CLES launches What Needs to be Done: The Manifesto for Local Economies
CLES, the UK’s leading, independent think and do tank realising progressive economics for people and place, has today launched What Needs to be Done: The Manifesto for Local Economies.
What Needs to be Done sets out how central and local government, alongside business and civil society can develop policy, practice and action to:
- Build community wealth
- Fund decent public services for all
- Enable a socially just devolution
- Invest in skills & decent work
The manifesto highlights the challenges with contemporary policy facing these four key areas of local economics, before detailing what needs to be done to create solutions that benefit both people and place.
What Needs to be Done: The Manifesto for Local Economies is experience based. For 31 years, the think and do tank has worked collaboratively with localities to adopt different approaches to economic development, regeneration and local governance – approaches which have been successful, as evidenced by the recently acclaimed work in Preston referred to as the ‘Preston Model’. This manifesto offers insightful and practical policy solutions and pointers, which will enable a change, accelerate the transformational and create an economy for all.
Neil McInroy, Chief Executive of CLES commented:
‘The way in which the UK has undertaken local economic development over the last three decades has been orthodox – based on an assumption that economic growth brings trickle-down benefits for people and place. CLES has spent the last 31 years challenging that orthodoxy and working with places to deliver activities which bring real, local economic, social and environmental benefits. What Needs to be Done: The Manifesto for Local Economies draws on this knowledge and experience to provide an outline of what needs to be done to further shift this failing orthodoxy so that proven, progressive approaches to local economic development come to the fore.’
Read What Needs to be Done: The Manifesto for Local Economies in full.
ENDS
Notes to editors
- Established in 1986, CLES is the UK’s leading, independent think and do tank realising progressive economics for people and place. CLES aims to achieve social justice, good local economies and effective public services for everyone, everywhere. www.cles.org.uk
- Over the past three and a half years, CLES has worked collaboratively with Preston City Council and six other anchor institutions to put into practice progressive economics that truly benefits people and place. Referred to as the ‘Preston Model’, the programme is succeeding in developing the local economy in Preston and the surrounding areas in Lancashire, through strengthening local supply chains and increasing the number of local jobs. The achievements have been published in a recent report by CLES, Community wealth building through anchor institutions: https://cles.org.uk/our-work/publications/community-wealth-building-through-anchor-institutions/
