Blackburn:
The Groundwork network of environmental services
Blackburn:
| |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Type: | Projects, Concepts |
| Area: | Entire City |
| Actors: | Local Gov., National Gov., Private, NGO, Partnership |
| Funding: | Local Gov., National Gov., EU, Private, NGO, Partnership |
| Topics: | Built environment |
| Ecological education | |
| Employment | |
| Industry and business | |
| Information and participation | |
| Urban rehabilitation | |
| Objectives: | Improve intersectoral cooperation |
| Improve national and international cooperation | |
| Increase green areas | |
| Increase public awareness | |
| Instruments: | Eco audit |
| Integrated planning approach |
The idea of the national Groundwork network is to provide broad-based partnerships with non- municipal organisations that offer environmental support services and access to additional funding sources. The concept is aiming to improve the built and natural physical environment in urban areas and thereby to raise the quality of living for the local communities in terms of improved amenities, employment opportunities and the chance to share in shaping the management of local activities. Groundwork is the leading environmental partnership organisation in the UK. It serves an area lived in by a quarter of the British population, covering 120 towns and cities, including Belfast, Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds and seven London Boroughs. In 1994/95 the UK-wide organisation had a turnover of 23 million and employed a staff of 650. Over 200 graduates work in Groundwork including 58 landscape architects.
Each local Groundwork aims to serve the community in a professional manner and to set high standards. The Groundwork activities have four basic themes:
Groundwork Blackburn is also trying to encourage private sector involvement in community-based initiatives, traditionally viewed as the sole responsibility of the public sector. Therefore, the support of the local businesses is essential for the wider economic regeneration and the incorporation of environmental issues. The latest national report on all Groundwork emphasise that on average as much as 22% of the income has been contributed by the private sector. The involvement of business leaders, the development and selling of services as well as the provision of long-term support are key elements for the vision of a cycle. Practical regeneration action to improve the environment leads to improvements in quality of life and a positive image of the area, making it easier for those agencies charged with drawing in investment to do so, and for firms to hold the people they already have. The direct contribution to economic regeneration creates both jobs and wealth that is necessary to invest back into the community. At the same time a firm beginning to take steps to improve its own environmental performance reduces both the costs that it faces and the risks. It is likely that this policy will increase its sales and enhance its image.
With the agreement of its sponsors, Groundwork Blackburn has focused on three complementary streams of activities:
Each activity involves a mixture of practical projects, consulting, training and promotional work with a range of partners and funding bodies.
Practical Action is a programme to develop partnerships that will bring people together to gradually transform target areas within the Borough, in partnership with various local agencies. The regeneration of degraded landscapes is an essential part of a policy aiming to improve the poor physical conditions, to overcome vandalism, and to bring back green to city areas. Groundwork Blackburn projects have played a key delivery role in the cityChallenge Environment Programme. Projects focus on road, rail and canal corridors, on vacant industrial land and on improving industrial and commercial premises.
So far the most apparent achievements are that 145,000 trees have been planted and 6,500 metres of footpath improved. 125 hectares of land have been treated and work has taken place at 400 sites. More than 5,500 people have been involved in the projects and "green gang" training and jobs have been provided. In 1994/95 Groundwork Blackburn allocated 42,5% of staff time to practical action projects.
Hearts and Minds is the other community-oriented stream of initiatives to raise the awareness for environmental issues. Campaigns, events, training and greening projects are designed to bring environmental interest and education to young people and special target groups (e.g. senior citizens or Asian women). Another element of Hearts-and-Minds-projects is to clean up neighbourhood activities.
Groundwork Blackburn has aimed to involve communities across the borough in four seasonal campaigns each year, often utilising national initiatives to achieve local objectives. The annual Spring into the Countryside Campaign enables young people to visit farm and countryside as well as the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. Tree Weeks are mainly used for the implementation of planting programmes in existing woodlands. At annual events like the Bulb Planting Bonanzas local people get the opportunity to plant more than 30,000 bulbs each autumn. The other regular occasions of transforming the environment are the dramatic one-day projects which aim to achieve environmental progress and to attract publicity within 24 hours. The measures are new planted seating areas, picnic sites, community gardens or the improvement of access to local woodlands.
An environmental education programme has been structured by a joint steering group with support from Lancashire County Council and extra funding from the national Urban Programme. It focuses on eight services designed to influence the behaviour and attitudes of the younger generation in an environmentally friendly manner. The areas of activities include:
In between 1990 and 1995 the Hearts & Minds programme achieved that 128 schools participated, 37 school grounds had been upgraded, and 8 community gardens had been created. 18 campaigns had been run, 4 target communities had been supported with over 50 individual projects, and 5 dramatic one-day projects took place. The activities involved approximately. 1,000 people and 20,000 pupils. On Groundwork Blackburnpart there had been 19,5% of staff time involved.
