‘England has been scarred by geographic imbalances for far too long.’
This is according to the No place left behind report form the Create Streets Foundation. As explored in chapter 1, ‘left behind places’ are not just products of economic decline or income inequality. The fact that far too many places feel left behind is also a legacy of post-war urban design, poor planning, centralised decision-making and under-investment in the social infrastructure that is so vital to local communities.
To replace spirals of neighbourhood decline with a virtuous circle of wellbeing and prosperity, the report argues that we have to invest in the physical fabric of local places and the social fabric of local communities – and trust communities themselves to lead.