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Transforming estates, a research report from ECOTEC and the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) draws on experiences in four major estate transformation projects in Meden Valley in the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire coal field, North Solihull, Huyton in Knowsley and Poplar HARCA in Tower Hamlets.
The report suggests it can take decades to regenerate communities and bring lasting change. The findings indicate that it can be easier to make physical improvements to homes and the layout of an estate, than to tackle the underlying reasons why communities have gone into decline. The report highlights that environmental improvements alone may not be enough to regenerate areas unless there is a co-ordinated approach to improving access to jobs, boosting residents’ skills levels and tackling health inequalities. The report also highlights the challenge of securing consistent and sustained funding spanning decades, and not just for the short and medium-term.
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Sarah Webb CIH Chief Executive said: "Improving housing is at the heart of successful estate regeneration programmes, but new homes must go hand in hand with co-ordinated efforts over the long term to improve educational attainment, local skills and access to training and employment. It is clear that the involvement of local residents is a key factor in successful regeneration, as well as the creation of projects to confront the issues head on. The development of new schools as a way to improve education and generate confidence is a fine example of what we need to do."
(CD/KMcA)
