Strong communities are not built by politicians. They are built around kitchen tables, in school halls, on street corners and at the mosque, church and gurdwara.
The phrase 'active citizenship' can sound abstract. It is not. It is the neighbour who checks in on an elderly resident. The parent who volunteers at the football club. The young person who turns up to the litter pick. The shopkeeper who funds the kids' tournament. Multiply that by ten thousand small acts and you have a community.
Active citizenship starts at home — with the values we teach, the example we set, and the responsibility we take for the streets we live on. No council, no MP, no government can replace that. They can only support it.
If we want stronger communities, we have to be stronger citizens.