ASSET (Action to Strengthen Small European Towns)
Project Proposal
INTRODUCTION
The small towns of Europe are a massive asset for the people, the heritage and the economies of the continent. They provide a focus of social, cultural and economic life in their sub-regions. They interact with the villages in their surrounding areas, and with larger towns and cities. ‘ Small towns are home to one-fifth of Europe’s population and many of its most creative businesses/service-providers as well as being a rich repository of our collective heritage and local history’. * They vary greatly in their origin, age and character, and embody a local distinctiveness that is a vital part of the European heritage.
However, throughout Europe, small towns face severe problems, challenges and opportunities. They have lost, or are losing, functions to the larger cities, as part of the processes of globalisation and centralisation. Loss of services and businesses within villages and small towns particularly affect the disadvantaged (e.g. young, old, disabled). In some towns, commercial centres are losing vitality because of the creation of out-of-town shopping and service centres. In others that are a success in attracting shoppers and visitors, narrow streets and public spaces are often blighted by traffic or by excessive car parking. ‘ In some areas, small towns have been absorbed by the city or overwhelmed by modern development, environmental dilapidation and have suffered from prolonged under-investment.’ *
‘There is a serious policy gap at European and local levels. The confidence and wellbeing of small towns are being undermined by exclusion from Europe’s existing cities’ and rural development programmes. This is short-sighted and ultimately dysfunctional for communities of all kinds. In the long run, the performance of Europe’s city-regions and deep rural areas alike is highly dependent on sustaining the constellation of small towns and the villages in their hinterlands, which underpin and anchor these regions.’ *
‘Maintaining territorial cohesion via balanced regional development and creating opportunities for all of Europe’s people are fundamental principles of the Union. Better ways of supporting small towns (throughout Europe) must be urgently identified’.*
There are good examples where the people of some small towns and villages have taken the initiative to assess their strengths and weaknesses and to promote a vision of a sustainable future, seeking assistance from municipalities, regions and agencies. There may be some correlation between poorly performing small communities and their lack of skills and capacity to take such action.
In the face of these forces, there is a strong and widespread concern to revive the small towns, to protect and find new life for their remarkable heritage and to strengthen their economies. This effort falls within the broader context of policies within and beyond the European Union; and can call upon programmes of regional development, rural development, spatial planning and other sectoral activities.
But no major European programme has focused on small towns, in their own right. They are, in this sense, a hidden asset. In some countries, government agencies or regional councils have focused on small towns, providing advice, finance and other support and encouraging networking and exchange of good practice between towns. Some national networks of small or market towns exist, such as Action for Market Towns in England. At European level, there are some formal networks of towns with special interests, such as RECEVIN (wine towns) and Citta Slow.
However, there has been no significant effort, at European level, to link these different efforts and to gain the benefit of exchange of ideas and good practice between those agencies and organisations that wish to support the strengthening of small towns throughout Europe.
Addressing The Need
In an effort to fill that gap, ECOVAST and SEEDA joined with the Regional Council of Niederősterreich to sponsor, at Retz in Austria in November 2005, a European Conference on ‘Small Rural Towns’. This three-day event attracted 85 delegates from 30 regions and 12 countries. After intensive discussion, and description of initiatives in many countries, the Conference agreed that a project should be launched to promote co-operation, and exchange of good practice, between governmental and other agencies throughout Europe who offer support to small towns.
* Quotations in italics - ECOVAST’s views are supported and enhanced by the resolution of the NORTHERN PERIPHERY PROGRAMME Small Towns Network Conference 4-5 September 2006 in Jyväskylä, Finland.
ECOVAST, The South East of England Reghional Development Agency (SEEDA), The Commission for Rural Communities (CRC), England and APURE (l'association pour les Universités Rurales Européennes) have therefore taken the initiative in launching that project, and are supported in doing so by potential partners including:
Action in Rural Sussex, England
AIMS OF THE PROJECT
We propose that the project should have the following Aims:
a. To promote cooperation, and exchange of good practice, between governmental and other agencies throughout Europe who offer support to small towns
b. To promote contact and exchange of good practice between individual small towns throughout Europe.
c. To speak on behalf of small towns to influence the European Commission, Council of Europe, Committee of the Regions and governments.
IMPLEMENTATION
We propose that, for this purpose, ‘Europe’ should be the whole of the European Continent, effectively those nations that are members of the Council of Europe.
