The Coopers Edge Trust

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• Headlines from the project
• About their approach
• Challenges
• What's changed?
• What's next?

“The overarching ambition is to create community spirit and ensure that there is something for everyone within the community.” (Coopers Edge Trustee)

When The Coopers Edge Trust began their project in 2011 they had a simple goal – to foster a spirit of community by connecting people together and involving them in creating new local activities. As a brand new housing development in the heart of Gloucestershire offering a mix of private and social housing, Coopers Edge had no regular activities and nowhere for the residents to meet together. Neighbourhood Challenge offered an opportunity to invest in the social fabric of this new community and build a strong and shared identity for its residents.

The project was managed by a small group of residents who were already active trustees of the Coopers Edge Trust and firmly committed to making a contribution to the development of the area. The trustee board was originally galvanized around the development of a new local primary school, and the trustees were keen to build on this, and ensure that Neighbourhood Challenge complemented all the work that was happening to prepare for the opening of the new school.

Some headline messeages from the project

All the Neighbourhood Challenge projects offered rich opportunities for learning. We have picked out just a few specific insights from this project here below:

• Internet based communication tools, such as facebook and twitter have had a big impact.
• The temporary community centre acted as a vital, accessible and visible, hub around which most community activity was organised.
• Small amounts of money enabled residents to start new community-led initiatives which have gone from strength to strength and will have a lasting impact.
• The co-ordination and management of this fairly substantial project alongside work and family commitments has proven taxing for the volunteer Trustees.

About their approach

There were four main features of Coopers Edge Neighbourhood Challenge: a Community Organiser was employed to work in the community; a temporary community building was installed to provide a space for people to meet and do things together; small amounts of money were made available to local residents to help them turn their good ideas into projects; and a newsletter, website and facebook page were created to let everyone on the estate know what was happening. Combined together these four features enabled the project to do two crucial things: to (1) connect people together and (2) help them turn their ideas into action;as outlined here below.

1. Connecting people together and sharing ideas

“I went to the Community BBQ because of a free burger and now I’m running the football team.”(Coopers Edge Resident)

“People put up ideas on the facebook page and then other people comment on them. It encourages accountability to each other and demonstrates people care.”(Coopers Edge Resident)

“Having a community organiser is a huge benefit and has given us the opportunity to be available for the community more of the time.”(Trustee of Coopers Edge Trust)

Over the course of the Coopers Edge Neighbourhood Challenge year it was very important for the group to find ways to connect people together. Their summer BBQ kicked this process off by attracting a wide range of people to a family oriented event where people were invited to talk about what they would like to see happen in their community. Following this, there were lots of other community events, which helped to create a ‘feel-good, we are in this together’ community spirit.

‘Virtual connections’ were also made on the Coopers Edge facebook pagewhich people used to introduce themselves to each other and share their ideas for new community activities. With over 226 followers facebook proved to be a good way of getting people together quickly to do things in the community: “We just post a message to say the community newsletter is ready to go and 28 people turn up to pick up the newsletter for their street.”(Trustee of Coopers Edge Trust)

But because social media and large scale community events are not for everyone, connections were also made through one to one conversations at bus stops, in the street and over the garden fence. This is where the Community Organiser’s role was particularly important. By being present in the community throughout the day and during the school holidays, he was able to build relationships with a wide range of people and talk with them about the things they would like to see in Coopers Edge. 2. Turning ideas into action

“The (seed) funding was really important to us. We wouldn’t have gone on without it. It was a good business idea but it needed some start up costs to cover the insurance.”(Seed Fund winner)

“It’s no good saying ‘here is a community centre and this is what we are going to run on these dates’. It doesn’t mean anything until people adopt it and make it their own” (Coopers Edge resident)

“There were so many people with the capacity to invest their time or expertise – there just wasn’t a base to focus this around.” (Community Organiser)

The newly introduced community centreoffered the much-needed space to turn residents’ ideas into reality. Described as the ‘heart’ of the community, this temporary mobile unit provided the venue for a growing number of community led activities, from Stay and Play and a youth club to Pilates, Zumba and occasional Quiz nights. It also provided a meeting space for residents to organise their campaign to challenge decisions about the building development that affected the community.

