Plugging the leaks: making the most of every pound that enters your local economy

This handbook is a guide for ordinary people to understand what is going on in their local economy so that they can be involved in decision-making. The handbook is responding to a need of residents involved in local decision-making to feel comfortable about decisions relating to the local economy. Based on work with communities in the UK, the handbook addresses local involvement in community economic decisions and looks at how local businesses can link to outside investment or strong skill bases that can benefit the wider community. The handbook is divided into four main sections: introduction; theory: understanding the local economy; preparing: a step-by-step guide to plugging the leaks; and action: co-ordinating the program, information gathering, raising awareness and ready to go. The handbook concludes with detailed appendixes about the case studies as well as some worksheets, surveys and ideas.