The third major area of activities is directed towards economic undertakings. Any local company, regardless of size, sphere of operation or current environmental position is able to benefit from the services offered by Groundwork Blackburn. 38% of staff time goes to business action. Five streams of supporting activities should help to improve the condition of the environment:
The Environmental Review Service pioneered for Groundwork Network in Blackburn is offering companies in the United Kingdom an invaluable environmental baseline and the establishment of an action plan. The environmental services are giving access to environmental reviews, environmental standards BS 7750 and the European Eco-Management & Audit Scheme (EMAS). Other services developed deal with Total Quality Management and environmental as well as heath & safety training programmes. In short, the services cover all aspects of an economic undertaking: environmental policy, management systems, the environmental impact that businesses have on their environment, and the legislative requirements.
On top of that the concept of the Business Environment Association (BEA) has been established in order to have an institutional base with the credibility to succeed in convincing senior business management that environmental issues are relevant to the bottom line. The pilot initiative has been set up by Groundwork Blackburn with the funding from Shell UK Ltd., from the Department of the Environment, from the Department of Trade & Industry and the European Communityfunds on regional development. With the local support of the Chamber of Commerce and the cityauthority as well as regional help from the Conference of British Industry and the North West Business Leadership Team Groundwork Blackburn was asked to establish one of 11 pilot projects targeting small to medium-sized companies (SMEs).
Whereas large companies are often able to devote time and resource to satisfy legislative pressures and exploit the opportunities for developing money saving programmes for energy or waste minimisation, SMEsfirst steps in the relatively demanding area of environmental protection can prove daunting. In addition to the Environmental Review Services the BEA has included on-site consultations, seminars and newsletters. Hitherto the growing demand for such environmental information and management training has been lacking in business schools. Further services are provided by the Environmental Resource & Information Centre which carries out technical support for members of the BEA (e.g. energy and waste surveys, advice on waste minimisation, waste disposal and discharge consents etc.). Based on market research from consultations locally and regionally the package of service available for BEA members consist of:
By 1994/95, 105 businesses had joined BEA, 130 Environmental Reviews had been carried out, 22 seminars had been held, 2,300 managers passed environmental training courses and 20 companies are working according to BS 7750 / EMAS regulations. More than 4 million on environmental works has been spent by Groundwork Blackburn clients. A client turnover of 850 million has been influenced.
However, Groundwork Blackburn is not only trying to encourage SMEs to switch to greener policies, it is also promoting and funding partnership concepts with "green" groups outside the firms. These Greening and Sustainable Action Teams carry out environmental projects on the SME site - e.g. new planting or wildlife areas. Another field is Environmental Audits which are often supported by university students with a particular expertise. The linkage between local green groups, university and local business has proven beneficial to all parties and it is an example how environmental projects can bring about a change in attitudes and habits.
The Landscape Design Consultancy and the Brightsite Scheme are aiming to contribute to the regeneration of degraded public lands and those of local business. The projects ranged from small planting schemes to a 300,000 contract for the landscaping of the Blackburn Technology Centre in 1994. The five-strong team of the Landscape Design Consultancy has also been able to offer students and volunteers practical experience of project work, both at the drawing board and out on site. Clients are from the local areas as well as from outside the Blackburn Borough (e.g. Wales Tourist Council, British Coal, British Telecom or the Lancashire Wildlife Trust). The Brightsite Scheme, initially sponsored by Shell, now supported in Blackburn by the City Challenge Programme and Post Office funding, has prepared 80 sketch schemes so far. Work worth over 100,000 has been implemented at projects varying from small reception areas to major works with staff recreation facilities and sites for school or community involvement.
Groundwork UK is a partnership between national government, local government, the business sector and local communities. There are 43 Groundwork Trusts throughout England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In 1994/95 alone nine further trusts joined the national network and in 1995/96 Groundwork Stoke-on-Trent became member no.43. Each of them is a company limited by guarantee and each has a charitable status under law. The core funding is coming from the UK government, the European Community, local government and local private sector companies. Each Groundwork has similar funding arrangements which contribute to the basic costs of running the organisation. Each then draws additional funding from a wide variety of sources to cover the balance of their costs and those required for their services and projects. Nation-wide there are 6,000 small and medium-sized firms supporting and working with Groundwork Trusts at local level.
Groundwork Blackburn was established as the environmental arm of the Blackburn Partnership in 1990. The Partnership had itself been launched in 1989 as an economic regeneration project. It brought together a cross-section of groups - regional and local government, elected representatives, business and community leaders - with the goal of developing interrelated programmes for economic, social and environmental regeneration. Training and advice as well as information and consultancy is an essential part of the practical work. Nova Scotia Wharf is, therefore, not just the location of the Groundwork Blackburn headquarters but also a place with an environmental exhibition centre, a presentation theatre, seminar facilities, and an environmental library and database. Previously, the site was a warehouse on the Leeds/Liverpool Canal. The complex has been designated as one of the Lancashire Centres of Excellence under the Lancashire Environmental Action Plan, and has been given a Civic Award for its design.
