Opinion: Blighty With Purpose

If you look at the world through the lens of the United Kingdom right now, what do you see?

Trusted public institutions and systems are under immense strain. They are shaken by market volatility, the lasting impact of Covid 19, and the deep uncertainties that followed from Brexit. The systemic challenges we face are well documented in repetitive headlines, but too often misunderstood when it comes to meaningful solutions. Public morale feels at a low ebb and is creating a significant backlash across our communities. As a local councillor, I have seen unfold as we came out of the pandemic.

Trust in leadership, across all sectors, is in short supply because silos are not being broken down. And those working at the front lines of civil society face a constant struggle to deliver, defend and sustain their work.

But when institutions falter, civil society steps forward and as we write, the sunshine is out and the weekend feels good. In every part of the country, and especially here in the North of England, people are building something better. Through the services they run, the partnerships they shape and the communities they support, they are creating what we call social good. This is the living heart of civil society: daily action, shared leadership all with bold purpose.

At the same time, we are feeling the consequences of a failure in leadership across our public systems. Local authorities, once the foundation of local delivery, are under severe financial pressure. Some are reaching the point of collapse. The NHS, long a source of national pride, is overwhelmed and under resourced. These institutions have not broken by accident. They have been worn down by years of underinvestment, political short termism and chronic neglect. And yet they remain essential to how we flourish.

In our regions, there are many forgotten hinterlands, particularly in rural and coastal areas of the country, where disadvantage is felt more sharply. The cost of living crisis is hitting hardest in places already struggling with poor transport, limited housing, weak digital access and shrinking public services. Poverty is often hidden, people have been left behind. And yet these are places full of potential — rich in community assets, deep in local knowledge and full of people ready to drive change, if they are included in the national conversation and given the means to lead.

Devolution has brought new powers to some areas through city regions, combined authorities and elected mayors. Local growth plans bring promise, but all eyes are on leaders for their vision, and we must equip communities with the agency and resources to achieve lasting change. Places continue to face long standing disadvantage in investment, opportunity and infrastructure. You can see this when you travel around the North, outside of big urban centres and more affluent rural idylls.

Yet I'm not about to turn to the local Facebook page to comment and angry type on my keyboard. This is also a time of tremendous opportunity and we need to look to who we want to be as a country and how our communities can be lifted up to enable them to thrive. The holistic view is so important.

As we look at some of the biggest challenges of our time, philanthropy and impact investment in the UK are uniquely placed to lift up these lofty ambitions for growth and future prosperity. They can potentially provide the risk capital to fund long term thinking, innovative cross sector partnerships and help build the systemic change our society urgently needs.

But there are still different forces shaping the devolution agenda. So on this VE Day commemoration week, we should reflect on what the rise of the UK Reform Party and the shadow of President Trump's second term means. Reform UK wins in local government elections says a lot about how the public is responding to the challenges and failures it sees but I believe there are some profound questions for us all about our national and regional identity and what these forces will do to a national effort around Devolution.

Right now, we face a once in a generation opportunity to work differently and together across sectors and places. But, and this is perhaps where it has gone so wrong for some sectors; the public does not look to policy announcements with vigour and excitement but they do respond to positive impact of change. This takes trust. It takes leadership at all levels and working together. And it takes a commitment to build the systems we need, not just patch up the infrastructure we had.

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