CLES named one of the North’s Top 50 for second year running

The Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CLES) has been selected as one of the top fifty most socially valuable organisations in the north of England.

Recognition has come from the sixth annual edition of Hannah Directory, a print publication, website and launch week of events celebrating the great stuff that people are doing in places in England’s north, and asking how even more of it can happen.

Founded in 2013, the directory takes a snapshot capturing some of the year’s best activity in the arts, music, business, new kinds of social organisation, scientific discovery and great stuff from any field. It is named after and inspired by Hannah Mitchell (1872–1956), a suffragette and rebel who tried to create ‘beauty in civic life’ in her work on public libraries, parks and gardens.

Unlike most awards, which only cover one field, Hannah Directory looks for outstanding contributions in any activity that is for the common good of places in England’s north. CLES joins artists, musicians, community groups, digital technology companies, and policy think tanks in the 2018 edition.

CLES has been selected for this year’s top 50 based on its work pursuing innovative, inclusive projects to tackle inequality and building local wealth in several cities in the North – and beyond.

“CLES continues to lead the way in demonstrating a new economics that prioritises people and local places” said Andrew Wilson, the coordinator of the directory. “We are pleased to be able to highlight the team’s work for a second year in a row”.

CLES will be building on its success this year by taking its learning and experience of work in the North of England, and beyond, to even more local areas around the world in 2018/19.

“The Hannah Directory is a wonderful initiative and we are proud to have a place within its pages among so many other great organisations”, said Amy Clancy, Policy and External Affairs Manager at CLES.

CLES joins more than 100 people and organisations to have taken part in Hannah Directory so far. Most of the contributors to the directory have been recommended by others. Each new link between them is a pathway along which ideas, trust, and even co-operative activity can be shared across the region. This unique network is one of the broadest in England’s north.

Find out more

For more information or comment about Hannah Directory, visit www.hannahfestival.com.

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