Not Just Community Needs, But Community Wants Too

Why proper funding for local government is the key to fighting division and rebuilding pride

At Labour Conference 2025, one particular message rang out: division in our communities is not inevitable. It is the result of choices—political, economic, and social—that have hollowed out the institutions and spaces that once brought people together. If division is made, it can be unmade. That begins with investing in local government.

For too long, councils have been asked to do more with less. Budgets have been hollowed out, services stretched thin, and local leaders forced to choose between statutory duties and the social infrastructure that gives communities life. We are told to focus on “needs,” the bare minimum required to keep things ticking over. But communities are more than their needs. They have wants: aspirations, traditions, places to gather, play, learn, and thrive. When we ignore those wants, we erode the social fabric. When we fund them, we build unity.

Division grows in neglect. It takes root when public spaces are left to decay, when youth centres vanish, when older residents are left without support, and when community events disappear from the calendar. It deepens when people feel abandoned, not just by services but by the system itself. And in that vacuum, we have seen an increasing reliance on charities and voluntary groups to fill the gaps. These organisations do extraordinary work, often with minimal resources and maximum heart. But they cannot and should not be expected to replace properly funded public services. This is not sustainable, and it is not fair.

Charities should be free to innovate, enrich, and complement. They should not be forced to shoulder the burden of basic provision. When councils are empowered to lead, charities can flourish in partnership, not in desperation.

Local authorities already hold responsibility for many of the things that actively fight division. When properly funded, they can:

- Build and maintain council and social housing, giving people stable homes and restoring pride in place

- Keep community venues open and thriving, including sports halls, youth centres, libraries, and civic halls, so people have places to meet, celebrate, and organise

- Support high streets and local businesses through regeneration, planning, and business rate relief, helping communities feel economically alive and locally rooted

- Deliver adult social care that treats people with dignity and keeps vulnerable residents connected to their communities

- Manage public transport networks and active travel schemes that reduce isolation and link people to opportunity

- Maintain parks, green spaces, and public toilets, making towns welcoming and accessible for all ages

- Provide youth services and early years support that give young people safe and inspiring environments to grow and belong

- Run libraries, learning centres, and digital access programmes that reduce inequality and foster civic participation

- Coordinate community development, local events, and neighbourhood engagement that build trust and shared identity

- Lead on local climate resilience through flood prevention, green infrastructure, and sustainable planning, ensuring communities are protected and empowered to act together

These are not extras. They are the everyday tools of social cohesion. And they are only possible when councils are properly funded, not just to meet statutory obligations but to invest in togetherness.

And when councils invest, residents invest too. Well-maintained parks attract families. Clean and safe high streets encourage people to shop locally. Community events bring footfall to local businesses. A refurbished library or reopened youth centre signals that a place is worth caring about, and people respond in kind. They spend time, money, and energy in their communities. They volunteer, join local groups, and support neighbours. They invest emotionally and economically.

This is how public investment drives private confidence. It is not just about infrastructure. It is about atmosphere. When a town feels looked after, people look after it. That is how we rebuild pride and participation. That is how we fight division.

Labour’s fairer funding model rightly recognises that areas facing deep deprivation need more support to meet their needs. It is a vital corrective to years of underinvestment in communities hit hardest by austerity, economic decline, and social exclusion. By directing more resources to places with higher levels of poverty, poor health, and unemployment, the model begins to rebalance the scales and acknowledges that equality of opportunity requires unequal investment.

But we must be honest. While the principle is sound, the current approach is not enough. The fairer funding model addresses need, but it does not yet restore capacity. Councils across the country, including those in superficially well-off areas, are grappling with pockets of deep deprivation. These communities are often overlooked by national formulas, yet they face real hardship and rising inequality. The result is that even well-run authorities struggle to maintain basic services, let alone invest in the social infrastructure that builds pride, participation, and unity.

Division is not confined to the poorest postcodes. It grows wherever people feel disconnected from their neighbours, unheard by their institutions, and unsupported in their daily lives. That includes towns where youth services have disappeared, where community venues are shuttered, and where high streets feel abandoned. These are not just symptoms of deprivation. They are symptoms of disinvestment.

A truly fair funding model must do more than match resources to statistical need. It must restore the ability of all councils to invest in what makes communities thrive. That means rebuilding core budgets so councils can plan strategically, not just react to crisis. It means funding both statutory services and discretionary ones, because libraries, parks, and community centres are not optional if we care about cohesion. It means giving councils the flexibility to respond to local priorities, not just national metrics. And it means recognising that prevention is cheaper than repair, and that community investment is the most effective form of prevention.

To do this, Whitehall must trust councillors to spend money wisely and allocate budgets in ways that reflect the lived realities of our communities. Instead of restrictive central rules on revenue raising and ring-fencing, finance should be genuinely devolved. Councils know their communities best. They are accountable to them every day. We need the freedom to lead, not just the burden to deliver.

We also need a real business rates reset. The current system penalises ambition and stifles local growth. Reform must allow councils to support enterprise, attract investment, and help communities build wealth from within. Local economies thrive when local government has the tools to nurture them.

And we must be honest about where the money comes from. Central government already spends vast sums creating schemes, agencies, and delivery structures that duplicate what councils already do—or could do more effectively if properly funded. From competitive bidding pots to centrally managed regeneration programmes, these mechanisms often come with high overheads and limited local legitimacy. Councils already have the mandate, the infrastructure, and the local knowledge. What they lack is the freedom and the resources. Reallocating even a portion of this central spend into core council budgets would reduce waste, improve outcomes, and allow communities to shape their own futures.

This is not just a community argument. It is a strategy to prevent division. When councils are trusted to lead and resourced to deliver, they invest in surroundings that invite participation and pride. Residents respond by spending time locally, supporting businesses, attending events, and reconnecting with neighbours. That strengthens local economies, yes, but more importantly, it strengthens relationships. It rebuilds the sense that we are in this together.

It is also a democratic imperative. When councils are underfunded and overruled, decision-making becomes reactive and opaque. Residents lose faith in local democracy when services vanish without consultation and venues close without explanation. Reallocation of funding, genuine devolution, and trust in councillors would allow councils to plan strategically, engage meaningfully, and rebuild confidence in public life.

Division is healed when people see their communities being cared for, their voices being heard, and their places being invested in. That is how we restore pride, renew trust, and rebuild connection.