A Review Of Partnerships In England’s UrbanRegeneration

A city is nota finishedproduct. It is a living entity, which may grow old, declined and derelict. Due to deindustrialization and decentralisation, the UK has witnessed urban decline, leading to the rise of urban regeneration both in theory and in practice. This dissertation is to explore the dynamics of partnerships in urban regeneration in England in three periods, which are the1980s’decade, from the early1990s to the year2010and from2010to now. It focuses on the changing status, responsibilities, powers and levers of the public sector, the private sector and the third sector in the partnerships so as to distill meaningful lessons for China and other countries in establishing and wielding partnerships to regenerate cities. The study argues that to regenerate declining cities three sector partnerships must be maintained, consolidated and improved to realize appropriate alignment of responsibilities and resources.By reviewing policies and studying cases, partnerships in urban regeneration from the aforesaidthree periods in England are analyzed, compared and contrasted. It is found that partnerships within the public sector are critical to ensure the efficacy of urban regeneration. Particularly, local authorities are indispensable participants in urban regeneration and need improved powers and more levers from the central government to discharge their responsibilities.The three sector partnerships must be so improved to allow that the public sector local authorities play the guiding role, the private sector is engaged to finance urban regeneration, improve efficiency and quality, and the third sector is involved to realize localism, social inclusion and sustainability.