Stewardship
Stewardship is a key garden community principle. It makes sure community assets are properly looked after in perpetuity.
Stewardship provides for the long-term management and control of assets that are important to a sustainable new community. It makes sure any long-term costs associated with management and maintenance are factored into the initial project. It allows the community to engage with and have ownership of asset management by taking a comprehensive and coordinated approach to public realm management. It delivers sustainable management of assets in the interests of the community over the long term.
The Vision for our Garden Town provides the basis for considering stewardship through:
- Promoting and encouraging individuals, communities and partner organisations to collaborate broadly, empowering them to take initiatives and share in the long-term stewardship of green assets
- Legacy and stewardship arrangements – these should be in place for the care of community assets, infrastructure and public realm, for the benefit of the whole community
- Communities and stakeholders should take an active role in realising the vision from project identification through to delivery. The council will take an active role to establish new governance arrangements for the Garden Town, which will incorporate new and innovative ways to encourage community participation.
The Stage 1 and 2 documents below were commissioned by the Council. They assess the extent to which there remain opportunities within Taunton Garden Town to take a stewardship approach to community assets. Different models of stewardship are identified, as are those most suitable for further consideration within Taunton and in particular where new community assets are created through development.