The successful passage through Parliament of what I can now proudly call the Localism Act is a milestone towards achieving a commitment at the very heart of the Coalition Agreement – putting power back where it belongs, with communities and locally-elected councillors who represent them.

As the minister responsible for the Bill's passage through Parliament, I am pleased that – despite it being one of the biggest and most far reaching of the coalition's programme – it was unusual in causing very few divisions and not a single defeat during its entire progress through both Houses.

And the reason for that is that we built consensus as it progressed.

We saw no reason to stop listening as the proposals made their way through parliament. Over months of rigorous scrutiny, with more than 70 hours of debate in the Commons and at least 100 in the Lords, we have taken on board constructive suggestions from every quarter, judging amendments not on their origins, but on their quality.

In light of debate and evidence, we have finessed, smoothed and improved. We have even added whole new decentralising measures, where there has been a strong case and a consensus to do so – such as the option to pass new powers to England's largest cities outside London, giving them the means they need to become masters of their economic destinies.

From this moment on, every individual, every community, and every council will have more control over what happens in their neighbourhood.

First, the Act places new powers in the hands of councils. With their local, democratic legitimacy, and their close relationship with the people they serve, councils are uniquely placed to make services work better, to galvanise the local economy, and to strengthen community spirit.

But, in the past, councils have had a remit thrust on them by Whitehall. They have been forced to do what Whitehall tells them. What hasn't been specifically permitted has been considered forbidden.

In the future, thanks to a General Power of Competence, councils will have the right to do anything an individual can, unless Parliament explicitly forbids it.

But the power does create unprecedented freedom for councils to do things differently in response to what communities want – to organise services in new ways, making them work better for local people and offer better value for money. It is a licence to innovate.

We all know, however, that it's not councils alone which make great places to live. The volunteers, tenants' associations, roundtables, residents' associations, faith institutions, community bodies and many more who get involved, all make their areas thrive. And we are now giving them new powers and new rights to have their say.

For example, in many parts of the country, community groups have taken over local buildings, such as pubs and civic buildings. They have helped keep much-loved local assets in use and part of local life.

But sometimes, when these buildings change hands or are sold on the open market, it's just not a fair fight. Professional, corporate buyers can swoop in before the local community group has even had a chance to meet to discuss their plans.

In the future, there will be a window for named ‘assets of community value', giving community groups that vital breathing space to organise their bid and get credible financial backing.

Neighbourhood planning is another powerful new tool which communities will soon have at their disposal. Local people will have the option to come together and decide, collectively, what their neighbourhood should look like in the future; where new shops and offices should go, and what they should look like; and which green spaces are most important to the community.

This is an unprecedented opportunity for residents to shape the look and feel of the place they call home, so it's no surprise that in more than 120 neighbourhoods across the country, north and south, urban and rural, groups are already getting together to work out how they want to put their new powers to use.

They are right to do so. Although it has been a long and careful process to get the Act set down on vellum, in many senses, the hard work starts now. It will take the commitment of lots of different players to take the new rights and responsibilities off the page and bring them to life.

Local government, charities and community groups are also on their marks. For example, we are already deep in discussion with England's biggest cities, hammering out deals to let them draw down new powers to get their economy powering ahead. And wise councils will be getting ambitious and creative as they prepare for the General Power of Competence to kick in.

We have a unique opportunity today. The Localism Act gives us the means to reshape forever the way the business of governing is done this country. Instead of councils wondering ‘are we allowed to do that?', we should see councils asking, ‘how can we best make a difference?'

And instead of communities thinking, ‘I wish we could', they could be saying, ‘we can and we have'. It is up to all of us now to take that promise – and make it real.

Greg Clark is decentralisation and cities minister