Item 6 - Appendix 1 Leven Locality Plan 2024
West Dunbartonshire Council · 21 November 2024
Back to Community Planning West Dunbartonshire Management Board — 21 November 2024 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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Leven Locality Plan August 2024 ITEM 6 - APPENDIX 1
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Leven Locality Plan Introduction Community planning in West Dunbartonshire is focused on supporting communities to have more of a say in decisions that affect them. This is informed and influenced by the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 (the Act). The Act was passed to support and promote more active community life. West Dunbartonshire’s Community Planning Partnership (CPP) is committed to working together with communities. All 32 CPPs across Scotland have a legal duty to produce two key documents to address inequality within their area. 1. A Local Outcome Improvement Plan (LOIP) – in West Dunbartonshire the current LOIP is called the Plan for Place 2017 -27. It sets out how outcomes will be improved and inequalities will be reduced in the area. It focuses on 5 priority local outcomes: • Our local economy is flourishing • Our adults and older residents are supported to remain independent • Our children and young people are nurtured • Our residents are empowered • Our communities are safe 2. Locality Plans – these are focused on tackling those inequalities that are concentrated within a specific geographical community. Localities in West Dunbartonshire are defined by ward boundaries and each includes several communities. Community Planning Partners Community Planning West Dunbartonshire (CPWD) is made up of partners from across the authority area and include: • West Dunbartonshire Council • West Dunbartonshire Community and Volunteering Service (CVS) • West Dunbartonshire HSCP • West Dunbartonshire Leisure Trust • Police Scotland • Scottish Fire and Rescue Service • West College Scotland • Dunbartonshire Chamber of Commerce • Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park • NHS Golden Jubilee • Department of Works and Pensions These partners and more work together to address the inequalities that exist across West Dunbartonshire by focussing on the priority outcomes set out in the LOIP.
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These partners work together to address the inequalities that exist across West Dunbartonshire by focussing on the priority outcomes set out in the LOIP. Community planning also allows partners and communities to focus on inequalities that are identified in specific communities through the development of Locality Plans. Locality Plans Locality Plans set out local priorities (based on consultation with local people), what improvements are planned and when these improvements will be made. If you live or work in the local area you have the right to be involved in the work associated with the Locality Plan. Each CPP will review progress against each locality plan and update the plan as required. An annual progress up-date report will also be prepared. The Leven Locality Plan The Leven Locality Plan (LLP) was developed to help improve the quality of life for people living in the Leven ward. This could focus on different things such as health and wellbeing, community safety, education, employment, housing, the local environment or access to services. At the centre of it is a desire to see local people more involved in what matters in their local area. This locality plan sets out statistical data from a range of different sources, this helps us all understand some of the local issues. The second part of the report has been developed based on the wealth of information and feedback from communities over recent years. We have used this to avoid consultation fatigue, we don’t want to ask the same questions again. Instead, we’ve reviewed all the findings and pulled out the priorities that came up most often. It’s now over to you to review our findings and confirm if feels right. Here’s the facts and statistics Life in Leven: The Leven ward covers the following neighbourhoods: • Alexandria • Renton • Bonhill • Bellsmyre • Dumbarton Townend And the Community Council areas of: • Alexandria (partial) • Renton • Bonhill and Dalmonach • Dumbarton North
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The wider Vale of Leven area, where this locality sits, is a more rural area of West Dunbartonshire, taking in the local communities which sit between Dumbarton and the Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park. The River Leven is a significant asset that flows through the centre of this locality, and onwards to Loch Lomond. Approximately 19,000 people live in Leven locality, and projections show this number will remain relatively stable over the next 10 years.
