Shared vision and priorities

Building a more inclusive economy that creates opportunities for everyone in Luton to thrive is an important priority within the Luton 2040 vision. The council has a key role to play in this priority as one of the largest employers in the town, supporting jobs, skills and investment, as well as having a clear stake in the town centre.

The council provides system leadership by facilitating the Inclusive Economy Board, and other key groups that help to deliver on this priority, including the employment and skills partnership board, town centre strategic board, anchor institutions workshop and other key industry specific groups.

The council also works closely with central government and wider stakeholders such as SEMLEP (South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership), Arts Council England, the National Lottery Heritage Fund and others to generate investment and support for the growth and regeneration of the local economy and key sectors.

The actions the council will take for each target outcome within this priority are summarised below.

Increased inward investment supporting the growth of our key and emerging sectors, including aviation, manufacturing, digital and creative industries:

• work in partnership with businesses to develop a new place brand to attract inward investment and business start ups
• support businesses across key sectors to grow in Luton
• continue to support the sustainable growth of the airport through Luton Rising working with the aviation sector to increase green growth
• work with key partners to deliver our plans for transforming lives through arts, culture and heritage
• continue to engage with central government to leverage investment to level up our local economy

More of our residents in well paid, high value and fair employment within Luton:

• become a Real Living Wage employer and ensure this is embedded into third party contracts with suppliers
• support the rollout of the good business charter, working with businesses and employers to ensure more workers earn the real living wage with fair employment conditions.
• work with partners to increase access to higher paid jobs for residents

A more highly skilled workforce that meets the needs of local employers:

• deliver our employment and skills strategy with partners, including higher education, further education and other training providers
• continue to work in partnership with DWP to support people back into employment
• continue to deliver our own skills and employability programmes such as passport to employment and passport to care
• work with businesses, skills providers, SEMLEP and national government to identify skills gaps, hard to fill vacancies and future skills needs
• work collaboratively to invest in skills for the future including digital, creative and green skills
• work with partners to reduce barriers to participation in employment and skills programmes

Increased local spending and social value through supply chains of large employers and anchor institutions:

• increase the council’s local spend to 70 per cent of all procurement by 2025
• increase social value in the council’s procurement, including sustainability, skills and apprenticeships and fair pay and employment
• continue to develop our social value framework with major public sector employers and anchor institutions, ensuring more money remains within the Luton system
• support the growth of local supply chains and SMEs by reducing barriers to bidding, providing guidance on social value and by delivering ‘meet the buyer’ events

A thriving town centre with the right mix of office, retail, leisure, residential and community space:

• deliver our new Town Centre Masterplan, working with town centre partners to provide the right mix of spaces
• deliver our own key developments in the town centre, including the stage and the creation of pocket parks
• develop a town centre place brand and work with partners to increase engagement, marketing and place activation in our town centre
• improve the look and feel of our town centre through investment in cleaner streets and enhancing heritage assets
• work with the police, community safety partners, central government and local businesses to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour and improve town centre safety
• work with arts, cultural and heritage partners to deliver events and heritage action zones that make our town centre an attractive destination for residents, visitors and investors

Improving wellbeing through a preventative approach to reducing health inequalities is important to helping everyone in Luton to reach their full potential. The council and its services are intrinsically linked to all aspects of this, including provision of health and social care services, as well as housing for many residents and families and an important role in supporting community safety.

The council has led the development of this priority through its work with the institute of health equity, which set out its recommendations within the report, ‘reducing health inequalities in Luton: a marmot town.’

The council provides system leadership through chairing the health and wellbeing board, as well as facilitating other important groups that deliver on this priority, including the place board, health inequalities board and the housing delivery board.

In addition, the council engages closely with central government and regional stakeholders through its role as a key member of the integrated care board.

The actions the council will take for each target outcome within this priority are summarised below.

A preventative approach to improving physical and mental wellbeing that addresses the wider determinants of health to achieve better and more equal health outcomes:

• work with partners across the town to tackle the wider determinants of health and deliver on the eight Marmot principles to reduce health inequalities
• develop a system-wide approach, with businesses, employers, housing providers, education, health partners and police to tackling the wider determinates of health
• support primary care and health partners and extend social prescribing to address the social determinants of health

A healthier start for our children and young people with better and more equal physical and mental health outcomes.:

• increase provision of services such as Family Hubs to support children and families
• work with partners across the system to deliver programmes that increase physical activity and healthy weight from early years
• work with the NHS, local health partners and national government to identify additional opportunities to support young people’s mental health in schools, the community and at work

A stronger care sector with increased capacity to help people and families to manage long term conditions:

• work with residents and partners across the system to identify inequalities in how people access and experience care
• work closely with external care providers to identify needs of residents and ensure that they are receiving good quality and appropriate care
• continue to work closely with hospitals and other health care providers to continue our effective approach to hospital discharge
• plan for changing needs of residents and invest in more preventative approaches to care and support
• embrace digital resources and new technology to transform services and provide greater personalised care and support

More of our households living in good quality and affordable housing:

