The economic viability of small towns

By Katie Fewings • Aug 12th, 2010 • Category: Uncategorized

Economic viability, within the wider context of sustainability, is a key issue for small towns especially in a time of growth and increasing competition both nationally, globally and virtually.

A discussion group at the Small Towns for Tomorrow Conference focused on how small towns can improve their economic viability through, for example, attracting inward investment, collaborative working, understanding relationships with other towns and cities and greater partnerships and networking.

Key Points

Need for local empowerment and for town councils to become more business-friendly in planning. A share of business rates might help. Also separate community bodies might be more effective than town councils in getting businesses up the agenda.
Public sector employment and purchasing practices need rethinking. For example, county councils could be less centralised as employers (often in the biggest towns) and Office of Government Commerce buying solutions discriminate against small organisations.
Stimulating and supporting local enterprise is more viable than seeking to bring in external businesses.
High quality public services create a virtuous circle, for example, refuse collection and street scene – people become proud of their environment and invest in it.
Small towns should market quality of life.
Why are post offices still so grim?

Do you agree with these key points? Add your comments below.

Katie Fewings is Katie graduated from the University of Sheffield in 2000 with a BA in Modern Languages (French, Spanish & Portuguese). She honed her organisational skills over nearly four years as PA to the Director of an internationally renowned firm of architects in London before moving to Brighton and taking up the post of Project Manager at the online ethical travel directory, responsibletravel.com. In this role, she organised the annual Responsible Tourism Awards with partners World Travel Market, The Telegraph, Geographical Magazine and BBC World News, and facilitated a programme to develop and support community based tourism with the Washington NGO, Conservation International. Katie has a strong interest in issues of sustainability and social responsibility, and has set up her own website, Ethical Weddings (www.ethicalweddings.com) to help couples plan the wedding of their dreams without compromising their values. She also co-founded Our Ethical Network in Brighton to give ethically motivated businesses in the city the chance to meet one another, share common problems and explore business opportunities. Katie is developing AMT's online presence and helping towns to share knowledge and best practice from their successful initiatives through online networking in the new AMT Forums and other social media. She works Tuesdays and Thursdays and can be contacted on 07876 701 266 or by email at katie.fewings@towns.org.uk.
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