Communities Secretary John Denham called on councils to sign community contracts with local residents as a way to drive up the standard of local services - including providing redress when things go wrong - and announced support to help them to do it.
Community contracts - or neighbourhood charters - are voluntary written agreements between residents and local services, setting out clear standards of service and priorities for action, as well as the role local people can play in helping the services achieve this.
Local services and residents work together to identify their priorities for the neighbourhood. These can include issues that are important to them, such as antisocial behaviour, litter, graffiti or street lighting.
The contracts could also cover methods of redress when standards are not met - ranging from a commitment from the council to solve the problem to considering financial compensation.
Evidence shows community contracts work. Eleven areas across the country have already piloted community contracts and an evaluation of the programme shows they can help local people understand what services they are entitled to, build better relationships with their councils and secure improvements to services and neighbourhoods.
New guidance will set out practical advice on how councils and other services can develop and maintain contracts. A new online discussion forum will also be available on the IDeA's website, where people can share experience and good practice.
Mentoring support will also be offered to areas wishing to develop contracts that are part of the Connecting Communities initiative.
There are already examples of community contracts, including:
Residents on an estate in Sunderland have developed a Clean Green Safer contract with Home Group (the RSL that owns the estate) and a wide range of partners.
Since the development of the contract the residents association has reported a drop in complaints about crime and antisocial behaviour.
Litter picks, garden tidy ups and an annual garden competition have led to improvements in the local environment
Residents in Oldham were concerned about crime and antisocial behaviour. Partners, including the police and local councils, agreed how they would respond to and reduce crime in the area - including what residents would do to report and prevent it.
Residents involved in the scheme report a reduced fear of crime, improved relationships with police community safety officers and an increase in their perception of police visibility in the area
In Barnsley residents were concerned about vandalism and litter problems. They worked with their council on a community contract to clean up their neighbourhood.
Residents, including young people, act as community champions and provide regular feedback to service providers.
People report that vandalism, graffiti and litter problems have reduced and the percentage of people saying they are satisfied with local services has increased.