About Harlow 2020
Early days
The Harlow 2020 partnership was set up in 1995 by Harlow Council and a group of local service providers to develop a co-ordinated approach to the development of the town and realise the benefits of shared knowledge and resources.
In its early days, the Harlow 2020 Partnership focused on local regeneration needs in terms of the development of the town centre and support for young people to enable them to access worthwhile jobs. These priorities were determined by the local community through a series of community conferences.
Early achievements include:
- A Foyer for young people in the town centre
- A one stop shop for young people at the Young Peoples Information Centre based in the Foyer
- A Basic Skills Project to work with young people and adults with basic skill needs
- The Harlow On-Line Learning Initiative (HOLLi), which provides centres where local people and employees can access training and basic skills.
Through these developments partners learned from each other and built tremendous trust and confidence to address key local issues.
Legislative moves
In the 1990s Harlow's move in setting up the Partnership was considered to be pioneering. In 2000 the Government recognised the huge potential benefits that could arise from joint working, and established Local Strategic Partnerships. It charged them with delivering community strategies - blueprints for the future development of the areas they serve.
In 2001 the Harlow 2020 Partnership reviewed its structure, aims and processes to meet the Government's definition of a Local Strategic Partnership.
Visionary work
In 2001 the Partnership carried out a widespread consultation exercise, using the results to develop the first edition of the Harlow 2020 Vision . We have worked hard on its delivery and are extremely proud of our achievements to date.
We made a commitment to review the community strategy every three years to ensure it continued to reflect local aspirations, and in 2006 we published the Harlow 2020 Vision 2006-2009 . This sets out our objectives for the next three years.
Fit for the future
In 2005 Partner organisations carried out a review, looking how they should work together in future years, to ensure they take a more strategic and coordinated approach.
Six Action Groups were set up to coordinate work around particular aspects of life in the town. Each Action Group has representatives of all the organisations - private, public and voluntary sector - which may be involved with local services and facilities.
Things don't always fit neatly into the Action Group categories and there are issues that affect every aspect of life in the town. So the Action Group Chairs come together as a Steering Group, to coordinate their efforts.
The review also established a Partnership Board, which is responsible for taking decisions about 2020's work. This includes Harlow's MP, Harlow Council's Joint Leaders, a County Councillor and representatives from key local and regional private, public and voluntary sector organisations.
Funding Harlow 2020
The Partnership runs on a budget of £44,000, which is made up entirely of contributions from Harlow Council, Essex County Council, Essex Police and the Primary Care Trust. Partners give this money because Harlow 2020 makes a big difference to their own work.
Harlow 2020 has brought £millions into the town, which is being used to make big improvements like the Gateway Scheme. But this cannot be spent on 2020 running costs.
Further information:
» Structure
» Terms of Reference
» Aims and Objectives