Newcastle ups their PB game

Local councillors for each of the five wards have initiated the PB processes, because they saw how successful PB could be from the original pilot.  Some of the councillors have even gone as far as providing their own budgets to be used for PB demonstrating how keen they are for local residents to get involved and have their say over council budgets.

The five wards are South Heaton, Newburn, Walkergate, Denton and Ouseburn.  The money being allocated to spend via PB methods varies from £5,000 to £200,000 in each of the five wards.  Each has a different theme and different pots of money including devolved highways budgets, Section 106 planning monies, individual councillor budgets and devolved ward budgets. 

South Heaton is the first ward to get underway with PB events, having their first event for people to vote on £45,000 of Section 106 planning monies for childrens play on 20th May. 

Newcastle are planning lunches in the other wards for residents to come along and find out more about PB.  They are hoping that the lunches will encourage local people to volunteer to be a member of the working group.  The working groups are key for successful PB events.  They plan and steer the process in that ward.  It's important that local people are on the working groups so that they can have a say in not just the budgets but also how the events are run in their area.  The events are for the people so they should be designed by them too.  The first of the lunches is on 7th May in Newburn.

The Wikkid Planners, the city-wide Children & Young People's PB planning group, has also been given a boost this year of £2.25million for children and young people to decide on how it should be spent.  PB events will follow the pattern developed over the past couple of years.