1. The “Big Society”
Phillip Blond
Director, ResPublica
‘’You cannot have popular capitalism
if the poor don’thave any capital’’
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2. The Core Problems
• The ECONOMIC problem
- concentration of assets
• The SOCIAL problem
- erosion of social capital
• The CIVIC problem
- not enough people are getting involved
• The POWER problem
- power has pooled in the state
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3. The Economic Problem
Assets have become concentrated
•The wealthiest half of households hold
91% of the UK’s total wealth
•Bottom half of society has just 1% of liquid
capital
• Source: ONS, Wealth in Great Britain – Main Results from the Wealth and Assets Survey 2006/08 (2009)
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4. The Social Problem
Social capital is declining
•97% of communities have become more socially
fragmented over the past three decades
Source: Changing UK (Dec 2008), BBC Report
•The level of social trust has almost halved over
the last 40 years
Source: Civic Culture Study 1959; European and World Values Surveys 1990-2002/03
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5. The Civic Problem
Civic engagement has decreased
•Only 31% of Britons now provide nearly 90%
of all volunteer hours
Source: Third Sector Research Centre (2010)
•Netherlands, high concentrations of low
income households = lower volunteering,
voter turnout and contacts with relatives
Source: Schmeets & te Riele (Jan 2010)
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6. The Power Problem
Power has pooled in the state
•Nearly three out of four Britons agree that
“the state intervenes too much”
Source, David Halpern, “The Wealth of Nations” (2007)
•48% of people would like to be more
involved in local decision-making
Source: Ipsos MORI (2010)
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7. The Diagnosis
Problems with the ‘right’ and ‘left’
•Both welfarism and the ‘monopolised market’
have encouraged bureaucracy and asset
concentration
•The state and the market have squeezed out
the ‘civic middle’, stripping it of capital and
capacity
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8. Britain’s Big Society
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Transparency Democracy Locality
•Demand side: Localism Bill: the right to buy,
challenge and build - Public asset transfer,
budgetary take over – self defining
neighbourhoods
•Supply side: Mutualisation of public services,
payment by outcome, new providers
•Devolving economic power and participation

9. Britain’s Big Society
9
Transparency Democracy Locality
•Demand side: Localism Bill: the right to buy,
challenge and build - Public asset transfer,
budgetary take over – self defining
neighbourhoods
•Supply side: Mutualisation of public services,
payment by outcome, new providers
•Devolving economic power and participation

10. For public authorities
• Define budgets not by services or silos but by
areas and by outcome
• Explore social finance models – move beyond
social impact bonds for prisoners – to wider
policy possibilities
• What scope for the council to be a bridge for
funding current action from future savings?
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11. The new civic agenda
• Economic – self and community build –
platform for mass bottom up enterprise
• Social – associate to create capital and skills
• Civic – begin where people are - foster
relationships and fraternity
• Power – change governance – go bottom up
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12. 12

13. Development Trusts
Community Trusts
Bewonersbedrijven

14. ar e:
• I ndependent
• Led by l ocal peopl e
• Dr i vi ng soci al change
• Tr adi ng f or communi t y benef i t
• Devel opi ng communi t y asset s and
owner shi p
Communi t y t r ust s

15. Whi l st al l t r ust s ar e di f f er ent , t hey
t ypi cal l y:
• Ar e smal l wi t h i ncome of bet ween £100k and
£500k
• Focus on ver y speci f i c nei ghbour hoods of
up t o 5, 000 peopl e
• Own an asset or have use of a bui l di ng or
pr oper t y
• Ar e pr i mar i l y l ed and dr i ven by up t o 3 or
4 i ndi vi dual s, even t hough boar ds may be
much bi gger
• Ar e successf ul i n over comi ng ongoi ng
Communi t y Tr ust s

16. Most t r ust s have a mi x of i ncome sour ces,
t he mai n ones:
• Gr ant s ( e. g. f r om Gover nment , Lot t er y,
gr ant maki ng t r ust s) – aver age of 70% but
var i es enor mousl y
• Donat i ons and f und r ai si ng ( t i ny %)
• Cont r act s wi t h publ i c or gani sat i ons t o
pr ovi de ser vi ces
• Rent al and r oom hi r e i ncome
• Soci al ent er pr i se i ncl udi ng caf é/ cat er i ng,
consul t ancy, weddi ngs, conf er ences,
I ncome

17. • DTA Founded 1993
• Emphasi s on asset s
and ent er pr i se
• I n pr act i ce si mi l ar
or gani sat i ons t o
set t l ement s
• Rol e of st at e f unded
r egener at i on
pr ogr ammes i n t he
r api d gr owt h of t he
movement – Ci t y
Chal l enge - SRB –
NDC
Development Trusts
 Rooted in the vision of there being
"another way", a way of combining
community-led action with business
expertise and enterprise.

18. The t op r easons f or
success
1. People/Leadership/Management
2. People/Leadership/Management
3. People/Leadership/Management
4. Services and community
engagement

19. De verschillen met Nederland
• Community (wijk) bepaald door bewoners niet
door geografie
• Bewoners hebben meerderheid in bestuur
• Focus op wijkeconomie, niet op welzijn
• In bezit van eigen vermogen/vastgoed en daardoor
mogelijkheid om inkomsten te verwerven
• Door eigen inkomsten niet alleen afhankelijk van
subsidie
• Professionals worden ingehuurd en werken letterlijk in
dienst van

20. Experiment Bewonersbedrijven
• Conferentie ruimte voor burgers 27 juni 2011
• 14 bewonersgroepen zijn aan voorbereidingen
begonnen
• Start experimenten eerste helft 2012 als goed
bedrijfsplan is gemaakt
• Experimenten krijgen hulp van LSA en enig
startkapitaal afhankelijk van plan
• Onderzoek UK/NL gelijktijdig
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21. A f or mul a f or success
Leadership +
Passion +
Determination +
Focus on need +
Business skills
= Success