![]() ![]() Indeed, they want to do more, especially in relation to planning, housing and transport. Although respondents’ views differ (eg, as to whether town councils should have more powers), most believe they will have to do more. Councillors, town clerks, academics, and interested individuals with policy and practical experience of the sector contributed. This paper presents and discusses the views of 156 respondents to an online survey, some of whom were also interviewed. To what extent is not known, but councillors will have roles to play in determining how their towns respond. Their mainly small towns will be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union (‘Brexit’). Town councillors represent approximately 11,000,000 people one-fifth of the population of England. Hierarchically, they are subordinate to both national and higher tier local governments (unitary, county and borough/district councils). Town and parish councils are the English government bodies closest to local people. Indeed, part of neighbourliness involves respecting each other’s boundaries and respect for diversity. Yet, whilst it is central, this does not mean excessive familiarity or the taking of liberties. The most significant finding is that neighbourliness was identified by participants as the key aspect of community cohesion. We identified four main themes which could be translated into the key indicators. Because community cohesion is an intangible concept subject to multiple meanings, qualitative research methods were used. The aims of this study were to identify a common understanding of the concept of ‘community cohesion’, and to develop a set of indicators based on both the experiences of residents in a rural community and the relevant contemporary academic literature. The building and supporting of strong, safe, socially cohesive communities that embrace social connections and commitment, has become an important goal of policy and initiatives at all levels of government. While the notion that communities require resources in the form of financial capital for their development and wellbeing has long been recognised, it has become increasingly apparent that economic resources alone do not lead to community sustainability and wellbeing. We argue that the significance of undertaking the task of indicator development in a collaborative and participatory as well as technically satisfactory manner should not be under-estimated. Informed by recent New Zealand experiences, our objective in this paper is to examine those institutional barriers within the context of achieving the wider objectives of the New Zealand Local Government Act 2002 to strengthen participatory democracy and community governance, and the ‘whole-of-government’ sustainable development paradigm that underpins it. An important dimension that is implicit rather than explicit in the current literature is the significance of institutional barriers to developing indicators. ![]() Identifying appropriate indicators of economic, social, environmental, cultural and democratic progress across local government boundaries, as a basis for a strategy to enhance community governance, and as part of a national system of sustainability indicators, is a challenging task. There has been enormous activity in many countries and by international agencies during the last few decades to develop indicators to measure trends in different attributes of the environment, including indicators for community wellbeing and for sustainable development.
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