Abstract
This thesis analyses the role of the 21st century settlement house in affecting urban social change on a neighbourhood level. Settlement houses are place-based, multi-purpose neighbourhood centres which support their local geographical communities through various activities ranging from commissioned social services to cooking classes and chess clubs. Historically, settlements have had a dual purpose of providing social services and working for social reform on a neighbourhood level.The research has been conducted through an extended, in-depth case study, which follows a settlement house in London as it shifts from conventional service delivery to a holistic community-building approach, focusing on facilitating social connections at multiple levels. This shift is conceptualised as adopting the role of an organisational broker in the neighbourhood. Following Benington’s (2011) conceptualisation of public value, the thesis further analyses how the settlement house, as an organisational broker, attempts to bring together a local ‘public’ capable of articulating its interests and making decisions. Additionally, it explores the role of the organisational broker in facilitating the inherently ‘contested democratic practice’ of public value creation.
The research found that the transition of organisational brokers from introductory to sustained brokerage necessitates the development of organisational capabilities to handle tension and conflict. It identifies the importance of this in contexts with low trust among residents, as well as in partnerships involving direct collaboration between actors with markedly different levels of power, such as residents and local government. An element of advocacy and the lack of a clear organisational core (values, vision, mission) are further identified as significant challenges to the legitimacy and effectiveness of the neighbourhood organisational broker.
This study further demonstrated that enhancing agency and empowering local residents was a time-consuming and challenging process requiring active and skilled facilitation by the broker. In a third sector funding landscape increasingly dominated by short-term grants and contracts, these findings underscore the importance of supporting long-term community work. This is particularly crucial if the goal is to deepen neighbourhood democracy rather than merely manage neighbourhoods more effectively.
| Date of Award | 1 Oct 2024 |
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| Original language | English |
| Awarding Institution |
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| Supervisor | Juan Baeza (Supervisor) & Susan Trenholm (Supervisor) |