Sustainable Communities Act - suggestion scheme

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On 31st July 2009 Bristol City Council submitted 8 proposals to the Local Government Association (LGA) under the Sustainable Communities Act. The suggestions came from members of the local community following a period of consultation earlier in the year.

The LGA received a great response to the request for submissions under the Act, with over 300 ideas submitted from round the country.

These proposals were reviewed by the LGA Selector Panel which resulted in 7 of the 8 that went forward from Bristol being short-listed for consideration by the Secretary of State (SOS) in December 2009.

In early April 2010, the Secretary of State, John Denham MP, provided an update to Parliament setting out his responses to date on the proposals that had been put to him. You can see his comments if you click on the link below.

Secretary of State feedback on SCA round one proposals April 2010

In summary, unfortunately Bristol wasn't among the 17 proposals to be taken forward so far (out of 199 put forward by the LGA Selector Panel), but the central government 'Department for Communities and Local Government' (CLG) has been asked to continue its consideration of the proposals, with a formal response due from the Minister later this year.

In the meantime, the CLG has recently released details of the discussions with the LGA in January on the proposals. A summary of comments relevant to Bristol is available by clicking on the link here.

Summary of January 2010 discussions by the CLG and LGA.

Whilst the proposals from round one have been being considered over the winter, MPs have also been considering an amendment(bill) to the original Sustainable Communities Act.

The aim behind the new bill was to enable further rounds on the Act to take place, as well as putting in place measures to enable local communities to request that their local authorities take part if they feel it would be of benefit to their local area. The bill also sought to aid the Secretary of State in making his decisions by enabling him to approve part of a proposal if he deems it more appropriate, rather than giving a yes or no to the whole suggestion.

The SCA Amendment Bill became an Act on 8th April 2010 and it sets a time frame by which a second round must be announced. However, it is likely everyone who contributed in round one will be looking to see what further progress is made with the current proposals first. If you wish to find out more please follow this link.

Sustainable Communities Act 2007 Amendment Act 2010

We would like to thank everyone who responded with their ideas, for taking part in the Sustainable Communities Act process.
 

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How did the Sustainable Communities Act suggestion scheme work?

Earlier in the year, the Council invited local people to submit suggestions under the terms of the Act.

The deadline for suggestions was 1 May 2009 and there was a great response with 151 suggestions (some suggestions had several elements to them) covering a large range of issues to help improve the sustainability of the city.

The Council’s legal services and sustainable cities departments commented on all the suggestions and advised whether they met the requirements of the Sustainable Communities Act:

• It would need a change in government policy / legislation to be implemented.
• It would contribute towards sustainability as defined in the Act.

A list of the suggestions we received, grouped by theme and whether or not they were eligible is available to read or download here.

76 suggestions were eligible to go forward and these were then considered by the following:

1. An Officer Panel – council officers with appropriate expertise added factual comment where necessary.
2. A Local Panel - We asked Voscur (an independent organisation set up to support voluntary and community action in Bristol) to set up a panel. This included representatives from Neighbourhood Partnerships, equalities groups and councillors. The panel met on 9 June, prioritised the suggestions and made comments.
   The report is available to download.
3. The Council’s Cabinet then had to decide which suggestions to adopt as its formal proposals.  What is the Cabinet?  The Cabinet Member, Councillor Jon Rogers used further guidance to review all the suggestions and comments made by the Local Panel and recommend a shortlist of the strongest and most feasible ideas to be included for submission to the Local Government Association.  See the report to Cabinet on 30th July 2009.

Following approval at the Cabinet meeting, the eight proposals were then forwarded to the government via the Local Government Association (LGA).
 

The LGA set up a Panel to review the suggestions submitted and agree which were appropriate for consideration by the Secretary of State (SOS).  The suggestions have been reviewed over a number of months and the final shortlist has been forwarded to the SOS following the last Selector Panel meeting on 22nd December. 

Please click here for the LGA panel feedback from each of the proposals submitted by Bristol

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What is the Sustainable Communities Act?

The Sustainable Communities Act encourages local communities across the country to suggest actions that central government could take to improve the economic, social or environmental well being of their area.

Actions might include a change in legislation or government policy or a transfer of responsibilities from one public body to another.

The Act gives local councils the responsibility for collecting these suggestions and passing them on to the government.

Suggestions that do not require central government action may not be considered.

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Who was able to submit a suggestion?

Anyone was able to submit a suggestion, but here in Bristol we particularly welcomed suggestions from representative organised groups: such as community groups, tenants and resident associations and local branches of national organisations.

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Evaluation criteria

Suggestions made under the Sustainable Communities Act will be evaluated against the criteria shown below. These criteria have been developed by the council, based on information available from the Local Government Association (LGA).

The Bristol City Council Cabinet will decide which suggestions will be turned into formal proposals to be sent to the LGA. The LGA will consider the proposals and will discuss them with the Secretary of State to agree which will be implemented.

Please note, your suggestion may not be progressed further if it does not meet criteria 1 and 3.

1. Is the proposal something that a local council or (other local partner body) could do anyway, without action from central government?  This would include action taken by the council which it is able to take using its section 2 Local Government Act 2000 "wellbeing power. " The well-being power gives local authorities the power to do anything they consider is likely to promote the economic, social and environmental well-being of their area; unless what is proposed is explicitly prevented elsewhere in legislation. 
2. What legal issues might be involved?  Do any local bodies (council, police, health, others) already have the necessary powers? 
3. Will it contribute to environmental, economic or social sustainability, including participation in civic and political activity?
4. Assessment against the list of matters set out in a Schedule 1 of the Act which council’s are required to have regard to e.g. preserving local jobs, services and facilities, energy conservation, sustainable transport and food production.
5. What are the overall costs and benefits to the local community?
6. Does the proposal support the council’s Sustainable Communities strategy and other key strategies and plans?
7. What will be the impact of the proposal, in terms of geographic area or population affected?  Is it of very local significance or potential sub-regional impact? (The LGA is likely to shortlist small-scale as well as larger ideas, in keeping with the devolutionary intent of the Act).
8. If there are proposals for transfer of functions, what other bodies are affected?  What are the budgetary implications?
9. What government agencies and/or public bodies would need to be involved in the proposals, or would be affected by its impact?
10. Evidence of local support for the proposal?  e.g. petitions, letters from local councillors, MPs, businesses, public bodies.

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Is any extra money available to the council to act on suggestions?

Central Government has said that there will not necessarily be extra money available for the proposals that are agreed. However, where there is a clear case for investment, the government will consider this.

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