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What the statistics tell us about the Leven Locality
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Local Priorities and Engagement Local engagement in prioritising plans for the area is an ongoing process undertaken by community groups and community planning partners working together. Work has been underway in the Leven locality for a number of years, generating a range of findings. The aim is to work better with residents to coordinate local service delivery in a joined-up way to meet the needs of local communities. It is also an opportunity to empower local people where they want to do more for their own local community. In the Leven Locality resident have made their voice heard in a range of ways including: 1. The ‘Vale in Focus’ Place Standard consultation 2019 2. Vale of Leven (VoL) Trust Place Standard consultation 2019 3. Public "bake n blether" event February 2020 4. Schools engagement activities February 2020 5. Website comments February 2020 6. Business one-to-one discussions (anonymised) March 2020 7. Local resident surveys 2019-2024 8. Local community walk-a-bouts (ongoing)
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9. organised community organisations such as Community Councils or Tenant and Resident Organisations These conversations informed the priorities for the Alexandria area back in 2019: • Work and Local economy: The need for the town centre to be re-imagined / regenerated, the need for enterprise and creativity. • Facilities and Amenities: better community spaces both indoor and outdoor, especially for young people. • Influence and sense of control - over consulted and under listened to • Street and spaces: appearance being dirty or dilapidated. Lack of lighting and dirty or missing street signs in some areas. • Traffic and Parking: concern over lack of residents parking, parking on yellow lines and a lack of signage to free town centre parking The consultation undertaken through the Vale of Leven Masterplan continued these discussions and recognised the following five community priorities (2021): • Economic vibrancy • Infrastructure • Greener and sustainable • Health and wellbeing • Our heritage
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And further developed this to help shape the approved Vale of Leven Masterplan that highlighted these priorities: • Enterprise and community activity • Attractive and comfortable environment • Easy and safe to move around • Celebrate the town’s proud heritage • New homes and residents The wealth of feedback and conversations undertaken over the past 4 – 5 years has enabled the development of this Locality Plan. 2024 Further confirmation of community priorities In early 2024 the headline findings from these previous community consultations and surveys were presented in a further short survey to the citizens of Leven Locality. The intention of this survey was to reaffirm community priorities were the same or similar to those identified in past consultations and to identify any new community priorities not previously established. The 2024 priorities highlighted were: • Improvements to the town centres • Access to local services • Health and Wellbeing • Traffic, Parking and Pavements • The local economy, jobs and employment • Community events and activities In addition, people who responded to the survey highlighted issues with streetlighting, few activities or spaces for young people, the need for improved community facilities and public transport.
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Our Commitment As set out in the Community Planning Local Outcome Improvement Plan, all partners are committed to tacking inequalities. We will do this by working in partnership with communities to help make neighbourhoods better. CPWD and the community will commit to addressing inequalities in the Leven locality by focussing on the themes that have been raised by local people in recent years. Next Steps This locality plan represents community influence within Community Planning. This report will be shared with the Community Planning Partnership to ensure the priorities that have emerged are understood by all partners. The next step is for the communities within Leven Locality area to develop their own, unique action plan (see template below) for local delivery. This could be a Local Place Plan or a community Action Plan and will include community engagement to help identify where partners may contribute or help to remove barriers to increased community participation and / or action. Local Place Plans were introduced by the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019, giving communities the new power to produce their own plans to inform the preparation of the Local Development Plan. Local Place Plans offer the opportunity for a community-led, collaborative approach to achieve community aspirations and create great places. Read more about Local Place Plans here: Local Place Plans | West Dunbartonshire Council (west-dunbarton.gov.uk) The Communities Team will be able to support the development of community-led action plans, please contact us at empowerment@west-dunbarton.gov.uk to get started.
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Action Plan Template This template Action Plan has been prepared for consideration by the neigbourhoods that make up the Leven Locality. This can be used for each individual community or developed for the full locality. In order to focus on key deliverable projects, it is recommended to limit the number of actions. Community Priority CPWD Strategic Priority What will be done? Improvements to the town centres Flourishing West Dunbartonshire: Our local communities are sustainable and attractive Community to identify actions to be progressed locally. Access to local services Empowered West Dunbartonshire: We live in engaged and cohesive communities Community to identify actions to be progressed locally. Health and Wellbeing Nurtured West Dunbartonshire: Improved life chances for all children, young people and families Community to identify actions to be progressed locally. Traffic, Parking and Pavements Safe West Dunbartonshire Community to identify actions to be progressed locally. The local economy, jobs and employment Flourishing West Dunbartonshire: Our economy is diverse and dynamic creating opportunities for everyone Community to identify actions to be progressed locally. Community events and activities Empowered West Dunbartonshire: We live in engaged and cohesive communities Community to identify actions to be progressed locally.
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Comments from the Community