A bit of background
For several years, five registered providers (Crosby Housing Association, One Vision Housing, Plus Dane, Prima Group and Riverside) have been working with Sefton Borough Council to improve the housing offer, local environment and quality of life for people in the Poets Streets and the wider Linacre area.
The providers agreed that they want to continue this collaboration, focusing on ‘people and place’, public service reform and prevention, developing a modern and collective approach to neighbourhood regeneration. To do this well, they wanted to bring together agencies and residents to understand local people’s experience to drive change locally. That’s where Capacity enters the scene.
In April 2023, Capacity was commissioned to work with the group of providers and Sefton Council to:
- Explore the underlying problems (not just the surface symptoms) keeping people in the area in poverty.
- Involve residents in developing practical and rapid responses designed to address these problems.
- Develop a practical and effective plan to create the conditions for longer-term regeneration.
What we heard
Like any good project, we started by undertaking some desktop research. We spent time looking at existing data from the registered providers,
Sefton Council and national data sets, trying to paint a picture of what life in Poets was like.
Building on insight from our desktop research, in May 2023 we set about deepening our understanding of the area’s strengths and challenges. We
spoke to local community groups, housing associations, public sector bodies and health teams. Professional insights and data gave us an idea of what key challenges in the area were, but this perspective was too narrow to provide the full picture.
We needed to engage directly with residents of the Poets Streets to try to understand ‘how is life in Poets’. We wanted to know what’s really going on for local people and what life feels like behind the statistics. In July and August 2023, we spoke to over 40 residents from the Poets Streets area and 55 children and young people.
Based on data and our conversations with people living and working in the area, we were able to identify some key themes.
Fly tipping, bins and rats: A build-up of rubbish on the streets, in alleyways and green spaces is significantly impacting the health and wellbeing of residents. The rubbish build-up is a real issue and the area is overrun with rats as a result.
Community assets: Family venues and green spaces in the area are used poorly and under-developed.
Housing quality: People reported issues with damp and mould. Some older houses have issues with insulation, which exacerbates these issues. Low energy efficiency makes it difficult to keep homes warm.
Unemployment: Nearly half of the residents of Poets Streets are unemployed. Many residents have rent arrears and are struggling with debt.
Cost of living: The rising cost of living is a significant issue for people living in the area. Even those in employment expressed frustration about accessing benefits to help them get by.
Lack of trust: Residents do not feel like their basic fundamentals are supported. They told us it felt like there was no point in reporting local issues because they do not feel like they would be addressed.
What we did
The first phase of this project had a small window of 6 to 9 months to focus on a small number of key issues. Informed by community conversations, we developed a set of realistic and achievable actions that we shared with the registered providers and Sefton Council.
We need a cultural shift… and we would need the residents to design the solution so that we know they would use it.
– Christine Leung, Taking Root in Bootle
Keen to continue work with the registered providers to create long-term, sustainable change in the Poets, in 2024 we shifted this work into its second phase.
In July, we began work with the 5 registered providers and Sefton Council to facilitate coordinated action in the Poets area, with the ambition of developing accountability and collective working. This work has a strong focus on action and getting started, building on the original work and the insights shared by residents.
What’s next?
Throughout 2025, we’ll be working with the group to establish localised, visible accountability for resolving key issues, whilst maintaining a 2-way dialogue with residents, putting their voice at the heart of thinking and doing. We’ll be convening a steering group who will work together to build a strategy and agree action that can be taken forward over the next 5 years to drive change and regeneration in Poets, improving life for its residents.
