What are the benefits of participatory budgeting?

Each model of PB is different and will have different effects but there are three main ways that PB is regarded as offering benefits.

• It can improve the democratic process, widening participation and re-invigorating the role of local authorities, local councillors and civil society, and increasing trust in public institutions.
• It can improve the effectiveness of public spending by improving the way money is invested, how service provision is monitored, and by increasing the knowledge available to the local authority and public bodies when undertaking service planning.
• Finally it strengthens the community and voluntary sector by investing in services essential to poorer communities, so enabling their development, by increasing the number of people taking part in local democratic processes, and it builds social capital by creating forums for local groups to meet, negotiate and take decisions together.