Canvey Island
Key points
- Canvey Island Big Local created activities and spaces to offer young people a sense of ownership in their community.
- A key outdoor space was redeveloped to encourage community connection and generate pride in the local area.
- Small grants helped distribute decision-making to residents and local groups.
About the Big Local area
The Canvey Island Big Local area spanned the eastern region of Canvey Island, in the Essex borough of Castle Point. Surrounded by a network of creeks, throughout the Big Local programme Canvey Island was only connected to the South Essex mainland by two roads. As a reclaimed island in the Thames Estuary, it sat just above sea level and was prone to flooding. Large sea walls surrounded the island, blocking views of the estuary.
The island had a population of around 40,000 in 2020, with around 6,680 people living in the Big Local area which covered two wards – Winter Gardens and Canvey Island Central (Canvey Island Town Council, 2020; ONS, 2022a). Twenty-two per cent of residents in the Big Local area were under the age of 16, compared to 17 per cent in Castle Point (ONS, 2022b). The area was over four times more densely populated than the wider borough and had a high proportion of social housing – 27 per cent, compared to five per cent across the borough (ONS, 2023a; 2023b).
Local facilities included a primary and a secondary school, a volunteer centre, a health centre, and small shops. Regular local bus routes ran services to the nearest train station, and residents had access to services and facilities just outside the area, including clubs for older adults, a skate park, teen café, sports facilities, and large supermarkets. The area had limited open spaces, which tended to be surrounded by housing, though did have some green and recreational space.
How the Big Local area approached delivery
The Canvey Island Big Local partnership consulted with the local community and stakeholders throughout the programme to inform their priorities. They spent the first two years conducting community outreach work to understand resident concerns, including attending existing local events.
Following this, the partnership adapted their approach to host their own consultation events, hoping to increase engagement from the community. They organised a free, informal Fun and Fitness Day, which attracted around 250 attendees, a significant increase from their previous consultation efforts. The event introduced families to local clubs, health initiatives, and free, accessible activities, which boosted wellbeing, helped build contacts, and validated existing community priorities. The partnership participated in, organised, and supported a range of community events, and took a commissioning approach to supporting local events. These events were opportunities to promote Big Local and ensure residents could experience events for free.
Whilst there were some changes during the programme, three priorities were consistent throughout: community engagement and connection, improving community assets and spaces, and activities for young people.
Early on, the partnership established a scheme through which residents could request small one-off grants to support local projects. The grants scheme ran for eight years, after which the remaining funds were allocated towards the area’s community asset project, The Gunny. The partnership reflected that the small grants scheme enabled the community to respond to local need themselves, improving community pride. Grants funded activities for young people and families, and appliances and renovations for local facilities. One highlight for partnership members was supporting Little Lions Family Hub to install flooring in their sensory room, which allowed children with special education needs and disabilities to use the space again.
The Canvey Island Big Local partnership was formed and led by a core group of older residents (many of whom were local councillors), and for parts of the programme some younger residents were involved. The partnership reflected that residents of Canvey Island felt that the area was looked down on by neighbouring communities on the mainland and not prioritised for investment by Castle Point Borough Council. They felt they had an important role to play in championing their residents and advocated persistently for what they felt was best for the community. Though, challenges in working with stakeholders — such as limited flexibility from the partnership about their requests — caused delays in delivering their Big Local plans.
At times they also experienced delays due to health challenges and the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite these challenges, the Canvey Island Big Local partnership was closely connected with the community and championed local heritage.
Towards the end of Big Local, partnership members helped establish a ‘Friends of’ community group to preserve The Gunny – a redeveloped historic site with a large outdoor play and learning space. Working with their Locally Trusted Organisation (LTO), Trust Links, they transformed The Gunny into a community hub for indoor and outdoor activities.
A Big Local partnership was a group made up of at least eight people that guided the overall direction of delivery in a Big Local area.
A Big Local Plan set out what changes the partnership planned to make, how they planned to deliver on this and how funds were to be allocated. It was written for themselves, their community and Local Trust, as a guide and action plan.
What the Big Local area did
Community assets and spaces
Transforming a historic site into a community asset
Early on, the Canvey Island Big Local partnership identified The Gunny as a site for an ambitious 10-year development to provide community activity space and youth provision. The Gunny was a historic site used as an Anti-Aircraft Gun Battery during World War II, which later became a park and one of the first skate parks in the UK. Over time, it fell into disuse, becoming a marshy space prone to flooding and considered by some residents to be a hotspot for anti-social behaviour.
