A community Right to Buy
At the DTA conference in September 2004, and subsequently at the DTA strategic review 2004(with Board members and others from England, Wales and Scotland) we agreed that the DTA should initiate a campaign for a 'community right to buy'. Inspired by success in Scotland, we are proposing a campaign based on the following message and demands:
- Community ownership of buildings and land can transform even the most struggling community - energising local people and providing the long term foundation for enterprise and renewal. There are hundreds of examples where derelict or underused town halls, schools, warehouses, pubs, office blocks and waste land have been transformed from a blight and a liability into a thriving community asset - delivering services and amenities for local people and generating revenue which can be reinvested to achieve further social benefits.
- In 2003 the Scottish Executive introduced the Land Reform (Scotland) Act providing a community right to buy for rural communities in Scotland. A future Government should establish a Community Right to Buy across the whole UK, for all types of community, both urban and rural.
- Alongside the Right to Buy, it should provide a support and investment programme - building on the Scottish Land Fund, the Adventure Capital Fund and similar initiatives - to ensure that community organisations have access to the skills and finance they need to develop assets successfully and sustainably.
The Social Enterprise Coalition is willing to back this campaign, as are our partners in the Community Alliance (Scarman Trust, Community Matters, bassac). We are confident we can find many more supporters and build a genuinely broad alliance. Of course there is a long way to go, and we will need to examine carefully the best options for England and Wales - the Scottish model though a great step forward, has limitations (not least that it is only available to rural communities with a population under 10,000).
Community Right To Buy - February 2006
Read more about Community Right to Buy
As the campaign develops, we will include updates on this website. In the meantime, if members have suggestions or would like to be directly involved, please send an email to Steve Wyler s.wyler@dta.org.uk.