In 1994/95 national Groundwork had an expenditure of 22,692,508 with a share of 65% project expenditure, 11% administration, 10% Groundwork Development, 8% Marketing and 8% others.
At the same time the income was 23,809.243 of which 37% had come from central government, 30% from local authority, 22% from the private sector, 6% from the European Union and 5% from other sources.
Private sector contribution to Groundwork increased from 18% in 1993/94 to 22% in 1994/95.
EU funding grew from 0,4 million in 1993/94 to 1,3 million in 1994/95. This was partly due to the setting up of a European Working Group at the Groundwork National Office in Birmingham. A future project is the establishment of an Eco-Office at the Groundwork South Tyneside which will have reed-bed filtration of waste water, composting lavatories, a water-powered lift, photovoltaic cells, solar panels and recycled construction materials. The European Regional Development Fund has agreed to pay almost half the 1 million building costs as a clean technology priority.
Leverage is an important condition of success in finance. The national funds bring in complementary funding locally and also voluntary support. In 1994/95 the Environment Fund could finance environmental action worth 2,500,000 of which only 300,000 had been grant-aided by the Department of the Environment.
The good practice of Groundwork Blackburn and the other Groundworks is mainly directed towards urban regeneration and the integration of environmental issues into daily life as well as into economic activities. The key point is the establishment of partnerships with central government, local government and the local community. The holistic approach is used to deliver social, economic and environmental outputs. This philosophy is described by Mr. Wilmers, the Executive Director of Groundwork Blackburn:
What are the benefits to Blackburn from our work? I believe that we are making a significant contribution to both local environmental regeneration and local economic regeneration, but perhaps the most important element is changing attitudes of business leaders and workforce, and then helping them to produce the necessary change in behaviour. And what are the lessons we can share with others? Any initiative of this nature needs very strong business leadership from the locality. In addition, a strong, local, independent identity is vital - we are not part of the regulators, we are not part of the Government but we are friends with, and supported by, both. A multi-agency partnership at the local level is necessary - nobody can do this work on their own. A lot of our success comes down to the regional support that we have had - larger companies helping out not just with advice and support, but often actively buying our services as a way of helping us to build up our ability to help firms in our locality. And of course, one needs Government funding to fund that part of the work that is not self- financing. ... We are all aware of "Agenda 21" and the "Global Plan of Action". I would like to advocate to you the role of Groundwork at the very lowest level in delivering action that is necessary, the small steps that cumulatively add up to a significant change in the direction of sustainability, and without which we cannot achieve Agenda 21. Groundwork is thinking globally and is acting locally. (in: Department of the Environment 1994: p. 110)
OECD 1990: Environmental policies for Cities in the 1990s, Paris
ICLEI 1994: Partnerships for Environmental and Economic Regeneration, Blackburn, United Kingdom, Toronto
Department of the Environment 1994: Partnership in Practice. International Conference in Manchester in September 1993, London
Groundwork National Office, (ed.) 1995: A national network for sustained regeneration. Groundwork annual report 1994/95, Birmingham
Groundwork National Office, (ed.) 1995: Small firms and the environment. A Groundwork status report. Research Report by the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, Birmingham
Groundwork Blackburn 1995: Groundwork Blackburn review 1990/5, Blackburn
| Name | : | Groundwork Business Environment Association |
| Firstname | : | |
| Telefon | : | ++49 / 1254 / 676747 |
| Telefax | : | ++49 / 1254 / 682288 |
| Address | : | The Environment Centre |
| Bob Watts Building | ||
| Nova Scotia Wharf | ||
| Bolton Road | ||
| GB - Blackburn BB2 3GE | ||
| E-Mail: | ||
| Blackburn@groundwork.org.uk |
| Name | : | Groundwork National Office |
| Firstname | : | |
| Telefon | : | ++49 / 121 / 236 8565 |
| Telefax | : | ++49 / 121 / 236 7356 |
| Address | : | 85-87 Cornwall Street |
| Birmingham B3 3BY | ||
| E-mail: info@groundwork.org.uk | ||
| URL: | ||
| http://www.groundwork.org.uk/ |
| Name | : | Wilmers |
| Firstname | : | Peter |
| Telefon | : | ++49 / 1254 / 265163 |
| Telefax | : | ++49 / 1254 / 692835 |
| Address | : | Groundwork Blackburn |
| The Groundwork Environment | ||
| Centre | ||
| Bob Watts Building | ||
| Nova Scotia Wharf | ||
| Bolton Road | ||
| GB - Blackburn BB2 3GE | ||
The Borough of Blackburn is the largest settlement in East Lancashire with a primary catchment population of 272,000 people and a secondary catchment in excess of 700,000. The Borough is located at the geographical centre of the United Kingdom with access by road, rail and air networks.Blackburn and the surrounding area have suffered from the decline of textile manufacturing and traditional smokestack industries. Industrial dereliction has a multitude of negative impacts on the area and its public image (damaged ecosystem, vandalism, unemployment, fewer industrial settlements etc.).
Project was added at 21.06.96
Project was changed at 27.06.96