Regenerating Deprived Urban Areas : A Cross National Analysis of Area-Based Initiatives

In the face of continuing challenges of urban decline, an increasing local policy activism can be observed in a number of European countries. The implementation of area-based initiatives (ABIs) for deprived urban areas, such as The 'New Deal for Communities' in England and the 'Social City Programme' in Germany, are examples of these New Localism(s). ABIs can be seen as test-beds for new forms of urban governance seeking to foster an active participation of residents and the Voluntary Sector. Based upon a comparative research in two cities, Bristol in England and Duisburg in Germany, this book is the first to cross-nationally compare the impacts of ABIs in two deprived urban areas in England and Germany. It evaluates the impacts of these New Localism(s) on organisations and development actors at the neighbourhood level. Using a rich data-set and applying a hands-on methodology it applies a mixed method approach to help the reader with a wider spectrum of illustrations and is aimed at those studying and working in the field of urban regeneration and planning. Regenerating deprived urban areas Contents List of figures, tables, boxes and appendices List of abbreviations Acknowledgements 1. Introduction 2. New Localism(s) in Europe: restructuring local state spaces and public-service delivery in England and Germany Features of the New Localism(s) Beyond the market and the local state: public-service delivery reforms in England Coping with the local budget crises: reforming the local state administration in Germany 3. National urban policies for deprived urban areas: the birth of Area-Based Initiatives Between central-government control and outsourcing: urban policies and development partnerships in England Halting the downward spiral: urban policies and the birth of Area-Based Initiatives in Germany Comparing Area-Based Initiatives: cross-national observations 4. Exploring the impacts of Area‐Based Initiatives through a neo-institutionalist perspective The Institutional Capacity Building Framework: evaluating shared knowledge, new political spaces and inter-organisational relations 5. Lost in transformation: urban governance practices and the New Deal for Communities in Bristol Spending the New Deal for Communities jackpot in Bristol Barton Hill Between mainstreaming and the realities of institutionalisation: winding down the New Deal for Communities experiments New Deal for Communities in Bristol: a flash in the pan 6. Local-government experiments to cope with structural change: the Social City Programme in Duisburg The Social City Programme in Duisburg North: continuing local policies with central-government funding Beliefs and practices of anchoring and mainstreaming: the fading legacy of the Social City Programme in Duisburg The Social City Programme in Duisburg: a fading legacy 7. The crystallisation of New Localism(s) in Bristol and Duisburg: a cross-case comparison The transformation of local state spaces Area-Based Initiatives in comparison: same objectives in different regulatory frameworks The transformation of local institutional capacities Institutional change: processes of (de)institutionalisation 8. The neo-institutional study of New Localism(s) as an analytical window for comparative urbanism: concluding reflections The value of neo-institutional frameworks for the study of contrasting pressures for institutional change Comparing New Localism(s) across Europe Methodological reflections for implementation of evaluation research Prospects for area-based policies in Europe in times of financial austerity Appendix I: Research design Appendix II:Sociogram depicting inter-organisational trust among the New Deal for Communities partnership (n = 21) Appendix III:Sociogram depicting inter-organisational trust among the Social City Programme partnership (n = 25) Appendix IV:Implemented projects financed by New Deal for Communities Bristol between 2000 and 2010 Appendix V:Key project spending in New Deal for Communities Bristol, 2000–10 Appendix VI:Key project spending in Social City Programme Duisburg, 1996–2009 References Index In response to the challenges posed by urban decline, local policy activism has increased in countries across Europe. Ren Peter Hohmann argues here that we should view these area-based community initiatives, such as Englands New Deal for Communities and Germanys Social City Program, as incubators for new forms of urban governance that seek to foster the active participation of residents and nonprofit groups. Based on his comparative analysis of initiatives in Bristol, England, and Duisburg, Germany, Hohmanns study provides a richly informed assessment of local policy activism and its impact on neighborhood organizations and developers. This book compares the impacts of area-based initiatives (ABIs) in two deprived urban areas in England and Germany on organisations and development actors at the neighbourhood level. It applies a mixed method approach to help the reader with a wider spectrum of illustrations and is aimed at those studying and working in the field of urban regeneration and planning.