By Isle of Wight Observer
You’ll be pleased to know Mr H is loving his hols. At his request, we’ve sent him some Savlon and a poem about sausages. He’s back next week.
Now, you may remember (some months back) I set you some homework – to read up on community wealth building (CWB). This is the follow-up.
In 2021, I stood for election as a Labour councillor with a manifesto based on CWB. A former Conservative councillor even messaged me asking if I had heard of the Preston model as “it would be a good idea for the Island”. So, after being elected, I asked the leader of the council to give me the responsibility to bring CWB to the Island.
CWB is a people-centred approach to local economic development, which redirects wealth back into the local economy, and places control and benefits into the hands of local people. That’s a fancy way of saying, let’s do more with what we’ve got.
We’ve seen the traditional approach, of waiting for an off-Island investor or God-like power to decide to “invest” on the Island, and then fail to deliver. CWB takes the local economy out of the hands of people not invested in our community. It uses money already available in anchor institutions (organisations that aren’t going anywhere) and spends more of it locally. In effect, we need to stop our pounds sailing off the Island. This may sound fanciful, but it’s simple. The difficulty is in the execution.
Let’s take a rough figure of discretionary spending (a choice of where it’s spent) for our anchors (the IW Council, Hospital, IW College and the ferry companies) of £400m a year. If we spent just 5 per cent more of this locally, that’s an extra £20 million a year staying on the Island. Preston Council, which is the same size as ours, has increased local spending by £73 million a year. So, we’ve got a big prize to go at.
There’s so much we can do. Make the real living wage, not the national minimum wage, the starting point. Simplify the application process for entry-level jobs, such as one form for the anchor organisations… we’re only constrained by our creativity.
The council included CWB in its procurement strategy 2022-25. It demonstrates their commitment to supporting the local economy and Island businesses. But CWB is bigger than just buying local. It’s an approach which will see communities benefit from the investment into people through jobs and training, helping local businesses, and ensuring the Island is a place people want to live and work. It’s not quick, but it’s worth it.
So, “What do you do, Quiggers?” you ask. Well, as a local business owner and Islander, I’m invested in the Island. I’ve embraced CWB across my businesses. We’ve moved as much supply to local companies as possible. Our teams earn at least the real living wage. Staff receive training that is work specific, but also training to boost their skill set and employability. We also pay local companies within two weeks of their statement arriving and one-off contractors within 48 hours. And we give 7 per cent of our profit to local charities, as we are lucky enough to be able to. I realise not everyone can do the same. But we can all do something.
If you’re a decision-maker in an Island organisation, email me: richard.quigley@iow.gov.uk. Let’s see how we can work together to develop CWB. If you aren’t a decision-maker, consider what you can do. Try spending a little more locally. See how your workplace can champion CWB. Simply start talking about it.
With the backdrop of a malevolent government, constantly reducing council budgets, a new approach can only be a good thing.
We’re lucky enough to have a vibrant community on the Island. Now let’s start building community wealth.