Community Wealth Building

There is now a widely held view that relying on economic benefits to ‘trickle-down’ to the local economy is optimistic. The massive rise in inequalities between and within regions has informed this view. 

By contrast, Community Wealth Building  (also sometimes called Local Wealth Building)  is a people-centred approach to local economic development. The idea is that redirecting wealth back into the local economy puts greater control and benefits into the hands of local people.  This is opposite to what commonly happens, that is – that wealth is extracted from the local context and migrated to national and/or global companies, shareholders and organisations. Those initiating and supporting Community Wealth Building are committed to ensuring that local people and communities are economically resilient and enjoy greater democracy.

Suggested actions include:

• Develop an Inclusive Economy Charter
• Promote a progressive procurement policy
• Support the creation of a regional mutual/community bank
• Work with local anchor institutions to buy and employ local
• Regulate rent and rates for ‘local’ businesses in council-owned property
• Offer business rate rebates for those businesses that become Living Wage Accredited
• Champion Local Employment schemes
• Have insourcing Council Services as an objective