We work with national government to create the conditions for communities to thrive.
We want communities have the power to change what matters to them. We work with government and civil servants to back community business.
Shaping and influencing policy
We engage with and influence policy debates to help shape the conditions for community business thrive. We tackle the barriers they face with practical solutions that work for government and community business.
Campaigning for change
We back and help drive forward campaigns that are led by community business leaders to put important issues like the need for greater community power on the political agenda.
As one of the founding members of the We’re Right Here campaign we have been calling for a Community Power Act that gives communities more power to shape the spaces, services and spending decisions in their local area.
Through our research and advocacy, alongside others in the sector, and with the We’re Right Here campaign, we helped push the Labour Party to adopt a Community Right to Buy as party policy.
We will keep pushing for greater change. We continue to play a central role in the We’re Right Here campaign, and will work alongside organisations like UCL Policy Lab and Future Governance Forum to make the case for a new way of governing that respects ordinary people and communities, as we did at the Britain Renewed conference.
Work with us
Have a policy idea you want to discuss? Get in touch.
How we are backing community business
Spotlight: Back on the map
We are confident in the potential of community business to ‘take back the high street. We’ve backed community businesses taking on and reimagining vacant spaces and those making decisions about what should happen in their place.
Hendon’s neglected main high street, Villette Road, was a cause for concern for local residents, as well as for community business Back on the Map. When we called for community businesses to pilot Community Improvement Districts, Back on the Map saw the opportunity to start a high street revolution.
Quick wins like securing a 20mph zone and improving plants and signage, encouraged traders to join with 500 residents to build a new Heart of Hendon. The Hendon Pound Initiative brought an additional £9,000 to Villette Road, keeping local money in the local economy.
At the end of the pilot period, the CID continued to be the focus for partnership activities.
“Being part of the Community Improvement District pilot has allowed us to deliver on what the community wants and make Hendon, and Villette road, a place of opportunity to live and work “
News and views
Putting communities at the centre of new High Street Innovation Partnerships
Community business impact in 2024
