Kate Osamor MP and Lower Edmonton South Pride in Place Neighbourhood Board chair Vivienne Aiyela speak to fellow board member Jim Wasswa about their hopes for the project
The government’s Pride in Place Programme will see up to £5billion given to nearly 250 areas across the UK. Each area will receive up to £20million of funding and support over the next ten years – to make long-term improvements that residents want.
Lower Edmonton is one of those areas. For an area facing significant deprivation, this represents a major opportunity. But for Kate Osamor MP and neighbourhood board chair Vivienne Aiyela, the programme’s success will depend on whether local people have the power to shape what happens next.
Both believe Edmonton is too often defined by its challenges, while the strengths of its community are overlooked. “What makes Edmonton special is its people,” says Kate, the MP for Edmonton and Winchmore Hill. “We are fortunate to have a diverse community, a strong network of local organisations and a real culture of people looking out for one another.”
Vivienne, who has lived in Edmonton for more than 30 years, shares that pride. “What makes me proudest is the people. Their generosity, creativity, enterprise and determination to support one another.”
For Vivienne, those relationships are the starting point for change. The task is not to arrive with a ready-made plan, but to build on what already exists and understand what residents want for their neighbourhood.
Putting residents in the driving seat
Pride in Place offers the opportunity to do things differently. Rather than the government, the council or the board deciding what Edmonton needs, residents will help establish the priorities for investment. “Putting local people in the driving seat means recognising that residents are the experts in their own community,” says Kate. “The board’s role is not to tell people what Edmonton needs, but to create the opportunities for local people to shape the priorities for this investment.”
That commitment brings responsibilities. Community-led cannot simply mean asking residents for their opinions and then carrying on as before.
Vivienne believes people must be involved before priorities are settled, given clear information and supported to influence difficult choices. The board will explain its decisions publicly and be honest when an idea cannot be taken forward. “Listening creates a responsibility to respond,” she says.
For Vivienne, that requires meeting people where they are. Through conversations, community events, accessible venues, face-to-face and paper-based opportunities, as well as digital engagement. Nobody should need to feel confident speaking in a formal meeting to have a say in Edmonton’s future.
More than buildings and streets
So what might Pride in Place achieve? Vivienne hopes residents will see lively community spaces, stronger local businesses and attractive, well-maintained areas. She wants young people to have opportunities to progress, older residents to have welcoming places to go, and disabled people to find local spaces easier to use.
But she also warns against assuming that physical improvements alone will transform a community. “A building achieves very little if nobody can afford to use it or there is no support for activities inside it,” she says.
Investment should strengthen the organisations, relationships and activities that bring people together. It could also create opportunities for local people through training, employment, apprenticeships, enterprise and community leadership.
Kate hopes the £20m will act as a catalyst, bringing businesses, charities, public services and other partners together around priorities identified by residents. Her role as MP is to champion Lower Edmonton, build partnerships and open doors that help turn local ambitions into action. Vivienne’s responsibility as chair is to build an effective team, maintain momentum and ensure community leadership is reflected in decisions.
Neither believes one organisation or one project can transform Edmonton alone.
Earning trust over ten years
Both Kate and Vivienne recognise that residents may be sceptical. Previous initiatives have come and gone, and promises of change do not automatically create confidence.
Vivienne says residents do not have to feel positive about Pride in Place for their views to matter. The board needs to hear criticism, acknowledge delays, explain decisions and follow through on commitments. Kate agrees that the biggest mistake would be deciding the answers before properly listening to the community.
Ultimately, the test of Pride in Place will be whether residents can recognise their own priorities in the changes around them — and feel they have a lasting stake in what happens next.
Kate’s ambition is simple. Ten years from now, residents can look back and say, “we asked for this, and it was delivered”. Vivienne puts it equally powerfully: “We helped make that happen — and we are still involved in what comes next.”
That is the promise of Pride in Place. Not change done to Edmonton, but a future shaped with the people who call it home.
For more information about Lower Edmonton South Pride In Place Neighbourhood Board:
Email [email protected]
Visit loweredmontonprideinplace.co.uk
This article is published with support from LocalMotion Enfield, part of a UK-wide movement for community-led change
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