Urban waterways strategy & action plan

Urban waterways planning and management represent a common challenge for multi-level governance in EU cities, particularly when land ownership patterns are complex, and stakeholders’ rights and responsibilities fragmented. Sheffield (UK), which has over 240 km of waterways, uses collaborative planning and partnership to integrate strategic priorities at the city-regional level with bottom-up local participation and citizen-led action. In 2003, Sheffield formed a Waterways Strategy Group, a partnership including the City Council and relevant environmental and amenity groups. This group developed the Sheffield Waterways Strategy and Five-year Action Plan. The strategy integrates a range of joined-up measures (governance, infrastructure, design, activity, strategy, and policy) to coordinate capacity-building with communities. It includes lasting cross-sector actions at multiple levels, enabling the partners to scale up their impacts.