A Vision for BANES as a Democratic Economy and Bath as a Co-operative City

We believe in a fairer world in which wealth and resources are distributed to the people who need them rather than those best able to take them.

We ask local residents and organisations to join us in re-shaping our local Bath economy so that it reflects the values of co-operation and social need over competition and private greed.

Please sign up to our Vision if you agree with the following statements:

  1. Money spent on goods and services should circulate as many times as possible in the local Bath economy to bring maximum benefit to all Bath residents, rather than be allowed to drain out of the local economy (e.g. to multi-national corporations).
  2. Best use should be made of local assets, including physical resources and the ideas, skills and energy of local people, to make Bath and North East Somerset as economically resilient as possible to withstand shocks in the national/international economy.
  3. The co-operative model should be promoted as a viable structure for local enterprises to create fulfilling, economically and environmentally sustainable jobs, meet local needs and contribute to building wealth in all neighbourhoods.
  4. Bath should have an effective infrastructure, including finance, land, premises, training and support services, to support the development of co-operatives and similar social enterprises.
  5. Bath and North East Somerset Council should dedicate resources to implementing a strategy of Community Wealth Building, in partnership with other local organisations, as an alternative to austerity, funding cuts, privatisation of services and dominance by branches of remote revenue-draining corporations.
  6. Local anchor institutions (organisations rooted in the area with significant purchasing power such as the RUH, Curo and the two Universities) should demonstrate a commitment to Community Wealth Building by purchasing the majority of goods and services from local suppliers, including co-operatives.
  7. The roles of co-operatives in delivering vital local services (e.g. transport, housing, energy, food and healthcare) should be expanded and co-operative principles should be used to enable local services to work together better for the benefit of local people.
  8. We, as local residents, should take into account the importance of Community Wealth Building when making decisions on purchasing goods and services.

Written by Bath Co-operative Alliance.

Members of Bath Cooperative Alliance agree to support each other to promote this vision and live co-operative values as fully as possible.