By ‘small towns’, we start from considering those with a population between 2,500 and roughly 30,000, though this definition should be flexibly interpreted. In remote areas there are populations of a few hundred that call themselves a small town. In sought-after tourist locations the resident population can be matched or exceeded by visitors, seasonally.
‘Agencies who offer support to small towns’ (hereafter called “support agencies”) may include arms of central or regional governments, regional development agencies, formal networks of small towns, and other public or non-governmental organisations.
Provisionally, we envisage that the project will embrace:
We propose that the Project be initiated and sponsored by a group of support agencies, which will act as project partners and will take joint responsibility for the core funding of the project. Each partner will be represented on the Organising Group of the Project. In addition to the core funding provided by the partners, funding will be sought from Foundations and from the European Union.
It is proposed that ECOVAST, as a European NGO with strong experience of networking and of project management, should provide the secretariat for the project, under the oversight of the Organising Group.
A first meeting of the Organising group of partners was held in Brussels in September 2006.
The launch of the project depends upon finding and convincing a significant number of agencies to become partners in the project. This requires the following action:
Work has already begun to establish a database of support agencies and regional contacts in the EU and beyond (e.g. the Accession states, Russia and Macedonia) and to map and record existing networks, and establish how to link and develop exchanges
We propose that, after the preparatory phase, the project might be launched in 2007, with a planned duration of at least three years. If (as we expect) the exchanges and networking generated by the project prove to have a longer-term value, then a structure will emerge to sustain that activity beyond the project period.
Start-Up. ECOVAST has offered to undertake the preparatory phase, with financial support totalling 9000 euro, from SEEDA (2000 euro), APURE (2000 euro) and CRC (5000 euro) towards the costs of this phase, which are estimated as follows:
| Euros | ||
|
Preparation of database of support agencies (consultancy) | 2,000 |
| Travel costs to visit potential partners | 3,000 | |
| Meetings of partners | 500 | |
| Preparation of project dossier | 1,500 | |
| Accounting and advice on bids to European Union sources | 2,000 | |
| Total start-up costs | 9,000 |
ECOVAST’s contribution will be made in kind, in terms of staff-time (focused particularly on identification of potential sources of matching funds) and office support, as manager of the project..
A partner organisation that is a charity registered in UK and is company limited by guarantee, that also has experience of accountability for European Union funding, will handle finances as the accountable body, effectively treasurer for the project.
To be effective, the full project might require expenditure of the following order (totals for the three-year period):
| Euros | ||
|
Set up website (early 2007) with reports of progress and listing of support agencies and contacts throughout Europe and initial examples of good practice |
2,000 |
| Organising group expenses, 10,000 per year | 30,000 | |
| Secretariat, 15,000 per year rising to 30,000 per year | 65,000 | |
| Project Officer (to be appointed) - estimate 40,000 per year including overheads |
120,000 | |
| Accounting - to be decided – estimate 30,000 per year for four years |
120,000 | |
| Information gathering and dissemination | 100,000 | |
| Maintenance of Website and database, 5000 per year | 15,000 | |
| Net cost of events, say 30,000 per year | 90,000 | |
| Congress of Small Towns 2008 (in conjunction with EC and Cof E) |
90,000 | |
| Guidance publication – small towns appraisal (consultant) | 30,000 | |
| Printing costs | 8,000 | |
| Estimated total expenditure | 670,000 |
We propose that a substantial proportion of this total should be covered by contribution from partners – say 2000 euro per partner per year. It is envisaged that 25 partners would produce a total of 25 x 3 x 2000 euro = 150,000 euro.
The remainder would be sought from International Foundations and by a bid to European Commission INTERREG IV programme (pan-Europe) early in 2007. It is envisaged that bids for 75% of the INTERREG portion of the project would have to be matched by funds from other sources.
The structure and content of the INTERREG bid will require further work that will inevitably recast the budget, showing the discrete INTERREG component and the gearing of match funding contributions.
It is proposed to develop this Proposal as the preparatory phase proceeds, leading to a full Business Plan and Action Plan/Timetable.
A. Background paper on ECOVAST – its aim and achievements (to be written)
B. (ditto on any other participants – as needed?)
C. Project Business Plan
D. Project Action Plan/Timetable
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