How Communities Can Regenerate Urban Contexts : The Case Study of Hackney Co-Operative Development

During the last years, the regeneration of spaces and buildings inside cities has become an important issue, which involves public governments, private actors and the third sector. The failure of neoliberal market-oriented models, as a tool against social exclusion, has led to the re-thinking of local strategies for urban regeneration. A new idea of development has emerged, based on the empowerment of local communities and their potential. It points out the creation of community enterprises for the management of local assets. This paper presents the British context and the evolution of its legislation for the community enterprises. The case study of Hackney Co-operative Developments is presented to show how a community enterprise, set up to respond to local issues can structure its business and can be a generator of social innovation