Our identity and pride in the areas in which we live is being eroded

Our monthly comment piece in the East Anglian Daily Times discusses the government’s ‘Pride in Place’ ambition for all communities in the long-awaited Levelling Up White Paper.

We certainly believe  from our experiences in Suffolk over recent years that pride in place is enhanced by communities having a degree of influence over the total pace and type of development, as well as some of the details of these developments. 

It is clear that the excessive amount of infrastructure development required to support the current and proposed major energy projects is eroding some people’s identity with the areas in which they live.  Equally, bland ‘anywhere’ housing design and town centre planning that erodes the distinctive identity of locations is not conducive to building a strong pride in local places – quite the opposite, in fact. 

Fiona Cairns, SPS Director