Local Area Agreements (LAAs) are three-year contracts between central and local government to deliver the priorities of local people in their neighbourhoods.

Our recently launched Local Area Agreement 'Delivering Sustainable Communities', is an opportunity to provide our residents with what matters most to them: good quality services delivered by local agencies, working together with the Private and Third sectors to improve quality of life for all.

Our aim is tackle the deprivation that is more pronounced in Liverpool than the rest of the UK but also to reduce inequalities between neighbourhoods within our own city. We will target interventions towards the sectors and communities most in need, celebrating diversity and promoting community cohesion. 

The LAA links funding streams with an agreed set of outcomes which combine local and national priorities. These outcomes have been grouped into four themes, which we refer to as "Blocks". They are:

• Children and Young People
• Economic Growth
• Safer and Stronger Communities
• Health and Older People

Our LAA was developed using a range of forums and meeting some of which have been described below. 

Brian Holmes, Regional Director - Government Office North West commented that:

"The engagement is ongoing.  Events and opportunities are being provided throughout the life of the LAA.  The widely constituted LAA Forum has performed an effective  advisory and shaping role during LAA development"

Activities that took place to develop the LAA included:

• ‘Regen-IT’: Elected Members, partners, community representatives and residents worked together to identify key issues for delivery at a local level. The computer generated interactive sessions allowed partners to visualise how their area improved or declined by how they invested in regeneration activities.
  
• Inclusive network and workshop events, which wewe held by Liverpool Community Network (LCN) and partner organisations. Presentations, workshops and Q & A sessions were held, more than 700 people attended and feedback on key issues were fed into the LAA
  
• Joint conferences held including ‘Using Culture to put Liverpool First’: 160 delegates attended to encourage partners and those working in the creative industries to recognise that arts and culture has a fundamental role in helping Liverpool deliver its vision.
  
• Neighbourhood agreement stakeholder workshops: In partnership with Liverpool City Council (LCC) Neighbourhood Management Services, priorities are being set by partners locally to underpin the LAA and provide a framework to work together at a local level.
  
• Rebranding Competition: Liverpool residents were asked via a competition to design a new image for the partnership. More than 250 entries were received and the winners are on their way to New York!

The underlying principle for the LAA is to ‘accelerate delivery’ of outcomes thereby changing perceptions. Following the strategic focus for this, partners have agreed the following four major (three year) LAA outcomes:

• To reposition the City through  an inclusive European Capital of Culture and its legacy;
• To grow a Competitive and Sustainable Economy;
• To build Vibrant and Healthy Communities;
• To create Opportunities for All.
  

Want to get involved?  Got something to say?

If you want to help to shape our LAA and comment on our priorities, or if you want to talk to us about what you think your community needs, contact us using our interactive form, Put Liverpool First.

Find out more about LAAs