership (NDLSP) has expanded this process into a number of designated TSN (Targeting Social Need) areas (see Appendix II). North Down Local Strategy Partnership was contracted to deliver DSD’s Neighbourhood Renewal programme within North Down due to the developed community links, strong research base and expertise
Kilcooley Estate was built from the 1960’s to the 1980’s. Much of the estate was built between 1967 and 1976 to re-house people displaced from inner city areas of Belfast.
Kilcooley estate is situated approximately three miles west of Bangor town centre and is bounded by two major roads, the West Circular Road on the East and the Belfast Road on the West. Kilcooley is the third largest estate in Northern Ireland. There are 2826 people living in the combined area, including over 800 young people under the age of eighteen.
Of the 1345 dwellings in Kilcooley, 456 (38%) have been sold to sitting tenants, leaving 832 still in Housing Executive ownership. A further 4 flat blocks, comprising 32 flats, have been demolished and a private sector development has been established.
It is an estate of mainly loyalist identity and faces the problems associated with such an area i.e. paramilitary murals, antisocial behaviour etc.
The target area is shown below.
The Process
2.1 The Neighbourhood Renewal process began in North Down in March 2004 with the formation of a Neighbourhood Renewal committee through the North Down Local Strategy Partnership. This committee comprised of key stakeholders from the Borough. The primary role of this committee was to promote, facilitate and enable Neighbourhood Regeneration within each of the TSN estates in North Down.
The Department of Social Development identified Kilcooley as a Neighbourhood Renewal Area and in November 2004 the Neighbourhood Renewal Committee developed into the Kilcooley and North Down Neighbourhood Partnerships. Kilcooley Neighbourhood Partnership was formed with separate Terms of Reference whilst North Down Neighbourhood Partnership remains as a sub committee of NDLSP.
In order to drive the Neighbourhood Renewal process the Neighbourhood Partnership Board through the NDLSP secured the post of Neighbourhood Renewal Co-ordinator.
The Co-ordinator was recruited in November 2004.
The co-ordinator supports the role of the Partnerships. The co-ordinator also assists in developing projects that arise from the Action Plans and ensures that there is no duplication of resources within areas. In conjunction with local communities the co-ordinator also provides the necessary support to Community Associations that manage Learning & Resource Centres, as well as ensuring their effective programme co-ordination. The coordinator has also produced a communication strategy to publicise Neighbourhood Renewal throughout the Borough.
The Kilcooley NP gives advice on Neighbourhood Renewal activities within the Kilcooley estate in North Down to the Department of Social Development.
The Role of the Kilcooley Neighbourhood Partnership
2.2.1 The Neighbourhood Partnership do not deliver initiatives directly; that is the job of individual service providers;
The Kilcooley Neighbourhood Partnership function is to;
§ secure commitment of local agencies and communities to the strategy;
§ agree priority neighbourhoods and an implementation plan;
§ negotiate local neighbourhood renewal objectives and targets;
§ provide a data analysis service;
§ lead and co-ordinate the delivery of the strategies;
§ set up/support Ward or Neighbourhood Partnerships;
§ ensure community cohesion principles inform the strategy;
§ maintain pressure for change and overcome barriers and problems;
§ communicate and performance manage the strategy;
§ bring together resources and support for effective community involvement;
§ help service providers deliver their targets through improved joint working.
The Neighbourhood Partnership has facilitated a Vision Framework & Action Plan consultation within Kilcooley. The development of the Vision Framework & Action Plan involved;
§ Analysing all available data for the area, including statistical data and local knowledge
§ Identifying any weaknesses or gaps in public service delivery
§ Consulting with the local community to establish their views on the needs and problems of the area.
§ Prioritising the identified needs and problems
§ Developing a Vision of what the neighbourhood should be like in ten years time
§ Agreeing on an overall strategy to achieve that Vision
§ Describing how the activities of the various agencies working in the neighbourhood could be better integrated.
The Vision
Developing the Vision for Kilcooley
3.1 One of the first steps within the Neighbourhood Renewal programme is the development of the Vision Framework Document and associated action plans, which will act as the framework for the regeneration of the area, over a ten-year period. Key to the development of the Vision Framework Document is the collation of the views of residents of the area, founded on a robust community based consultation process. The consultation process that took place within Kilcooley identified the main priorities for residents, to be addressed over the ten-year renewal period.
