CITY PLAYBOOK FOR ADVANCING THE SDGS NOVEMBER 2020

Why the One City model works: Local governance to achieve the SDGs and leave no one behind

Allan Macleod, SDG Research and Engagement Associate, Bristol City Council

Many U.K. local governments are under severe and inequality in access to higher education is financial stress, much of which predates and so almost 80% between local government wards. has been worsened by the spread of COVID-19. Addressing these long-standing challenges is Before the pandemic, Bristol City Council’s budget further complicated by an increasingly challenging had shrunk by more than 75% over the preceding economic landscape resulting from COVID-19 and 10 years. the U.K.’s impending departure from the European Union. During this period of austerity, Bristol developed a partnership-based approach to governance that has, among other things, helped support The One City Approach delivery of the U.N. Sustainable Development In the U.K., local authorities operate in a hyper- Goals (SDGs). This is governance in its broadest centralized system, where most notably central sense, involving representation from all sectors government controls the majority of budgets. of society, its key institutions, and community As such, city governments have had to find new groups in the process of decision-making. It is not mechanisms to tackle long-standing issues of only improving Bristol’s ability to tackle complex social inequality and met their interconnected challenges, but also the speed and agility of our environmental aspirations. work. By coalescing around a common vision and communicating a common set of objectives and In late 2016, Mayor Marvin Rees began a process outcomes for city partners (held in Bristol’s One of strategic restructuring in an attempt to tackle City Plan for 2050 and the SDGs), this effort is this through the One City Approach. With strong taking bold steps towards transformative action. mayoral commitment, the city office convened a series of biannual stakeholder gatherings (City Gatherings) and regular citizen consultations Bristol: A tale of two cities to identify a collective set of priorities and Bristol is a wealthy city with a global reputation challenges for public, private and third sector for environmentalism. However, like many cities, organizations. Strong political willingness to it is riven with deeply entrenched social and engage outside the city council, and a recognition racial inequalities. Its overall prosperity is, on of the strength in collaborative partnership work, closer inspection, a contrast of deep wealth has meant that City Gatherings are now attended versus generations of poverty. Nearly 15% of the by well over 250 stakeholders. population live in neighborhoods that are among the 10% most deprived of areas in England, By consulting on long-term aspirations, Bristol was able to form a commonly adopted One City Plan vision for 2050. The collaboratively developed Partnership challenges vision and objectives in the One City Plan provide The ambitions held in the SDGs provide a difficult tangible opportunities for partners to be involved dynamic for a city faced with such deep inequality. in improving the city, and city gatherings provide Currently, the leadership of Bristol’s anchor an opportunity to reflect, refocus, and make institutions does not reflect our city’s desire to commitments of action towards this vision. leave no one behind. This is the ongoing challenge we are seeking to address by supporting the These meetings are supported by six thematic development of leaders across all spheres of committees, known as the One City boards, which society through the Stepping Up and Green and meet on a quarterly basis to discuss issues Black Ambassadors programs. We want to ensure around 6 key themes for the city: Connectivity, future city leaders reflect the city they serve and Economy, Environment, Health and Wellbeing, represent, and we hope this will support our Homes and Communities and Learning and efforts to tackle systemic inequality. Skills. These committees comprise influential stakeholders from public, private and third sector Similarly, the nature of the governance structure organizations. The chairs of the One City boards requires engagement with local leaders. Leaders also meet quarterly at a multi-board convention to have different drivers and can conflict when discuss the interactions and trade-offs between their priorities overlap. However, these areas of themes. Above the multi-board is the City Leaders interaction can be harnessed and spur innovation. Board, where the heads of the key institutions By communicating our shared vision through the (police, fire, hospitals, universities, chamber of SDGs, organizations have been able to see that commerce and city council) meet on a quarterly “competing” social, economic or environmental basis to improve collaboration, communication, issues are in fact interrelated and have co-benefits and information sharing. At the community level, which deliver on multiple goals. citizens participate and feed into the process through monthly drop-in sessions and annual Despite this, asymmetrical buy-in remains a community development worker gatherings. problem. In Bristol, the city council is a key delivery partner which can pose challenges. In This structure is supported by a small core team, asking for support, partners are only funding the the City Office, which facilitates partnership work of the council, which should be covered by working and empowers stakeholder action. local taxation. Conversely, because the council is Working with the One City boards, the City Office a key partner, council staff can feel they need to facilitated collaborative initiatives to increase control the process and delivery of work, reducing foster care numbers and tackle period poverty. the agility and ease of partnership working. This Through the One City Climate and Ecological tension requires working closely with city council Strategies, interconnected environmental issues staff and processes, while demonstrating to city are being addressed by all sectors of Bristol. partners their key role in delivery. Moreover, during COVID-19 the City Office supported Bristol’s resiliency with rapid, targeted, Despite the challenges of partnership working, the coherent messages throughout the crisis to One City model shows that collaboration with a struggling sectors and communities, and lobbied view towards a common goal across sectors can the national government on key issues for the achieve sustainable change. Every organization in city as well as consulting on a citywide Economic a city has a role to play in that city’s success. Recovery Strategy.

Curated by Brookings and published in collaboration with Apolitical, these how-to briefs authored by experienced city government leaders aim to disseminate their innovations to counterparts to accelerate the local delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals. This compendium is part of the SDG Leadership Cities project, a community of practice of vanguard cities promoting a global movement of city leadership on sustainable development. If you’re using this brief to implement an innovation locally, please fill in this short survey and feel free to contact us at [email protected].