A "Marshall Plan for Civic Life" has been proposed, advocating a multi-billion pound, multi-year investment fund. This initiative aims to renew social capital and fortify society and the economy, according to Polly Curtis and James Plunkett.
The plan suggests a collaborative funding effort involving citizens, the state, philanthropy, and the private sector. Potential contributions could include citizen membership models, state-led business levies, and private sector impact investment.
The proposal draws inspiration from the original Marshall Plan, which involved a large-scale US investment in Western Europe after World War II. Proponents suggest this new plan could help coordinate a massive fund to rebuild civic infrastructure in the UK.
Polly Curtis, CEO of the think tank Demos, and James Plunkett, founder of Kinship Works, are behind the proposal. They argue that decades of civic decline in the UK necessitate a similar architecture for catalytic investment in civic renewal.