The agreed consultation process was divided into two stages. The initial stage of the consultation process took place with the Kilcooley Community Forum, the umbrella group for community organisations in Kilcooley, and their member groups in June 2005. The process required each community organisation (see Appendix III) to respond to the following questions;
1. What do you believe are the most pressing issues affecting Kilcooley at this time?
2. What progress would you like to see in Kilcooley over the next ten years?
This initial stage of the consultation process identified thirty-three priorities. It was agreed to classify each of the priorities under seven main strategic themes (see Appendix IV). The priorities became the basis for consultation with the wider community:
· Community,
· Health,
· Education,
· Economic,
· Social,
· Housing
· Environment
The second stage and main consultation with residents was carried out in conjunction with a community “fun day”. This format was considered by the Kilcooley Neighbourhood Partnership to be the most appropriate model to maximise participation in the process.
To promote the event and inform residents of the importance of Neighbourhood Renewal a flyer was designed which described the consultation process. These were distributed to all of the residents in Kilcooley a week before the fun day (see Appendix V).
The fun day and consultation was carried out on Saturday 6th August commencing at 10.00am and finishing at 2.00pm. Consultation was carried out in the Tenant Support Offices, located in Kilcooley Square. Two Local Strategy Partnership officers managed and facilitated the event and the venue was clearly sign posted, for those attending the fun day. Members of the Kilcooley Community Forum actively encouraged participant involvement though the use of an incentive, a ballot for £100, donated by the Forum. In addition, Forum members encouraged people to participate through out the day.
To increase the visual impact of the consultation, each theme and associated priority was displayed on brightly coloured card on the office walls. Consultees were requested to consider all of the priorities and identify six which they felt were most important for the regeneration of the area. They were invited to write down their priorities on an anonymous questionnaire (see Appendix VI)
One hundred and sixty seven people took part in the consultation event. The event proved to be the largest consultation process of its kind in Kilcooley to date.
3.2 Based on verbal feedback gained during the consultation and attendance at the event, it is considered that the following elements of the process contributed to its success.
§ Promoting the consultation process in advance encouraged people to become involved.
§ The sign posting for the consultation venue was bright and clear.
§ Running the consultation in conjunction with the Open Day maximised interest and involvement in the process.
§ By using a basic questionnaire the process was efficient and user friendly.
§ The incentive of the free entry into a £100 ballot was extremely effective.
§ The support from Kilcooley Community Forum played a large part in the success of the consultation.
§ The visual effect of the consultation was extremely successful.
§ Participants were interested in the consultation and enthusiastic about the Neighbourhood Renewal process.
Kilcooley’s Priorities
3.3 An analysis of the results of the two-stage consultation process identified the following top twenty priorities as the most important for people of Kilcooley.
1. Stop mixed aged tenancies in blocks where senior citizens are housed
2. Remove/replace paramilitary murals
3. More local health services, GP Surgery, Dentist, Chemist
4. Secure additional funding for community groups
5. Programmes for Drug and Alcohol abuse
6. Increase outdoor sports and play park facilities
7. Refurbish run down properties
8. Promote community policing
9. Provide two bedroom bungalows
10. Purpose build centre for community groups
11. Promotion of sex education to reduce teenage pregnancy
12. Increased support for people with mental health problems
13. Core funding for Kilcooley Primary School
14. Improve community education for all ages
15. Promote youth services during the summer holidays
16. Development of community owned businesses
17. Reduce number of bonfires
18. Increase local employment
19. Provide family/ single parent support projects
20. Training for employment opportunities – e.g. job club
The statement of need and identified priorities are based on the needs of the area as of June 2006. It will be updated as a key activity in the initial phase of the implementation of the Action Plan and will be modified throughout the period of the plan as additional information becomes available and as new issues arise.
Kilcooley’s Vision
The Kilcooley Neighbourhood Partnership has developed the following vision for Kilcooley in ten years time;
Kilcooley will become an attractive, safe and prosperous estate where the residents enjoy healthy active lifestyles.
Through the four interlinking strategic priorities, Community, Social, Economic and Physical Renewal the Neighbourhood Partnership will achieve their vision for Kilcooley.
Community Renewal
§ To build the capacity and sustainability of community associations.
§ Improving communication between the community, statutory and voluntary sectors in North Down.
§ Building Community Spirit within the local residents.
§ Improved partnership working throughout North Down
Social Renewal
§ Providing opportunities for lifelong learning.
§ Improving the health and well being of local residents.
§ Increased opportunities for sports and physical activities within the area.
§ Increase support for individuals with mental ill health.