Local government reform: Community planning and the quality of life in Northern Ireland

Abstract

Local government in Northern Ireland has undergone a significant reform process in terms of both the number of councils (from twenty-six to eleven) and their functional responsibilities. Councils in Northern Ireland have always been regarded as the ‘poor relation’ of central government or non-departmental public bodies which deliver many of the services performed by local government in other parts of the UK (education, social services, housing). The reforms in Northern Ireland, while devolving relatively minor additional functions, offer councils a significant role in community planning – the legal power to hold central departments to account for services provided by them in local areas. This paper argues that councils can use this power to improve the quality of life of their inhabitants.

Consolidating peace: Rethinking the community relations model in Northern Ireland

“…The legislation -Local Government Act (Northern Ireland), 2014 -describes community planning for a district as 'a process by which the council and its community-planning partners identify long-term objectives for improving: the social, economic and environmental well-being of the district'. The overall aim is for councils and their community-planning partners in health and social care, education, policing, housing, investment, tourism, libraries and sports to collectively improve the well-being of their citizens (Knox & Carmichael, 2015). According to the Department for Communities, which has overarching responsibility for local government, 'the partners will develop and implement a shared plan for promoting the well-being of an area, improving community cohesion and the quality of life for all citizens' (Department for Communities, 2017, p. 3).…”