Growing together: Urban renewal and economic strategies to tackle inequality

This webinar on urban renewal took place on 23 July 2021. To be notified of future events please register. 

Register here

About this webinar: Urban renewal and economic strategies to tackle inequality

Join Public Policy Projects (PPP) for the first event in our Place and Communities Series ‘Growing together: Urban renewal and economic strategies to tackle inequality’ on Friday 23rd July, (8:00-9:15am). Chair of the session Rt Hon Stephen Dorrell will be joined by Neil McInroy, Senior Fellow for Global Advancement of Community Wealth Building at the Democracy Collaborative, Dr Julian Manley, Research Fellow, University of Central Lancashire and David Rudlin, Director, Urban Design Practice, URBED for this event.

The tremendous potential for economic and infrastructural growth in the under-tapped markets of Britain’s small- to medium-sized cities will be crucial if the UK is to be successful in its ambitions to both ‘level up’ and ‘green’ the economy. As examples such as Preston and Salford have shown, investment into urban regeneration projects can result in the transformation of previously underproductive into thriving regional economic hubs. It is important, however, that these projects keep in mind the importance of ensuring that urban centres are regenerated in a sustainable manner – meaning they are environmentally-friendly and actively work to alleviate the social inequality that often necessitates spending in areas such as justice, policing, and benefits.

With this in mind, PPP will be hosting a session centred around the different strategies that have been used by urban renewal projects to generate returns, elevate cities, and alleviate inequalities – both in the UK (namely Preston and Salford) and abroad (such as Mondragón, Spain or the Pilsen neighbourhood in Chicago). Looking at the varying success of these different projects, and how each has adapted to their unique conditions, will be an excellent opportunity for policymakers, private investors, and members of the public to learn of the benefits of various approaches to building community wealth and how they can get involved in doing so.

Speaker bios

Neil McInroy, Senior Fellow for Global Advancement of Community Wealth Building at the Democracy Collaborative

Neil is Senior Fellow for the Global Advancement of Community Wealth Building at the Democracy Collaborative.

He was previously the Chief Executive of the Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CLES).- the UK national organisation for local economies.

Neil is an economics of place specialist. He has an academic background in economic geography. However, over the last 25 years has gained multi-disciplinary knowledge, skills and experience having worked extensively in the UK, Europe, Asia, US and Australasia.

At present he is driven by the perfect storm of economic, social, environmental and democratic challenges. In this, he is focussed on thinking through and applying a new economic model for places- rewiring local economies for justice.

Neil has been commissioned and collaborated with a range of local and national governments, international, regional and local agencies as well as business and community and voluntary organisations. His ideas, have been used in the thinking through the practice of economic policy development and place strategy in UK, Europe and Australasia. He is also at present a Community Wealth Building Adviser to the Scottish Government

Dr Julian Manley, Research Fellow, University of Central Lancashire, Preston

Dr Julian Manley is an academic at the University of Central Lancashire, Preston. He has been closely involved with the development of the Preston Model since its beginnings in 2012. Prior to that, he was engaged with research, training and evaluation projects with the co-operatives in Mondragon in the Basque Country. He was a founder member of the Preston Co-operative Development Network, and is a founder member of the Preston Co-operative Education Centre. He is also a Director of the Centre for Social Dreaming and Director of the Board of the Climate Psychology Alliance.

His academic research attempts to bring together all these diverse aspects of social relations and community development into a cohesive and transformative whole for future life and work. He has recently edited the first comprehensive academic assessment of the Preston Model with colleague, Philip B. Whyman, The Preston Model and Community Wealth Building. Creating a Socio-economic Democracy for the Future (Routledge 2021), using an approach that combines the economic and social aspects of community wealth building in Preston.