In November 2025, 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. Participants had time to reflect on the opportunities arising from Pride in Place and understand how we can transform opportunity into reality.
Andrew O’Brien, Head of Secretariat at the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods (ICON), opened the session by reflecting on the need for a neighbourhood reconstruction strategy. Andrew highlighted the important 3-step plan to improve outcomes in neighbourhoods and the ‘Essential Eight’ elements to build the foundations to this change.
They also heard from Vicki Gwynne, from the Strengthening Communities Programme at Stoke-on-Trent City Council. Vicki shared 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 are their presentations:
Towards a National Strategy for Neighbourhood Reconstruction. Presentation by Andrew O’Brien
The Stoke Story. Presentation by Vicki Gwynne
Some of the key take-aways from the session included:
- Trust and community engagement are essential. This needs to be done consistently and steadily, not only with residents but also with the third sector.
- An asset-based approach is the way forward. Instead of focusing on vulnerabilities, this approach starts with what strengths a community has and encourages residents to build from there.
- Social capital is key. Bringing people together and strengthening communities enable residents to experience better life outcomes and, eventually, economic growth.
- Break down silos. Institutional dynamics can be a barrier to delivering effectively at neighbourhood level. Divergent priorities, bottlenecks and a lack of constructive dialogue can all get in the way of finding a common purpose.
- Difficult, honest conversations often need to be had, and organisations need a clear vision of what they hope to achieve. Policy integration and cross-disciplinary work were also identified as areas where trust needs to increase.
- Rethink communication. It can be difficult for councils to communicate milestone achievements in the face of sometimes challenging public perceptions of local authorities. Focusing on community-led narratives, removing logos and not forcing outside agendas can help bridge gaps between residents and councils where trust may be low.
Read the full summary notes now to learn more.