Past Events

16th July, Online

Our Learning Communities are a space to reflect with peers on how to deliver community-led regeneration. Our second session focused on culture change, with Simon Haworth from Wigan Council and Angela Fell, a community change maker in the area. Together, they explored what it takes to transform institutional culture and place residents at the heart of decisions in systems not traditionally designed for shared power.

7th-9th July 2026, Bournemouth

3ni attended the LGA conference to showcase our work at our stall and host a session on our new social capital score.

Social capital – the networks, relationships and trust that help communities function – plays a critical role in economic growth, health and resilience. Yet it is often overlooked. There is also a clear mismatch. Social capital is created in neighbourhoods, workplaces and local spaces. But it is usually measured at regional or national level. This masks the local dynamics that shape people’s day-to-day lives. 3ni has developed the Social Capital Score to help local authorities identify priority neighbourhoods and target investment where it will have the greatest impact. It turns social capital from an abstract concept into a practical policy tool.

We were joined by OCSI and Wigan Council to explore how we can measure and build social capital, centred on supporting local residents and harnessing the existing assets in our communities.

2nd July 2026, Bristol

This gathering was a chance for local authority officers and residents involved in Pride in Place across the South West to come together, swap ideas, and spark new possibilities.

The day started by reflecting on the Pride in Place journey so far and thinking through ideas and challenges together, with the help of talks from Bristol City Council and Community Organisers to spark conversations. In the afternoon, we headed to Ambition Lawrence Weston for lunch and to hear their story, from their beginning as a Big Local partnership to the organisation they are today, and a visit to their wind turbines.

We will share the key insights from the day soon.

16th June 2026, London

We attended Stronger Things this year, holding a space to have conversation about 3ni and hosted our very own event, ‘Shared roots, shared futures: Exploring personal stories to strengthen community bonds’. In this session, we explored how heritage and personal stories can strengthen inter‑generational bonds and reveal shared priorities within a community, highlighting the London Borough of Havering’s Bonds Through History project, in collaboration with 3ni, Eastside Community Heritage, and Thames Freeport. We were joined by Jessica Finnin, Cohesive Communities Manager at the London Borough of Havering and Judith Garfield, MBE, Executive Director at Eastside Community Heritage to join our very own Dan Crowe to explore this important topic.

You can read our key take-aways from the day in our blog.

Across the country, people working in community‑led regeneration are grappling with similar questions, often in isolation. Our Learning Communities create a space to step back from the day‑to‑day work and reflect alongside others who understand the work from the inside.

Our first session focused on asset‑based approaches, with Vicki Gwynne and Alexandra Shafer from Stoke‑on‑Trent Council and Jackie, an active volunteer in the area. Together, they explored what it means to begin with what’s strong rather than what’s wrong, and how communities can build on the assets they already have. After hearing from them, attendees had the opportunity to discuss what resonated, what they’re wrestling with, and heard how others are navigating similar terrain.

Lessons learned from previous regeneration initiatives, from New Deal for Communities to Big Local, show that to achieve long-term sustainability and maximum impact it is vital that local residents are able to play a leadership role in local regeneration efforts. At 3ni we know that putting communities in the driving seat requires targeted support and resources to develop the confidence, skills, and capacity needed to lead change locally.

To fulfil the promise of Pride in Place, meet the objectives of future hyper-local place-based initiatives such as the Community Wealth Fund, and most importantly, improve outcomes in those communities that have been hit hardest by the impact of deindustrialisation, austerity, COVID and the cost of living crisis, communities need to be facilitated and supported to take action on the things that matter most to them.

This important and timely consultation examined how local authorities, communities, partners and funders are currently working to build community capacity in their neighbourhoods, identifying the key ingredients for success, and what changes are needed to support such work and share best practice.

The Big Local programme has been one of the most ambitious community‑led funding initiatives in England. Across 150 areas, residents were entrusted with £1 million each to create change from the ground up. As the programme reaches its conclusion, this was a moment to pause, reflect and explore what its legacy can teach us about building stronger, more resilient communities. 

The session began with an overview from Local Trust, the organisation responsible for supporting and documenting the Big Local programme. They presented key findings, recurring themes and insights emerging from more than ten years of resident‑led decision‑making, partnership development and place‑based investment. 

Participants also heard from BEAT, a legacy initiative established within a former Big Local area. Their contribution outlined their experience of being on the programme and transitioning into the organisation they are today. They discussed the challenges encountered, the strategies adopted to maintain momentum and the aspirations guiding their future development.

Read the notes from the event.

11 December 2025, House of Lords

Pride in Place is a pivotal moment for local government and communities alike. It brings with it exciting opportunities to celebrate identity, strengthen connections, and inspire change. Yet, with such promise can also come challenges.  At our event, 3ni brought together local government leaders to look at what Pride in Place means in practice.

Hosted by Baroness Hilary Armstrong, Chair of the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods, we were joined by Rachel Rowney, Chief Executive of Local Trust and Mark Pepper, Development Manager at Ambition Lawrence Weston. We explored why Pride in Place must be rooted in the principles of co‑production and community‑led regeneration. This gathering was also an opportunity for councils to connect, exchange ideas, raise concerns, and take part in the beginning of an ongoing conversation.

If you want to learn more, you can read the notes from the day.

25th November 2025, London

Local government officers joined us for an in-person event exploring why neighbourhoods must be at the centre of policy-making and how we can rebuild them for the future.

At this event, officers had the chance to shape the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods‘ (ICON) forthcoming report on developing a national strategy for neighbourhood reconstruction. Over the past year, ICON has been investigating the vital role neighbourhoods play in people’s lives and building practical recommendations. Their interim report highlights the untapped potential of neighbourhoods and the ways institutions can help shift power closer to communities.

They also heared from Vicki Gwynne, from the Strengthening Communities Programme at Stoke-on-Trent City Council. Vicki will share lessons from their journey of “messy exploration” with and within communities, offering valuable insights into what it takes to build a neighbourhood strategy from the ground up.

Here’s some of the content we discussed on the day:

Towards a National Strategy for Neighbourhood Reconstruction. Presentation by Andrew O’Brien, Head of Secretariat at ICON

The Stoke Story. Presentation by Vicki Gwynne, Communities Programme Lead at Stoke-on-Trent City Council