28 C O N T E X T 7 6 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 2 people are involved in other successful projects such as the Whitfield Valley Centre. There was a need for a joined-up approach that showed that the heritage project could be supported as part of holistic neighbourhood renewal. The city council is now aligning all its neighbourhood renewal activities in the area under one champion. You have to avoid the simplistic notion that there is one local view about what should be done and accept that people even in the same street (or the same household) can have different views. The key to keeping people on board at Chatterley Whitfield has been to recognise and respect the different agendas. It is useful to identify those interested in the heritage or community elements and develop their capacity, but we also made sure that everyone else knows how they can participate. The reports and invitations to meetings appear every month in the council newspaper that goes to every household. Step 6: Build up the trust that the area’s history had damaged. In the years following the closure of the colliery, ChatterleyWhitfield had been a major visitor attraction run by a trust with many local people on it. This had ended in a bankruptcy. There had been a great deal of dispute and loss of trust at that time among the very people who we were now seeking to involve. Trust is an essential requirement of successful partnership working. The only way to rebuild it is to work openly and honestly with all those involved. The best practice visits helped, but the protracted processes which enmesh all UK regeneration programmes work against it. People are very suspicious of and frustrated by complex funding regimes and bureaucratic processes. Step 7: In building up trust, the continuity of staff gives confidence. The constant turnover of staff and consultants in projects is very unsettling to the community because they feel that all the joint learning and the trustbuilding is wasted and has to be constantly redone. Great emphasis has been put on ensuring that there is regular and continuous representation by officers who are directly related to decision-making. Indeed the project’s director Andrew Patterson tries to attend community meetings personally as much as is practical, and the English Heritage regional inspector JohnYates has been a familiar figure throughout. Step 8: Bring a community representative on to the partnership as soon as appropriate. From the outset the ChatterleyWhitfield Partnership included elected representatives in the form of the local MP and senior councillors. They have had a consistently high level of interest and attendance, and have made possible the bold thinking that has been needed to produce the way forward for Chatterley Whitfield.There was also felt to be the need for a view from those who do not hold office, and the Friends of ChatterleyWhitfield now nominate a representative to the partnership board. Other forms of representation will be considered as the project develops. Step 9: Do not assume that the community wants to take everything on from an early stage. Working with the community has taught us a great deal about how practical people can be about how much to take on. It is really important to listen to what people feel they can do and how they want to do it, and not to expect people to want to chase after funds for projects just because the funds are there. Step 10: Respect the community as your most important clients and you will be repaid. The communities in which a major project is located are permanent stakeholders. They often know a great deal about an area, and what can and cannot be achieved. There is always the worry that engaging too closely will raise expectations unrealistically, leading to positions being adopted that prevent rather than promote progress. Our experience at Chatterley Whitfield has been that a process of giving priority to the community and being rigorous about service to them pays off. It creates a group of partners and supporters who can be honest, informed and critical without ever endangering the project as a whole. Looking forward This article has concentrated on some of the process issues of community involvement. It has not covered the other heritage and regeneration issues, which would require large articles in themselves. After over two years of studies, bidding, business planning and emergency repairs, a way forward is being developed involving Chatterley Whitfield – a powerhouse of the past – as a powerhouse of the future. A plan is being drawn up to maintain the heritage attraction by developing a renewable energy centre on a commercial basis. This would all be in the context of a major hub of community and education and training activities. The views expressed in this article are not necessarily those of the Chatterley Whitfield Partnership or any of its members. The free emailing list can be joined by sending an email to [email protected] photographs have been kindly supplied by Stoke-onTrent City Council. The colliery in action, from the top of the pit heap. IHBC Annual School 2002 IHBC Annual School 2002 IHBC Annual School 2002
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