Communities and Local Government department
Communities and Local Government department's Community Rights site includes guidance on changes in the law and case studies
The government has launched a new website aimed at promoting community ownership of local amenities.
The Community Rights website has been launched by the Communities and Local Government department before regulations on community ownership come into force next month.
The site highlights changes in the law intended to help community groups take over buildings or public services, or build new facilities through an abridged planning process.
The website also includes case studies and maps of schemes where community groups took over the running of buildings or services or been involved in designing a new development.
The Community Right to Bid, which comes into force on 27 June, will mean that community groups can bid to purchase buildings such as pubs, shops or libraries deemed to be of value to the community.
The Community Right to Challenge, which is enacted on the same date, gives voluntary and community groups, parish councils and groups of council or fire service staff the ability to bid to take over county and district council and fire authority services.
The Community Right to Build, which came into effect last month, means community groups can build new homes or amenities without going through the normal town planning process.
The final change, neighbourhood planning, which also came into force last month, allows communities to prepare development plans for their area and grant planning permission to schemes.
