Çigdemim neighbourhood association in Turkey: What the Big Society can achieve without any government funding

Lessons learnt

The achievements of the Çigdemim Neighbourhood Association show what local people can do to improve the physical environment and quality of social life in a neighbourhood. At the same time, the Turkish experience shows the limits of such community initiatives, if there is not sufficient support provided by the public sector. In this particular case, the lack of appropriate facilities has become a key obstacle for the development of new activities targeted at priority groups such as the elderly and people with disabilities.

As the members recognise themselves, the time has come to join forces with other neighbourhoods and to found wider area associations which represent several neighbourhoods. Furthermore, the association is eager to learn from an exchange of experience with neighbourhood associations in other countries to remain an innovator.