Our Vision, Outcomes and Priorities

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Consultation has concluded

Note: Phase 1 of the engagement to review the Belfast Agenda has now closed. You can read the captured feedback below.

Imagine yourself in 2035. What are your hopes for you and your family? What kind of Belfast do you want to live in?

These were the questions we asked you back in 2016, as part of the Belfast Conversation, our community engagement programme back when we were first developing the Belfast Agenda. We listened to what you wanted Belfast to be like in 2035 and, in the Belfast Agenda, set an ambitious long term vision and outcomes to make your hopes and dreams for Belfast real.

Four years on, we want to check that our long-term vision and outcomes are still relevant and meaningful. We also want to know what you think we should focus on over the shorter term. We'll listen to what people tell us and from there, we will develop action plans and a refreshed Belfast Agenda to ensure we can make a positive impact for us all.

Sign up using the 'Follow Project' link to the right to be kept updated on how you can get involved in these next stages.

Please read our existing vision, outcomes and priorities and tell us what you think by completing the below survey, registering to attend an interactive workshop (details to follow), post an idea or comment or join the conversation on social media using the hashtag #BelfastConversation.

Our vision for Belfast in 2035

Belfast will be a city re-imagined and resurgent. A great place to live and work for everyone.

Beautiful, well connected and culturally vibrant, it will be a sustainable city shared and loved by all its citizens, free from the legacy of conflict. A compassionate city offering opportunities for everyone. A confident and successful city energising a dynamic and prosperous city region. A magnet for talent and business and admired around the world. A city people dream to visit.


Our outcomes - the five things people want by 2035

Outcomes describe what we want for our city and local people - the conditions and wellbeing that we all want to enjoy. The Belfast Community Planning Partnership agreed 5 outcomes, based on what people told us in 2016 and include:

  • Everyone in Belfast benefits from a thriving and prosperous economy
  • Belfast is a welcoming, safe, fair and inclusive city for all
  • Everyone in Belfast fulfils their potential
  • Everyone in Belfast experiences good health and wellbeing
  • Belfast is a vibrant, attractive, connected and environmentally sustainable city


Our priorities for the next 4 years

Our priorities are derived from our vision and outcomes and include broad themes that we believe we need to focus on over the period 2022-26. These include:

  • Economic Recovery - mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the city's economy.
  • Employability and Skills - ensuring people are job-ready and can up-skill to progress. 
  • Educational Attainment - improving education outcomes while addressing underachievement.
  • Housing - affordable and safe housing to meet the needs of all communities.
  • Community Recovery and Neighbourhood Regeneration - delivery of area based interventions that meet the needs of our communities 
  • Health Inequalities - enhancing the physical and mental health of residents especially those who suffer from poorer health 
  • Climate, Resilience and Sustainability - protecting and enhancing our environment while supporting the transition to a carbon neutral economy.
  • Active and Sustainable Travel - support for sustainable modes of transport to improve the city's connectivity. 

We want to hear what is important to you and what are the key issues or specific priorities (under each theme) that should be addressed over the next 4 years.

Note: Phase 1 of the engagement to review the Belfast Agenda has now closed. You can read the captured feedback below.

Imagine yourself in 2035. What are your hopes for you and your family? What kind of Belfast do you want to live in?

These were the questions we asked you back in 2016, as part of the Belfast Conversation, our community engagement programme back when we were first developing the Belfast Agenda. We listened to what you wanted Belfast to be like in 2035 and, in the Belfast Agenda, set an ambitious long term vision and outcomes to make your hopes and dreams for Belfast real.

Four years on, we want to check that our long-term vision and outcomes are still relevant and meaningful. We also want to know what you think we should focus on over the shorter term. We'll listen to what people tell us and from there, we will develop action plans and a refreshed Belfast Agenda to ensure we can make a positive impact for us all.

Sign up using the 'Follow Project' link to the right to be kept updated on how you can get involved in these next stages.

Please read our existing vision, outcomes and priorities and tell us what you think by completing the below survey, registering to attend an interactive workshop (details to follow), post an idea or comment or join the conversation on social media using the hashtag #BelfastConversation.

Our vision for Belfast in 2035

Belfast will be a city re-imagined and resurgent. A great place to live and work for everyone.

Beautiful, well connected and culturally vibrant, it will be a sustainable city shared and loved by all its citizens, free from the legacy of conflict. A compassionate city offering opportunities for everyone. A confident and successful city energising a dynamic and prosperous city region. A magnet for talent and business and admired around the world. A city people dream to visit.


