Luton’s Local Area Agreements aim to:

• Focus working together to concentrate effort on moving forward a number of key local priorities in Luton’s Community Plan and in the Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy on key neighbourhoods and key priority groups and other
linked strategies, to make a difference to local people.

• Achieve more through adopting a more flexible and joined up approach to the use of resources, sharing information and target-setting;

• Enhance efficiency by reducing bureaucracy, for example a simplified, shared performance management framework for the targets and funding streams incorporated into the LAA;

• Enhance autonomy for Luton to enable the Council, Luton Forum and partners to focus more on shared local priorities as well as national priorities;

• Provide a new focus for the Luton Forum and strengthen existing and new partnership working, enabling the Forum to act as a service delivery partnership as appropriate

• Develop stronger community cohesion in Luton, by engaging residents more with each other and in improving their neighbourhoods.

• Re-engineer services so that they are focused more on neighbourhood delivery and effectively reach those most in need

• Deliver services which will contribute to the attainment of national and local priorities and achieve a better quality of life for the residents of Luton

Key Themes of the LAA

Whilst our LAA proposals are organised according to the 4 LAA blocks we have considered if all elements of cross-cutting themes are adequately covered.

Our cross-cutting themes include:

• domestic violence,
• sustainability,
• drugs/alcohol use and
• social inclusion.
  

Threads common between the 4 blocks have been identified:

• The Growth Area in South Bedfordshire and the Sustainable Communities agenda which require partners across Luton and Bedfordshire to plan together for a range of issues including housing, availability of open space and provision of employment.

• Participation in decision making as a general theme but particularly for hard-to-reach groups such as young people and people from BME communities, and the elderly

• Reducing inequalities

• Tackling barriers to residents’ access to services – low income, lack of information or understanding, poor transport, loss of local neighbourhood facilities