A Six Point Plan for Folkestone – what’s that all about then?
What do we stand for…. and what are the key overarching issues?
Our strategic vision has five key elements and is built around two ideas:
- offering CHOICE – which is an acronym for our approach to partnership – explained here….
- and creating and sharing WEALTH – in a very broad sense of that term.
We believe strongly that our community wealth should be measured by our social capital: local talent, abilities, energy, enthusiasm and resilience. In other words we need to build a positive and active community in every possible sense – economic, social, physical, cultural and democratic opportunity and engagement
Folkestone needs to use our social capital to help tackle some of the problems we face locally – just like many other places. We also need a clear sense of direction and collective identity which is at the heart of regeneration planning.
Already local people have shown how well we can work together…
setting up projects to tackle the Cost of living crisis, help each other with Food Banks, Warm Spaces, good neighbour actions, community clean-ups, local lifeguard provision, tourism promoters, arts collectives, environmental action groups, help for refugees fleeing from Ukraine and other places, local heritage champions, music town and local festivals…
The list is simply amazing and proves that Folkestone has real heart!
The six elements of shared WEALTH are:
- Well-being: we need to work with health services and other agencies to improve everyone’s physical and mental health, using lived experience and support groups to signpost the best possible quality of life
- Environment: we need to set an example and work to put Folkestone on the map as a place that cares about our planet, taking the sense of responsibility for future generations seriously.
- Activity should be at the heart of our community: being proactive, active participants in community life
- Learning: we need to support a renewed commitment to lifelong learning – always finding new interests, skills, possibilities from cradle to grave
- Transport: we can work with providers and partners to establish sustainable, integrated ways to get in, around and out of our town, recognising different needs and the importance of transport in tackling social isolation
- Homes: we have to continue working towards the provision of secure, safe and sustainable housing as a basic right for everyone who lives here
Some will naturally want to discuss the details and definition – perhaps this is part of the process going forward.
Like any concept or construct, you could debate this choice of topics or headlines – the point is simply that we should build a regeneration strategy which is truly inclusive and embraces all of us within a vision of positive opportunity and that is all that the WEALTH frameworkk is seeking to support.