Our outcomes - the five things people want by 2035

Outcomes describe what we want for our city and local people - the conditions and wellbeing that we all want to enjoy. The Belfast Community Planning Partnership agreed 5 outcomes, based on what people told us in 2016 and include:

  • Everyone in Belfast benefits from a thriving and prosperous economy
  • Belfast is a welcoming, safe, fair and inclusive city for all
  • Everyone in Belfast fulfils their potential
  • Everyone in Belfast experiences good health and wellbeing
  • Belfast is a vibrant, attractive, connected and environmentally sustainable city


Our priorities for the next 4 years

Our priorities are derived from our vision and outcomes and include broad themes that we believe we need to focus on over the period 2022-26. These include:

  • Economic Recovery - mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the city's economy.
  • Employability and Skills - ensuring people are job-ready and can up-skill to progress. 
  • Educational Attainment - improving education outcomes while addressing underachievement.
  • Housing - affordable and safe housing to meet the needs of all communities.
  • Community Recovery and Neighbourhood Regeneration - delivery of area based interventions that meet the needs of our communities 
  • Health Inequalities - enhancing the physical and mental health of residents especially those who suffer from poorer health 
  • Climate, Resilience and Sustainability - protecting and enhancing our environment while supporting the transition to a carbon neutral economy.
  • Active and Sustainable Travel - support for sustainable modes of transport to improve the city's connectivity. 

We want to hear what is important to you and what are the key issues or specific priorities (under each theme) that should be addressed over the next 4 years.

Consultation has concluded

  • Engagement Workshops

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    The Partnership agreed to deliver a number of independently facilitated (by Involve) workshops. In planning the workshops, the subgroup agreed to use geographic markers of North, South, East, and West, while also targeting elected members and communities of interest. Additional outreach events were also planned to target children and young people and older people.

    A total of 130 participants from 63 organisations attended the events and told us what the priorities meant for them and their community. The workshops also provided an opportunity to check that the long-term vision and outcomes are still relevant and meaningful. Participants were asked to respond to a simple poll and provided clear support that these should remain unchanged.

    Responding to the question, ‘Are the vision and outcomes still very relevant, fairly relevant, or no longer relevant’, only 3% of respondents felt that the visions and outcomes are no longer relevant. 40% felt they were fairly relevant, and 57% felt they were still very relevant.

    The main substantive discussion of the workshops focussed on the priority themes which had been introduced and explained during the session. The discussion was structure in two parts, asking participants: 1. Are the priorities still right? and 2. What do they mean for your communities?

    Feedback from participants suggests that the emergent priorities are a valid framework to progress to the action planning phase; although some proposed priorities that they felt were missing, or highlighted areas which they felt needed to be made a priority in its own right. Additionally, feedback was received on underpinning considerations, the community planning process, implementation, evaluation, and governance. A summary report of both the emergent priorities and underpinning considerations is included below.

    Download Engagement Workshop Feedback Report

  • Online Surveys

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    An online survey, which ran from 09 June until 30 September 2021, received 50 responses and enabled respondents to provide their view on the vision, outcomes, priorities and cross-cutting themes.

    Almost 7 out of 10 people agreed or strongly agreed with the current vision. Respondents also agreed that our outcomes are broadly correct (ranging from 53% to 72%). However, given the written comments, it would appear that some people based their opinion on how well they felt Belfast was meeting these outcomes as opposed to their relevance.

    Respondents were further supportive of the proposed priority themes with high levels of agreement (ranging between 72% and 87%) that these themes should be the areas of focus for community planning over the period 2022-26. The chart below depicts the percentage of respondents who either agreed or disagreed with these priorities.

    Analysing the strength of opinion, the following priorities attracted the highest levels of agreement included Health Inequalities, Economic Recovery and Employability and Skills. Detailed feedback is included in the below summary report.

    Download Feedback Report

  • Paper Based Surveys

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    A total of 385 completed paper-based surveys were received from libraries (214) and community centres (171). This channel provided a more limited opportunity for the public to provide in-depth views, however it provided an opportunity to capture the public's perception of the long-term vision and outcomes and was also an effective means of capturing further views of the individual priorities. Over 75% of respondents (n=364) agreed with the current vision for Belfast; and 81% of respondents (n=368) agreed that the current outcomes are still relevant.

    The chart below highlights that the majority of respondents agreed with and supported the identified priorities.

    Similar to the online surveys, most respondents to the paper-based surveys agreed that Health Inequalities, Economic Recovery and Employability and Skills were the top-ranking priorities. The highest level of strong support however (i.e. the percentage of respondents who strongly agreed) were for the Housing priority.