INTRODUCTION
The Covid pandemic revealed that caring communities are critical to a healthy, people-centred city fostering well-being, cohesion and dignity for all, tackling disadvantage to support the flourishing of people, communities and the environment. Yet in our development-centred city, the places that we need for these purposes are being starved of funds or pushed out: health facilities, community centres and other social infrastructure. Even schools are closing as families are squeezed by rent rises.
The care sector spans the formally-organised public health and social care services as well as a wide range of unpaid care work and food provision. Care work has been fundamentally undervalued. We need genuine collaboration between community health and care sectors across London, with an emphasis on neighbourhoods, which can provide stability and social benefits.
‘Lifetime Neighbourhoods’ emphasise connections between people — the neighbourhood being a place where people get together — and address inequities in the distribution of amenities, healthcare and schooling. They address air pollution, food justice and other issues of spatial justice. They link together digital hubs, community centres, local food hubs, care hubs and community improvement districts.
Solutions in our MANIFESTO
CARE AND FOOD HUBS ON EVERY HIGH STREET
- would be a significant tool for the Mayor to shape a care and nourishment-centred economy: hubs can organise a whole range of those services in an integrated way within each locality. These should be seen as a part of social infrastructure: a place for unpaid carers, residential care workers, food growers and distributors to go to for support. Community-based sustainable health initiatives would be encouraged, and local people would be involved in assessments of health and care provision
COMMUNITY NURSERIES
- could also be part of these ‘care-cooperatives’
MAJOR DEVELOPMENT on brownfield sites must include:
- A proportion of accessible community-use space available at low cost, including for food growing
- A high proportion of social housing in mixed use development
- Meaningful local consultation on the need for and allocation of Section 106 and CIL money
INTRODUCE A COMMUNITY RE-USE CATEGORY
- in planning (“Re-Space”) which refers to the process of reusing and repurposing empty or underused properties for community-led activities as above
SOCIAL LICENSING
- should be established for all types of care providers, to create a workforce protection model that challenges gender stereotyping and requires a genuine Living Wage for all care and food workers, driving out zero hours contracts and enforcing continuous skills training, with significant resources allocated
LIFETIME NEIGHBOURHOODS:
- The Mayor should embed the Lifetime Neighbourhood principle across the whole city, designating local assets and infrastructure for protection and investing in local people and services. Community-led, fact-based audits will measure things that people value and assess local needs. Community Wealth Building principles should be applied and co-operative structures supported and developed
LINKS, GROUPS CAMPAIGNING ON THIS ISSUE
Protect our Places (POP) Protect Our Places – Latin Elephant
Ealing Matters Ealing Matters – A borough-wide alliance of residents’ groups
Thames Life, Barking Thames Life Community Development Trust – A diverse and vibrant community where residents are driving change
Ward’s Corner, Haringey Wards Corner Community Plan