SURE

Most towns in Europe face complex socio-economic challenges. One such challenge is related to deprived neighbourhoods that are located close to the town centre. In small and medium sized towns these neighbourhoods do not tend to offer attractive opportunities for large scale investments and instead hold back their economic development potential.

To tackle the complex interactions between social, physical and economic factors which lead to the decline of neighbourhoods requires expertise and resources which often exceed those available to small and medium sized towns. Smaller municipalities therefore are increasingly looking for opportunities to develop their capacity to work more effectively with resident and business communities on the development of integrated and locally sustainable solutions. The SURE network is designed to develop this capacity and to support its partners in the implementation of integrated socioeconomic regeneration strategies which build on local strengths and opportunities.

SURE (Fostering diversification of local economies by using innovative Socio-economic methods of Urban REhabilitation in deprived urban areas) is a Thematic Network consisting of 9 European small and medium sized cities, plus a thematic partner on participatory planning, co-funded by the ERDF in the URBACT II Programme .

Running until the end of 2012, SURE project partner cities will be supported in the development of such integrated approaches. Concrete outputs of the SURE network include a Local Action Plan for each partner city, based on the contribution of Local Support Groups, and a Model of integrated socio-economic regeneration which is based on the experience of SURE partners and designed to provide guidance for other practitioners who intend to develop similar strategies for their own towns and cities.

Participating cities and organisation in the SURE Network:

 

Total budget of the project: 709 365 EUR.

The Joint Venture of HBHE and Grants Europe helped the LP to draft the project, set up the international partnership and manage the whole project both in the Development Phase and Implementation Phase.

Duration: July 2009 – January 2013