Having lived for much of my life in the Forest of Dean, a glorious forest and a group of small communities between the Severn and the Wye, I’m all too aware of the problems, and in some cases the opportunities, that present themselves on the issue of rural housing. As in most rural areas, we…
A contribution to the ‘Challenging Times’ edition of SERA’s New Ground – a non-urban perspective highlighting the challenges of how we do politics and are governed. Labour needs to think through – devolution and localism, particularly in England; Labour’s organisation & offer to non-urban Britain; and how to work with the green groups for the…
Today, the devolution debate continues, though often now in the guise of localism, and how labour will deliver that localism for the people of Britain. At the LGA fringe, Deborah Mattinson, founder of the polling organization Britainthinks, highlighted the need to think of people beyond any demographic category – their interests and needs are more…
The conference fringe is as varied and diverse as the issues that face coast and country communities. This year with the Scottish vote the question of who decides what emerges in most fringe event discussions, be that the value of community pubs, the choice of the second runway or how to deliver new housing. Two reoccurring…
