Pioneering Plymouth joins the ‘Cities of Service’

Plymouth has been selected as one of seven UK cities to join Cities of Service – a government-backed initiative to work with volunteers on city challenges.

Cities of Service is run by Nesta, the UK’s innovation foundation, and backed by the Cabinet Office. It is the first time it has been run in the UK and is built on the successful Cities of Service model developed by ex-Mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg. Over the past three years, the movement has spread internationally to inspire Team London and “Count on Me” in Madrid.

As part of this prestigious programme Plymouth will appoint a new Chief Service Officer to boost the role that volunteering plays in helping solve local issues.

Plymouth gained its place on the Cities of Service programme by showcasing  ideas for food growing and sharing community gardens and the Plymouth Energy Community to help tackle fuel poverty – an issue that affects 14,000 homes in Plymouth. Over the next few months the city will develop its final City Service Plan which will be launched in the summer.

Of the seven cities, Plymouth is one of four selected as a partner city and will receive £180,000. The three remaining associate-status cities with receive £30,000.

As well as grant funding to roll-out the project, Plymouth will receive mentoring and advice from US cities that took part in the New York City programme. Plymouth will also take part in a programme of training and learning events that bring partner cities together to develop their skills in key areas like needs assessment and impact evaluation.

Cabinet member for Co-operatives and Community Development Councillor Chris Penberthy said: “I’m delighted we’ve been selected to take part in the Cities of Service programme, and even more so that Plymouth has been given the Cities of Service partner status. The organisers were impressed with our proposals to take volunteering to new levels in Plymouth and tackle two issues that are important for people’s health and wellbeing at the same time.

“We are committed to becoming a brilliant co-operative Council and at the heart of our co-operative approach is the concept that we have a fair city where everyone does their bit. It is a pioneering approach, improving services in new and exciting ways and learning from international good practice. This funding will enable us to invigorate the culture of volunteering which is vital if we are to help communities have more control over their lives and the services we deliver.”

Cllr Penberthy added: “Access to affordable, healthy food is becoming a growing challenge for certain communities within our city and has been highlighted to us by the Fairness Commission. We know the impact of welfare reform and sharply rising living costs are badly affecting people’s ability to buy and prepare fresh, healthy food. The number of people using Plymouth Foodbank has increased 237 per cent in the last year. Families on a tight budget are opting for cheaper processed food rather than home cooked fresh and often healthier meals.

“We have space within the city to use land for food production we just need volunteers to manage it. We also need to help people learn more about food, what to cook and nutritional value.”