We need spaces that are set up for connection in the long-term.
From supermarkets to bus stations to WhatsApp groups, places and spaces should be designed to help people meet and mix. We aim to enhance how our built environment, physical infrastructure, and online platforms can foster long-term connections and support in communities. Here’s how we do it:
Mapping Community Assets
We identify existing formal and informal gathering spots to understand where people are already connecting and getting support. This helps us spot gaps and local opportunities for improvement.
×
Understand Community Spaces and Places in East Barnet
What was the ask?
Barnet was seeking to better align its physical assets to community needs. To help them achieve this, we conducted an ‘audit’ of the community spaces in East Barnet, both formal and informal, through the lens of its residents, to really understand how they are used and most importantly to understand the barriers of non-users.
What did we do?
We carried out ethnographic research, community walkabouts and participatory heat mapping to create a detailed perspective of all residents.
What was the outcome?
This piece of work supported Barnet’s Community Strategy by engaging with residents in asset-based and constructive ways, allowing their needs and usage of their local area to inform future decision making around Barnet’s places and spaces
Maximising Existing Resources
By supporting local assets, we can expand their reach and reimagine the use of other spaces. For example, transforming vacant supermarket areas into community hubs, or repurposing an underpass into a football pitch.
×
Shops – Opening up new social spaces in supermarkets
What was the ask?
To explore how to create social opportunities in supermarkets using the underutilised space in stores.
What did we do?
We are working with a range of supermarkets in Glasgow, Birmingham and Sheffield with different spaces and transforming these into community spaces. Local community organisations are being invited to run events and activities along with staff led sessions to foster social connections in stores.
What was the outcome?
We are testing the mechanism of format and routine in order to package up an offer that all supermarkets will be able to adopt is a variety of spaces and with different levels of staff support.
Creating New Spaces
We address gaps in local social infrastructure through community-led design, ensuring new spaces meet local needs. This involves partnering with developers, housing associations, and local authorities.
×
Resident-led Design of a New Development
What was the ask?
Hadley Property Group are currently working up proposals to repurpose a now-defunct office building for mixed used – i.e. homes, community spaces, retail, workspaces and more. They wish to understand the wants and needs of the local community, and bring resident voice in to the shaping of the design for the site
What did we do?
We have undertaken community research with residents and local groups to understand the lifeblood of the area, the local assets and the gaps in provision that the site might address.
We are running a series of co-design workshops with residents and the design team for Hadley PG and other partners. These workshops will cover a wide range of elements in the site from accessibility and navigation to safety to the facilities and amenities that residents want to see.
What will be the outcome?
Outputs from the co-design session will help to inform the plans being developed for the site. The ambition is that what is proposed truly reflects the wants and needs of the local community.
Bringing Stakeholders Together
We unite private, public, and third-sector stakeholders with communities to develop long-term social infrastructure plans, ensuring shared responsibility and sustainable impact.
We also bring together professionals to facilitate shared learning and collaboration, as we do in managing the Tackling Loneliness Hub on Behalf of Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Read more in the case study below and visit this link to learn more about the Hub.
×
The Tackling Loneliness Hub
What was the ask?
To oversee and run the Tackling Loneliness Hub on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
(if it’s still in progress – what will the outcome be?) As the first of its kind in the world, the hub was initially developed by the Campaign to End Loneliness and serves as a digital platform where professionals in research and academia, charities, government, think-tanks and more can come together to network, share knowledge, resources and insights.
By leveraging these strategies, we aim to create vibrant, connected communities where people can meet, mix, and thrive together.
