Neighbourhood Challenge Learning Paper

Download the Neighbourhood Challenge Learning Paper (PDF 2.87MB)

Neighbourhood Challenge was a Nesta and Big Lottery Fund (BLF) programme. It started with the assumption that communities everywhere have untapped creative potential; and that given enabling support and finance, they can become active sources of innovation rather than passive beneficiaries. We funded and worked with seventeen diverse community organisations across England to explore how this would work on the ground, focusing particularly on areas of low social capital. Each local project was selected for their approach to catalysing change and releasing untapped potential in their communities. They did this in different ways, but the common feature was that they tapped into and helped release the creativity, experience, ideas, energy, time and insight of local people themselves.


This paper sums up the learnings from the programme so far.

Published
September 2012

Author
Nesta