What we achieved together: Newington Big Local
Newington Big Local (NBL) began in 2014 as part of Local Trust’s Big Local programme, placing £1 million of national lottery money directly into the hands of residents to transform their community over 10-15 years. Newington Big Local was one of 150 areas across England to take part.
What made the Big Local approach special was that it was entirely resident-led, hyperlocal, and committed to long-term change, putting local people in control of their neighbourhood's future.
In 2013, we formed our partnership of residents and supporters dedicated to making the estate a better place to live. We consulted with as many residents as possible to find out what mattered to them.
Then we developed a plan to respond to these priorities:
Opportunities for children and young people
Enhancing our green spaces
Community events
Improving money management skills and access to healthy food
These priorities guided our work throughout our journey, with the now refurbished Newington Community Centre representing the physical embodiment of this legacy.
Our projects ranged from intergenerational groups and creative activities, to trips, holiday activities and a youth-led club. We had a lot of fun along the way.
Read on for our Newington Big Local highlights.
Creativity builds connection
We took part in the Local Trust's Creative Civic Change programme, which brought new creative projects to Newington over three and a half years:
Community Map (photo taken by Rob Turner)
The Hot Dog Club brought families together for after-school activities. They created the eye-catching Alley Animals that you can see on the community centre and in the alley between the Copse and Newington Primary School. The group also created the beautiful mosaics and murals at the community centre.
We worked with the school to research and design Species ID signs for the Copse.
We established the Youth Theatre group, through a partnership with Inspiration Creative and Screaming Alley, a local cabaret group.
Award-winning theatre came directly to our estate through Paines Plough's pop-up Roundabout theatre.
Weekly craft sessions with the Knitting Nanas and Hot Dog Club 2 continue to build connections between our neighbours
We organised Newington's first Lantern Parade in 2023 - we’re now working with five local schools and hope this will become an annual event.
These creative initiatives reflect the welcoming and creative environment that continues in our community centre today.
You can read the Creative Newington final report here.
Young people at the heart of Newington
Newington's Chill Club is a youth-led group we set up in 2018. It’s free to attend, inclusive, and offers young people a safe space to explore their creativity, build confidence, and develop new skills. Activities include art, crafts, sport, cooking, and more.
At Chill Club, young people take the lead in shaping sessions, driving forward their ideas, and building a space that belongs to them.
Members of Chill Club get involved in other local events and initiatives in the community. For example:
● Helping at Best Fest
● Running their own event in Paines Plough's pop-up theatre
● Having their say on the redevelopment of our local park
● Contributing to wider community projects
The impact of their ideas and energy ripples out into the wider community, showing how important it is to amplify the voices of our young people.
Community celebrations
Newington knows how to come together and have a good time. Over the years, we've created many opportunities to connect:
● Annual events include our Christmas party, Halloween celebrations, Easter events, and the summer Best Fest festival
● We host trips away including coach trips and camping excursions
● An unforgettable experience was our 2016 sailing expedition on a 19-metre gaff ketch (an expedition yacht) from Southampton to Chatham.
● We encouraged people to design and run their own events, such as our Garden Safaris.
These events build the strong community spirit that continues at the Centre today.
Sharing food
Food has been a priority for residents since the start of our Big Local. Our projects included:
● Working with award-winning Community Chef Mike Spackman to host family cooking activities, cooking with young people, our Curry Club for men, and our popular Community Lunch Club.
● Partnerships with local schools, the Job Centre, and East Kent College to create positive associations with healthy food and to increase food-related employability skills.
● In partnership with Fareshare Kent, we launched our Community Food Club just as the Covid-19 pandemic hit. It became a lifeline to many families during Covid and the cost-of-living crisis. Here is a snapshot of Newington during the Covid-19 pandemic.
● During the four years the Community Food Club operated, we supported over 300 households and distributed more than 500 tonnes of food to local families.
The newly refurbished training kitchen at Newington Community Centre will continue this important work, offering unique facilities for food education and community meals for years to come.
A greener estate
Over the years, we have worked with residents and partners to improve our green spaces:
● The Copse is now used by five schools and nurseries, while providing a peaceful space for community groups and activities.
● We set up a new gardening group to get more people involved in growing and to help keep the community centre garden flourishing.
Partnership and collaboration
We've always believed that we can do more when we work together, with residents as well as with partner organisations. Our collaborative approach means we have built lasting relationships with:
