Co-op Congress 2024 | Co-operatives at the heart of communities

In recent years we've seen a significant shift in political agendas towards ‘Big Society’, ‘Levelling up’, localism and more. A measure of support - including financial - has filtered through but there is a sense that communities have just got on with it. Communities and ‘save our’ campaigns have stepped up and stepped in. Community ownership has played a significant role, with more than £210m raised to date through community shares.
In this session - with a nod the upcoming general election - we explore the vision political parties need to have in order to better support this critical part of UK life. And we learn from communities that have been 'doing it for themselves'.