The Gunny was owned by Castle Point Council, with a heritage status comparable to Stonehenge. When the partnership’s initial plans for community allotments elsewhere in the area stalled, The Gunny was prioritised as a site for restoration in the partnership’s Big Local plan. Plans to redevelop The Gunny were initially driven by Canvey Island Big Local, and later supported by Southend-on-Sea City Council, Canvey Island Town Council, residents, and Trust Links, the partnership’s Locally Trusted Organisation (LTO). The project aimed to address local issues such as loneliness, social isolation, and a lack of accessible outdoor spaces, by creating a new community hub with space for activities, workshops, meet-ups, and support services, and a therapeutic gardening project.
The historic listing of the site prevented any building, so plans focused on converting the disused playground on site into a multi-purpose community activity space. Just under £600,000 of Big Local funds were allocated to the project over the course of the programme. Delivery involved navigating complex planning processes, with permissions needed from local authorities and Historic England. These processes, in combination with the Covid-19 pandemic, partnership members’ wellbeing and interpersonal challenges with stakeholders slowed progress for several years during the mid-years of Big Local.
Despite the slow progress of the project, the partnership remained committed and gained renewed backing from residents (twice, several years apart), when they consulted on what they wanted from the site. Feedback from stakeholder meetings and a household survey showed strong support for a community garden, a youth and community building, accessibility features, and historic preservation.
A planning application was submitted mid-way through Big Local in 2021, incorporating the community’s ideas, and Historic England granted permission to go ahead. Following this, Trust Links played a crucial role in fundraising, full-time project management, and liaising with contractors, raising over £450,000 in addition to Big Local funding.
In 2025, as Big Local was coming to a close, The Gunny was officially reopened, with a long-term vision for the space to preserve heritage, boost biodiversity, and bring residents together, supporting mental and physical health, learning, and community connection. Facilities included essential infrastructure such as parking, a play area for young residents, outdoor gym equipment, a forest school and outdoor learning spaces, and accessible paths. Within a few months of opening, repeated incidents of vandalism led to the Gunny adopting a membership model for residents, reducing ad-hoc access.
Towards the end of the programme, further Big Local funding was used by the partnership to create a therapeutic community garden. This aimed to create a welcoming and inclusive space to improve residents’ wellbeing. Using a membership model, residents could access the garden to enjoy a range of activities at the space (including woodwork and potting plants), with the opportunity to complete horticultural qualifications. Funding was used to create wildflower patches, raised vegetable beds, picnic benches, and pergolas to encourage connection with nature. Volunteer support was crucial throughout this major project, with the Friends of the Gunny group organising events and activities to ensure the space could continue to be led by local people.
Fostering community connection by improving open spaces
A key focus for the partnership was to create spaces to help drive community connection. Improving outdoor spaces was a way to achieve this whilst also investing in areas to give young people places to play and reduce social isolation.
The partnership reflected that the Avenues Estate experienced anti-social behaviour due to underinvestment in youth facilities and the environment, and decided to improve the area’s appearance and create space for mobile youth facilities. Early on, the Canvey Island Big Local partnership allocated funds to environmental improvements across the estate. This included new stepping stones, a hardstanding area to host youth activities, and organised litter picks. Though initial improvements were successful in reclaiming the space, flowerbeds were quickly damaged, highlighting a need for permanent infrastructure. This led the partnership to redirect resources towards other local organisations, such as Northwick Park Primary Academy.
Working with Canvey Town Council, the partnership delivered a new play area for children. It opened with a well-attended celebratory launch in 2017, including games and activities to bring residents together. In addition to the playground, which served as a focal point to engage young residents, the partnership and council collaborated to install picnic benches by the lake and along the long walkway into town. The benches addressed a need identified by residents, particularly older people, who found the walk difficult to complete without resting. The Canvey Island Big Local partnership played a key role in improving public spaces around Canvey Lake, helping to enhance community wellbeing and reduce social isolation by creating a more welcoming environment.