• work with developers to deliver on our target for 400 new homes per year, delivering our own share of these through our company Foxhall Homes and council housing
• continue to affordable rents and maintain good standards, including meeting all new building safety requirements across all our social housing
• work with developers and private sector landlords to drive-up standards across all housing tenures
• continue to work with homelessness, health and enforcement partners to eliminate rough-sleeping and reduce homelessness
• engage with central government and Homes England to tackle long term housing need and housing affordability challenges

A safer community with fewer cases of crime, domestic abuse, serious violence and addiction:

• continue to work closely with police, community safety partners, health partners and businesses to tackle issues of crime and anti-social behaviour
• continue to deliver neighbourhood enforcement and licensing services that help to tackle crime and safety concerns in the town
• work with the police and University of Bedfordshire to build intelligence around crime and engage with residents and communities to better understand perceptions of safety
• work with young people and youth organisations to support young people’s safety and reduce reoffending by young people
• engage with central government to deliver programmes that improve safety and to identify future funding and opportunities to continue this

Improving sustainability and tackling the climate emergency is a key priority within the Luton 2040 vision, which is linked to better wellbeing and economic growth. The council is committed to ensuring that its own operations and the town as a whole can both become net zero by 2040.

The council is leading the local system through the climate change steering group, and has also facilitated valuable discussions and engagement between residents, organisations and experts to build a roadmap to net zero by 2040.

The council has an important role to play, like all other businesses and partner organisations in the town, to reduce its own impact on the environment. This includes the impact from the output of services, our buildings, our vehicles and the airport. In addition, the council has influence over other important factors in tackling climate change, such as housing, planning, transport infrastructure and green spaces.

The actions the council will take for each target outcome within this priority are summarised below.

Reduced net carbon emissions from businesses, organisations and households:

• upgrade and retrofit council and public sector buildings to reduce emissions, including offices, schools, community centres and social housing
• work with developers to encourage best possible energy efficiency standards in all new-build homes
• work with businesses and partners across the town to support upgrades of existing buildings to reduce emissions
• continue to provide waste services that encourage residents to waste less and recycle more
• support introduction of a community carbon offsets programme
• provide support to businesses, residents, community groups, voluntary and charitable organisations by sharing information, promoting best practice, practical advice and funding

A greener transport network, with a reduction in car usage and an increase in walking, cycling and sustainable public transport usage:

• deliver plans for a new park and ride service from Butterfield Business Park
• work with central government and local transport partners to deliver our bus improvement plans
• work with partners to increase the number of public electric vehicle charging points in the town to more than 200 by 2025
• upgrade council vehicles to cleaner and renewable fuel alternatives and encourage this shift among residents and key sector such as transport and private hire taxis
• continue to improve walking and cycling routes across the town
• increase connectivity between walking, cycling and public transport, including with the introduction of a new cycle hub in the town centre
• promote walking and cycling among council staff, with initiatives such as cycle to work scheme
• work with businesses and employers to develop plans for active and sustainable travel among their workforces

The most sustainable airport in the UK:

• support our airport company Luton Rising and the aviation sector to achieve their collective plans for sustainable growth and offsetting of emissions
• continue to invest in sustainable infrastructure, such as the Luton DART to enable and encourage more low carbon journeys to and from the airport

Enhanced greenspace and richer biodiversity that offset emissions and enriches our local environment:

• continue to maintain excellent parks and greenspaces, including our six Green Flag parks
• create new pocket parks in the town centre and open up the River Lea, increasing biodiversity in the river corridor
• work with voluntary and community groups to help maintain clean and tidy parks and greenspaces
• increase tree planting and wildflower coverage across the town, encouraging developers and businesses to do the same
• work with the community to manage flood risk and engage with central government to identify funding and opportunities to reduce flood risk and increase resilience

Improved air quality across our town to support better health outcomes:

• monitor air quality in key locations in the town, including near the airport, busy roads and schools.
• work with key partners in these locations to identify measures to reduce congestion and poor air quality
• work with partners and central government to identify innovative approaches to improving air quality, including pedestrianised streets, strategic bus lanes and enforcement to prevent engine idling

Luton Council is committed to delivering on the priority to make Luton a child friendly town. The council leads the local system through chairing the children’s trust board, as well as facilitating other key partnership groups such as local education leaders and by engaging with youth representatives. The council also works to promote the voice of children and young people through the youth council and its looked after children’s panel.

The council takes a corporate parenting approach which gives it a central role in the lives of children and young people in the town. This role includes the delivering services that keep children and young people safe, overseeing the provision of education for all children in Luton, and providing services for children and young people with SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) and their families.

The council also aims to ensure that all services delivered independently and in partnership with others help to make Luton a child friendly town. This can include actions that improve mental and physical wellbeing, increase employment and skills opportunities, or how we make our community safer for children and young people.

The actions the council will take for each target outcome within this priority are summarised below.

