Council adopts new Community Strategy 2023-2028: What it means for our district
A new strategy which aims to improve the quality of life of people living and working in the district has been adopted by Three Rivers District Council.
Following public consultation which took place in August, the Local Strategic Partnership Board agreed the Three Rivers Community Strategy 2023-28 in October 2023, and it has now been formally adopted by Full Council on Tuesday, 12 December.
Three Rivers District Council is working as part of the Three Rivers Local Strategic Partnership with the goal of making the district the best it can be. The new Community Strategy encompasses the Partnership’s plans for the district over the next five years.
Read the Community Strategy 2023-2028 here.
Cllr Sarah Nelmes, the Leader of Three Rivers District Council and Chair of the LSP, said: “As a council we have listened to the views and opinions of our residents to help us understand the common goals and needs of our communities. That’s what the strategy is all about - providing a vision to improve the quality of life for the people of Three Rivers by working together with our partners to create a district that is the best it can be for everyone, including neighbourhoods, health, employment and access to services.”
The strategy focuses on four main themes:
Stable Economy
Especially during the cost-of-living crisis, one of our main goals is to strengthen our economy. The LSP will work with local businesses and colleges to upskill the workforce and promote local employment, as well as volunteering opportunities.
Thriving Environment
The LSP will work to make reducing individual carbon emissions more accessible to residents. Succeeding in this goal will also include supporting our communities to adapt to extreme weather caused by climate change.
Safe and Well Communities
The purpose of this goal is to adopt a place-based approach to address health inequalities and ensure our residents feel safe. A place-based approach is one that identifies the inequalities affecting a specifically area of our district and working to address those. This will be achieved through maintaining and growing the work of the Community Safety Partnership and supporting and empowering residents to adopt healthier lifestyles.
Belonging
Three Rivers hopes to make everyone in our community feel like they belong. We aim to better reflect our local communities by celebrating local culture. One way this will be done is through supporting the current development of the community hubs.
How will it be done?
There are four factors that influence the methods used to achieve every main goal. The first is prioritising responsive responsible local leadership. The second is co-designing with communities, ensuring that the partnership’s moves are underpinned by evidence. Gathering views from the community is the central motivation for the release of the survey. Thirdly, Three Rivers aims to have a whole-systems approach to addressing needs by looking broadly at the causes. Lastly, partnership collaboration will build upon networks to ensure a consistent approach throughout the community. The roll-out of the scheme over the next two years is outlined in the Action Plan 2023-2025, which can be read here.