A locally trusted organisation (LTO) was the organisation chosen by people in a Big Local area or the partnership to administer and account for funding, and/or deliver activities or services on behalf of a partnership. Areas might have worked with more than one locally trusted organisation depending on the plan and the skills and resources required.
Investing in young people
Providing consistent support services
During Big Local, the Canvey Island partnership formed a long-term collaborative relationship with Yellow Door (a youth outreach organisation). Yellow Door was briefly the area’s Locally Trusted Organisation, offering space for committee meetings, sharing knowledge and guidance, and managing funds.
The partnership’s approach to work with children and young people centred on reaching them where they already met, and providing activities in those spaces. Big Local funding was allocated to Yellow Door to visit young residents with their youth bus and provide a weekly youth club, offering sports coaching, games, creative activities, and informal advice on health, drugs, alcohol and relationships. As many of the young people were aged under 11, a Christmas event was held with Santa, hot chocolate, and presents.
Yellow Door offered a consistent presence for young people, supplying safety gear for activities and responding to feedback from young residents by providing sessions on fire, road, and personal safety. They offered these outreach activities and resources at the hardstanding area by Canvey Lake, at Waterside Farm Skate Park, and via social media during the Covid-19 pandemic. Once established, up to 40 young people were engaged every week, with over 200 young people supported over the course of a year. Yellow Door’s outreach work was set to continue at the skate park after the end of the Big Local programme.
Using small grants to provide skills development opportunities
Partnership members reflected on two highlights of the small grants scheme. For five years, small grants funded swimming lessons for children who would otherwise not have had the opportunity to learn to swim. Following this, further funding was allocated to Canvey Island Swimming Club for lessons, and for 10 junior school pupils to use the Northwick Park Academy facilities. Partnership members felt this project was one of the highlights of Big Local, as it provided opportunities for young people to enjoy both social and health benefits.
The programme supported 22 swimmers to improve their swimming skills, and the coach reported that several had the potential to reach county, regional, or national level competitions. When the club held its own time trials, six Big Local swimmers achieved qualifying times which allowed them to compete in official swimming galas. Community involvement was strengthened, with parents joining the swimming committee and volunteering as lifeguards, timekeepers, or judges, and two former swimmers becoming qualified swimming teachers.
In addition to specific uses of small grants like the swimming programme, Big Local funding was also invested in broader projects to offer meaningful opportunities for young people to develop lifelong skills. The partnership worked with Northwick Park Primary Academy to renovate a pond on the school’s grounds. The pond, bridge, nature area, and forest school had become difficult to maintain and fallen into disrepair, making them unusable and unsafe. The school applied for a small grant from Canvey Island Big Local to renovate the spaces with a parent group and local volunteers. Pupils were included in the design process and contributed thoughtful and creative drawings which helped shape the project.
The partnership reflected that the project reinvigorated a valued learning space, strengthened community connection, and empowered volunteers.
How the Big Local area spent their funding
Each Big Local area received approximately £1.2 million (ranging from £1.199 mil to 1.209 mil) to spend over 10–15 years, depending on how much additional funding they accessed from Local Trust to address specific needs. For example, to bring people together at the start of the programme or to access training and support. This has been categorised for areas and at the programme level based on reports received from areas.
Partnerships chose their own priorities and categories for reporting, and were encouraged to use broad categories so they could use the funding flexibly. All areas spent a significant amount of money on ‘Big Local delivery costs’ such as workers’ salaries, stationery and IT equipment. You can find out more about programme level spend in this article. This is how Canvey Island Big Local told Local Trust they used their Big Local funding.
References
Canvey Island Town Council (2020) ‘Annual Report 2019/20’. Available at: canveyisland-tc.gov.uk/uploads/CITC%20Admin/Annual-Reports/Annual-Report-2019_20.pdf (Accessed 3 December 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022a) ‘UK Census 2021: All persons’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/datasets/populationandhouseholdestimatesenglandandwalescensus2021 (Accessed 3 December 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022b) ‘UK Census 2021: Age structure of the population: Population aged under 16’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/datasets/populationandhouseholdestimatesenglandandwalescensus2021 (Accessed 3 December 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023a) ‘UK Census 2021: Population density’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/datasets/TS006/editions/2021/versions/4
(Accessed 8 September 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023b) ‘UK Census 2021: Social rented housing’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/housing/bulletins/housingenglandandwales/census2021 (Accessed 3 December 2025)