Our children and young people will have access to good quality services that keep them safe and secure:

• continue our children’s services improvement journey, working with Ofsted, the Department for Education and partners to deliver good and outstanding services for children and families
• work closely with partners across the system to ensure that children and young people are protected in our town and across all services
• work with police, health partners, schools and the criminal justice system to prevent youth offending and re-offending and ensure that young people feel safe in their homes, their schools and in our town
• continue to support free school meal provision and identify opportunities to extend this to school holiday periods for the most vulnerable children, working with schools, businesses and the voluntary and community sector

Every child has an excellent education that raises aspiration and achievement and reduces educational inequalities:

• work with education partners across the system to build on success of school readiness and improve education outcomes for all pupils
• work with education leaders to ensure that all children in Luton can access good and outstanding schools
• work with all parts of the system, including education, police, children’s services, private and public sector employers and the community to support looked after children and marginalised young people into skills and employment

More opportunities for our children and young people to develop, play and socialise:

• work with early years providers and schools to enable good development and social skills in children from early years
• develop spaces for children and families to play and socialise within our town centre, parks and neighbourhoods
• work with partners to fund opportunities for children and young people to play outside of school, include holiday camps and after school clubs

Greater and more equal opportunities for children and young people with SEND (special educational needs and disabilities):

• provide support to children with SEND and their families through our family wellbeing service
• improve the quality and timeliness of Educational Health Care Plans (EHCPs), with all plans person-centred and outcome focussed and developed with children and their families
• strengthen universal services that provide support on development of children with SEND, working with parents, carers and schools
• strengthen our services for children and families with SEND, including Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), after school provision, respite services and travel assistance
• work with schools to increase SEND education places and address identified gaps in current provision
• work across the system to enable transition into adulthood for 16 to 25 year olds, including employment and skills opportunities

All of our children and young people will have a meaningful voice that is heard and that matters:

• continue to promote the voice of young people in shaping the future of Luton, through our Young People’s Council and young people’s citizen’s forums
• embed co-production in council services that children and young people use, by engaging with children and young people and the parent carer forum
• work with partners across sectors to ensure that children and young people have a strong voice in shaping all of the services they use
• encourage more businesses and partners across education, health, social care and the voluntary and community sector to sign up to our working together charter

Our community is at the heart of our vision for Luton 2040 and the council will work with all partners and residents to ensure that we build a fairer town, tackling inequality and building local pride, resilience and participation, while promoting the voice of all parts of the community.

The council is providing leadership of the local system by bringing together key partners, including the voluntary and community sector, and residents, through our innovative fairness taskforce and citizens’ forums. The council also oversees the equality, diversity and inclusion board and work with partners to deliver our fairness strategy.

The council’s elected members and officers have a clear duty to promote and represent the voice of people across Luton to shape the future of the town and services that they use. In addition, by providing services that are used by all parts of the community, the council is committed to delivering these services in a fair and equitable way that meets everyone’s needs and helps to reduce inequality.

A town built on fairness with equitable outcomes for all our residents:

• continue to lead and facilitate Luton’s fairness taskforce and citizen’s forums to identify and tackle inequalities and structural barriers in our town
• work with partners and residents to deliver citizen-led solutions to reduce inequality and social exclusion
• deliver as a council on our commitments to equality, diversity and inclusion, to ensure fairer outcomes for all residents

A more resilient community, protecting and enabling the most vulnerable and excluded:

• continue to work with existing networks of local partners that help to tackle issues of debt, homelessness, unemployment and financial hardship in a multi-agency way
• establish a network of community hubs, in partnership with the voluntary and community sector, to provide access to services that protect our most vulnerable and excluded communities
• engage with government and energy companies to tackle fuel poverty, insecurity and barriers to accessing universal credit and other support
• work with partners across all sectors and the community to tackle digital exclusion and address barriers to services for socially excluded residents

A thriving voluntary and community sector, delivering on shared priorities with our residents:

• increase collaboration and investment with voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise groups and networks to meet shared goals
• build leadership and skills across the voluntary and community sector
• help to coordinate the work of the voluntary and community sector, with that of other partners in the town to ensure effective collaboration and fill gaps in provision
• work with employers to support opportunities for volunteering among residents

A stronger and more meaningful voice for all our residents to shape the vision and direction of our town:

• continue to support direct democracy, including increasing accessibility of participating in elections, consultations and the democratic process
• continue to work with partners to establish a range of citizen’s forums and assemblies to promote the voice of residents across each of the five priorities for Luton 2040
• embed co-production of services with residents, including tenant participation and scrutiny
• renew member-led engagement initiatives to ensure that the voice of residents is heard by their elected representatives
• develop more diverse and innovative opportunities for citizen involvement in direct decision-making to shape the town and their neighbourhoods

A welcoming and compassionate town, with respect, social responsibility and increased civic pride at its heart:

• support neighbourhood groups to build pride in their local areas
• increase opportunities for residents to play an active role in the town, through participation in arts, culture and heritage, protecting our local environment and supporting neighbours
• continue to monitor and promote pride in our town through our perceptions surveys and working with residents to develop a strong place brand narrative for Luton