A Civic Agreement for Luton
Together with the University of Bedfordshire, we are delighted to present our Civic Agreement for Luton. The Agreement sets out our shared ambition for Luton and our commitment to delivering Luton 2040: A Place to Thrive.
Both our institutions are integrally linked to the area of Luton and the people who live and work here. Our colleagues, students and residents are part of its vibrant community and support our vision that Luton will be a healthy, fair and sustainable town, where everyone can thrive and no one lives in poverty.
Our Civic Agreement demonstrates the formal commitment of both the university and council to the Luton 2040 Vision, and sets out how we will work together to support the future of our town and deliver our shared ambition.
Over the next five years, we will work collaboratively with our residents and organisations across the private, public, voluntary and community sectors to:
- deliver opportunity and prosperity
- support social mobility and sustainability
- drive innovation and economic growth
We will do this while nurturing our cultural strength, ensuring that everyone has a meaningful voice to shape the future of our town.
As signatories to our Agreement, we will bring strategic alignment to our priorities and strategies, and will focus on special projects to enhance place, public life and partnerships. Central to our agreement is a shared celebration of cultural diversity and of the power of research, education and enterprise to shift long standing societal problems.
We are united in our commitment to drive positive and meaningful change and are proud to share with you: our Civic Agreement for Luton.
Our Five Priorities
Our partnership work with the University of Bedfordshire will be driven by five priorities.
- Building an inclusive economy that delivers investment to support the growth of businesses, jobs and incomes
- Improving population wellbeing and tackling health inequalities to enable everyone to have a good quality oflife and reach their potential
- Becoming a child friendly town, where our children grow up happy, healthy and secure, with a voice that matters and the opportunities they need to thrive
- Tackling the climate emergency and becoming a net-zero town with sustainable growth and a healthier environment
- Supporting a strong and empowered community, built on fairness, local pride and a powerful voice for all our residents
Our Civic Agreement will also aim to deliver on the following key opportunities that build on council and university shared analysis, expertise and strengths.
- Address skills shortages across the private and public sectors, to resource the ambition of the Civic Agreement and the Luton 2040 mission through shaping and attracting a diverse, dynamic talent pipeline equipped to deliver and innovate in partnership.
- Lead by example and encourage other anchor institutions in the Luton area to adapt and respond to the green agenda, to practise ethical procurement, and to focus on social value to realise Luton’s transition to net-zero.
- Develop stronger structures for knowledge exchange and knowledge utilisation in health and social research, so that the cutting edge research in health by the university is not underused and can better inform and shape council services and local NHS training and practice.
- Undertake locally relevant research to support the evidence-based development of crucial social, health, well-being and cultural interventions.
- Contribute to a different story for Luton, to amplify the messages of the shared town-wide Luton 2040 Vision and the ambitious goals and extensive impact of the university through working inclusively with local communities in Luton.
The Civic agreement for Luton is available to view on the University of Bedfordshire website.