Chris Ready - Communities and Neighbourhoods

Main roles and responsibilities of the portfolio

• To govern the delivery of the Deal 2030 priorities and pledges in the Wigan Council Recovery Plan
• To drive forward the Community Wealth Building approach including increasing the community use and control of council owned land and assets, particularly those which are under-utilised
• To support the delivery of our Climate Change Strategy, including building on community pride and working together with communities to create a cleaner, greener borough
• To provide political support and challenge in relation to Communities, Public Relations, Corporate Land, Community Assets and Culture
• To drive the ambitions in our Cultural Manifesto and make arts and culture accessible to all
• To develop and improve leisure and wellbeing services for the benefit of residents
• To launch the new Community Recovery Fund to enable our communities to grow and flourish
• To provide guidance and support for the library offer within Wigan Borough.
• To engage with local communities and explore new ways to involve them in the delivery of local services
• To oversee the Community Asset Transfer and Corporate land management programmes
• To help shape, support and endorse the Council’s Public Relations strategy, which covers media, marketing, and events
• To oversee all aspects of leisure, gyms and parks
• To represent the directorate at events and other promotional opportunities.

Priorities for 2023/2024

• Implementation of the key priorities set out in our Deal 2030 - Our Place, Our People, Our Future
• Support regular resident engagement to listen, understand how priorities have changed and ensure plans match their aspirations and priorities
• Encourage regular and open communication of our plans and decisions to keep as many people informed and updated as possible
• Deliver strong and positive messages across the borough to raise the profile of the Council, Elected members, businesses and the VCSE sector
• Implementation of a Community Recovery Fund and build new working relationships with the VCSE sector and promote future sustainability
• Build supportive relationships with our cultural sector anchor organisations
• Champion arts and culture, making them accessible to everyone through our Cultural Manifesto and encourage independent creative practitioners
• Support grassroot organisations and the development of local assets in the heart of our communities
• Encourage smaller community projects requested by our residents that nurture community spirit, engage volunteers and identify crowdfunding opportunities
• Blend, shape and implement the future vision of leisure and wellbeing services for the benefit of its users
• Incorporate engaged Leisure and Wellbeing activities into the lives of the people of the Wigan Borough through Be Well, our movement for physical activity well being
• Deliver a sports and physical activity local delivery pilot to improve physical health and wellbeing in our communities
• Ensure our parks strategy delivers and outstanding experience for residents and visitors as part of our Be Well movement 
• Support the development of neighbourhood working and place based multi-agency working.

Functions covered by the portfolio

• Chair, Councillor Services Group
• Public relations and external communications
• Community Engagement Policy
• Building Self Reliance
• Community Recovery Fund
• Community Asset Transfers
• Community Rights
• Libraries, Museums and Archives
• Cultural Manifesto
• Neighbourhood Planning
• Member support
• Leisure Centres, Destination Parks and Outdoor Activities
• Parks and Green Spaces
• Wigan In Bloom.

Outside bodies on which the Portfolio Holder represents the Council

• GM Pensions Fund Management Panel
• Douglas Valley Community Limited
• Northwest Employers Association
• Northwest Strategic Scrutiny Network and Member Development Network.