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DCLG ends capital clawback, consults on new community rights

The Department of Communities and Local Government has announced the removal of “capital clawback” rights from four historic grant programmes.

The move comes in the same week that the government launched consultations on its flagship Community Right to Buy and Community Right to Challenge initiatives.

The DCLG said the decision on clawback rights would apply to:

  • Single Regeneration Budget
  • Urban Programme
  • City Challenge
  • Inner Area Grants.

As the accountable bodies for these programmes, local authorities often passed some of the funding on to community and voluntary organisations to purchase and renovate assets. However, the funding was clawed back if the asset was sold or its original purpose changed, even if the original programme had ended.

The DCLG called on councils to remove restrictions, such as charges on the land or building, over community-owned assets. Ministers said this would give groups greater flexibility to manage the assets more effectively, whether that meant selling, renting or sharing them.

The government also urged local authorities, voluntary groups and social enterprises to identify other other historic grant programmes where clawback rights have been applied in perpetuity.

Decentralisation Minister Greg Clark said: "Community and voluntary groups who know their area best need a real say on how their local services, buildings and businesses are run. I'm determined to bust every centrally imposed barrier that holds communities back from acting in the best interests of local people.

"Today we're ending rigid central restrictions that stopped communities from maximising the potential of their public land and buildings by clawing back central funding. Ending clawback rights will put communities back in charge of community assets and gives them the freedom and flexibility to prioritise their current needs over dated central diktats."

The government has also this week launched consultations on the Community Right to Challenge and the Community Right to Buy, which are contained in the Localism Bill.

Under the Right to Buy, local groups will have a legal right to nominate community assets – including, ministers said, local shops, pubs, libraries and leisure centres – for assessment to be included on a “most wanted list”. The listing would last for five years, during which time its owner would have to tell the local authority if they wanted to sell. A moratorium would then give local people time to bid for the asset when it goes on the open market.

This consultation – available here – covers issues such as:

  • the definition of an asset of community value, and whether residential property and other types of land buildings should be excluded from being listed
  • whether the nomination process should be open to any group or individual that has a “local connection”
  • the information required to be included in community nominations
  • the procedure for listing assets
  • notification about inclusion and removal of a listed asset
  • how long the windows of opportunity and protected period for community groups should be
  • the content and publication of the list of assets of community value and the list of land nominated by unsuccessful community nominations
  • rights of appeal and compensation for landowners
  • enforcement.

The Right to Challenge would meanwhile hand a range of organisations – such as community and voluntary groups, parish councils and council employees – to challenge and take over a local service. “This could include running children’s centres, social care services and even improving local transport links,” the DCLG said.

The right would mean councils would be required by law to respond to the challenge and consider its impact on the community. The local authority will also be required to publish its reasons if it turns the proposal down.

This consultation – available here – considers issues such as:

  • which services should be exempted from the Right to Challenge
  • extending the Community Right to challenge to apply to all fire and rescue authorities
  • when a relevant authority will consider expressions of interenst
  • the information to be included in an expression of interest
  • the period for a relevant authority to reach a decision on an expression of interest
  • the grounds for modifying or rejecting an expression of interest
  • the period between accepting an expression of interest and initiating an exercise for the provision of a contract for that service.

Philip Hoult