Re-visiting the Community Development Projects of the 1970s in the UK

Researchers in Tyneside and Coventry have been re-visiting the Community Development Project (CDP) of the 1970s as part of an Economic and Social Research Council funded project – Imagine: Connecting Communities through Research (2013-17). The Community Development Project (CDP), a Home Office-funded experimental, anti-poverty initiative of the 1970s, was located in 12 areas in the UK. Three of these areas are the focus of the Imagine study: Benwell (Newcastle-upon-Tyne), North Shields and Hillfields (Coventry). The programme of research has been co-ordinated by Durham University’s Centre for Social Justice and Community Action in partnership with Warwick University, and 15 community partner organisations.