Seed fundingmade it possible for some people to overcome financial barriers to taking their ideas forward. Five projects were awarded funds of up to £5000 to cover start up costs after pitching their ideas in the ‘Coopers Den’. The projects, which include a Drama Group, Football club and Gardening Enterprise, got off to a very good start and have shown that they can raise their own funds, where needed, to keep going beyond Neighbourhood Challenge.

Relationship building with outside agencies was one way that the Community Organiser brought new resources into the estate in response to the ideas that people put forward. For example, he encouraged health visitors from outside the area to come in and offer regular sessions for families at the community centre. He also made links with youth service providers and secured funding to pay for them to provide out-of-school activities in Coopers Edge.

What's been challenging?

“It’s been a fast ride for such a new community having to meet the demands of such a large national project.”(Trustee of Coopers Edge Trust)

“Building relationships at a grass roots level takes time and patience and for our group we need to sustain the high bar that has been set for communicating with the community.”(Trustee of Coopers Edge Trust)

Neighbourhood Challenge brought valuable resources into the community, which acted as a catalyst for community activity. However the co-ordination and management of these fairly substantial resources proved to be very demanding for the volunteer Trustees. Important conversations and decisions about the project’s management had to fit in and around busy work and childcare schedules and because of this the scale and pace of the project proved to be taxing.

The Trustees learnt that volunteer time alone is not enough to tie all the strands of community activity together. In order to build relationships with all parts of the community, it is necessary to be physically present and available on a day to day basis, yet the work commitments of many voluntary organisers mitigate against this. The momentum that the project has created therefore presents them with new challenges as they move beyond their Neighbourhood Challenge year and lose the visible, on-site presence of a Community Organiser. Because of this, meeting the heightened expectations associated with the success of the first year is a priority for the Trustees as they look to raise resources to continue the work.

What's changed?

“When the trustees were asked what they thought success would look like at the start of Neighbourhood Challenge, one thing they said was other people would have the confidence to run activities and the trustees wouldn’t be involved in the actual organizing. This is happening now and it gives us huge pride.” (Trustee of Coopers Edge Trust)

“I can’t think of anywhere I’ve lived that has this much community spirit.”(Coopers Edge resident)

It reminds me of my grandparent’s generation. People know their neigbhoours and do things for the benefit of others rather than just themselves.”(Coopers Edge resident)

Local assets have been unlocked

• In the last month of Neighbourhood Challenge, 80 people volunteered their time to organise or support community activities.
• Up to 200 people from a community of 580 homes are taking part in community activities within the community centre on a weekly basis

Abilities and ambitions have grown

• A wide range of new groups, activities and one-off events have been instigated by local people; however this does mean that expectations have been raised, creating challenges for unpaid local people who are the co-ordinators of activities.

Creation of new networks, connections and collaborations

• New links have been made with outside agencies, bringing additional resources into the community such as youth provision and health visitor services.
• New partnerships with parish councils and other community groups have been formed creating new opportunities for joint ventures in the future.
• New networks have been established within the community and participation no longer rests with a small group of people. This has created potential for community activity to continue when the paid worker finishes.

New opportunities to influence

• A community meeting held in the temporary community centre brought 70 residents together with local councillors to put pressure on the estate developers and local councils to build the facilities that they promised when the estate was planned.
• Young people have been meeting with councillors and planners to progress the development of a new Skate Park.

What next?

“Neighbourhood Challenge has given us a springboard as a community, we now have more people than ever volunteering and helping to make a difference in Coopers Edge.”(Trustee of Coopers Edge Trust)

“The Neighbourhood Challenge experience has mobilized many people. To sustain a level of commitment and involvement it needs a glue to hold it together”(Trustee of Coopers Edge Trust)

As Neighbourhood Challenge comes to an end, the temporary community centre will be replaced by a dedicated community space within the new school as part of the new housing development. Many of the activities that took place in the mobile unit will be relocated to the new school, where there will also be opportunities to hire the large hall, dance studio and sports facilities.

Community events will continue to feature on the Coopers Edge calendar and plans are already afoot for the first community party in the new community facilities.

Intent on securing resources to maintain the momentum of the Neighbourhood Challenge year, the Trustees are seeking funding to support volunteer co-ordination and youth engagement.

Regardless of whether additional funding is secured, the Trustees are optimistic that the new volunteer led groups, activities and initiatives that have been established during the Neighbourhood Challenge year will continue to flourish, although the pace of action that took place during the year the paid organiser was in place, will shift into something more manageable for the volunteer-led network.

Read the Coopers Edge Trust blog

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