Community Partnership- A Formula for

the 1990s? ABSTRACT The direct involvement of local communities in urban regeneration initiatives is an emerging theme of the 1990s. The paper sets out some of the main characteristics of contemporary community participation in Britain and argues that developing effective forms of participation which give local communities real influ-ence over decision making will not be easy. Some of the main issues and dilemmas which are likely to be faced are highlighted along with some practical advice for the parties involved. Characteristics of community participation in the 1990s Twenty years ago a paper on participation in Britain would have centred on involving the public in the planning process. The Skeffington Report in 1968, for example, marked the emergence of participation which during the 1970s became an accepted and integral part of the planning process as administered by local authorities. Outside of the planning system, however, there was little role for local communities in the main urban regeneration policies promoted by government during much of the 1980s (Gilroy and Williams, 1991). Various forms of community-led initiatives have taken place in recent years, perhaps most notably in the field of housing with the growth of several new forms of community involvement. These range from tenants taking responsibility for management functions to outright community own-ership of housing stock. The 1988 Housing Act opened up wide possibilities for community involvement of this sort by giving tenants of council housing the right to choose an alternative landlord, including a community housing co-operative or association. Gapham and Kintrae (1992) have estimated the number of these organisations in Britain in 1992 to be in the regio