Review: The case for Community Wealth Building by Joe Guinan and Martin O’Neill

Gareth Wall Gareth Wall

doi:10.5130/cjlg.vi22.7442

Abstract

Drawing on innovative local government and community initiatives from the United Kingdom and the United States, Guinan and O’Neill’s 'The Case for Community Wealth Building' is a timely and optimistically critical contribution to discussions on inclusive community-owned local economic development. This short thesis aimed at practitioners, policy-makers and theorists alike, looks at alternative models of local economic ownership. At just 116 pages, this accessible book, whilst drawing on a good if limited range of academic and case study literature, reads more in the tradition of a radical political pamphlet than a dense academic text.

Highlights

The first section of the book introduces the idea of Community Wealth Building (CWB) providing a counter to the common new public management models which in their drive to minimise costs in public sector budgets miss adding social value and social justice considerations to bottom-line budgeting
The case of Plymouth, United Kingdom (UK) who are looking to double their cooperative economy through their work with the UK’s Cooperative Councils Innovation Network, and ignores examples elsewhere across the Commonwealth such as in South Africa and India where innovations in local economic development see member-owned self-help groups and cooperatives take on significant work for municipal councils
The second main section of the book skilfully argues why a CWB approach focused on the primacy of labour is good for progressive councils interested in their citizens’ economic wellbeing, and provides more detail on how CWB can remedy the kinds of local issues created by the predominant capital-led extractive economic model

Summary

Introduction

The first section of the book introduces the idea of Community Wealth Building (CWB) providing a counter to the common new public management models which in their drive to minimise costs in public sector budgets miss adding social value and social justice considerations to bottom-line budgeting. Drawing on innovative local government and community initiatives from the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US), Guinan and O’Neill’s The Case for Community Wealth Building is a timely and optimistically critical contribution to discussions on inclusive community-owned local economic development.

Results

Conclusion