The Big Local area was set in East Coseley, a group of densely populated, suburban residential neighbourhoods in the Black Country between Dudley and Wolverhampton (ONS, 2022a). There was a clear western boundary along the A4123 dual carriageway, and Coseley train station provided links to Birmingham and Wolverhampton. At the time of Big Local, Castle Street was the main shopping parade with a post office, newsagent, pharmacy, and grocery shops. The area also had a library, surgery, dentist, opticians, three schools, a policing unit, and a Business Park. Community buildings and churches were hosting activities and there were three parks with small play areas, football pitches, allotments, and a stretch of the Birmingham Canal.
In 2021, the population of East Coseley was approximately 9,600 (ONS, 2022b), with an age profile mirroring that of the West Midlands – around one fifth aged under 16 and a similar proportion aged 65 or over (ONS, 2022c; 2022d). At the time, 55 per cent of households were living in owner-occupied properties (compared with 64 per cent in the West Midlands) (ONS, 2023a), and a third in social housing (compared with a fifth in the West Midlands) (ONS, 2023b). The area had higher levels of deprivation than the West Midlands and England (MHCLG, 2019), and unemployment was higher than the national average, with nearly a third of working age people in receipt of some form of unemployment benefit (DWP, 2024a; DWP, 2024b).
The East Coseley Big Local partnership emerged quickly as it formed from an existing group of residents – Working Together in Coseley. From the outset, the partnership called themselves the ‘Core Group’, based on the view that the whole neighbourhood should be regarded as partners. Alongside the Core Group, active residents were called Community Volunteers.
The structure of East Coseley Big Local and the people and organisations supporting it remained consistent throughout its ten years. Although the partnership chair changed mid-way through the programme, the advisor employed by Local Trust, the Locally Trusted Organisation (Dudley CVS), and the Changemaker Support Officer they employed were the same throughout. This continuity helped create stability for the partnership, which addressed its priorities through various working groups. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the East Coseley Community Forum (a quarterly community accountability mechanism) provided the partnership an opportunity to develop themes and priorities, showcase work, and discuss plans. The partnership’s vision was for East Coseley to be “a vibrant, welcoming community, proud of its heritage and taking responsibility for its economic and environmental future”. Priorities included “doing more to communicate and connect people” and “creating our own community activities and common spaces”.
Throughout the programme the partnership worked with external partners, like working with the Canals and Rivers Trust to improve the East Coseley stretch of the Black Country Blue Network. Other collaborations included working with Beatfreeks to develop activities with young people and Just Straight Talk (a Community Interest Company) to employ two workers to address loneliness and social isolation.
There were no plans to establish a legacy organisation to continue the partnership’s work beyond the Big Local programme. Rather, some activities would continue independently, and many people involved as Community Volunteers would use the know-how gained through the programme to continue community work in other ways. According to their final Big Local Plan, the partnership’s legacy was for East Coseley to be a connected community that takes responsibility for their economic and environmental future by working together and with local organisations, creating and maintaining vibrant activities, events, and community spaces.
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.
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.
From early discussion and the initial Big Local plan, a key theme for the East Coseley partnership was doing more to communicate with and connect people. The aim was to increase knowledge in the community about what is happening and share information and positive news to build a stronger sense of community.
Over 300 people were involved in early discussions, through a range of engagement routes. These included events (like fun days, the annual Big Event, a Picnic of Ideas for young people, and story-telling sessions), a survey, community research, meetings, community forums, and visioning days.
A Coseley Life Facebook page (3,000 members in 2024), blog site, and quarterly newsletter (Coseley Grapevine) were established early on, and organised by residents and volunteers. The newsletter was delivered to 4,000 households, as well as local businesses, community centres, and the library. It gained a good profile and, other than a pause during the pandemic, lasted throughout the Big Local programme.
Small grants were used to build community engagement by supporting clubs, groups, and active residents to purchase equipment or hire venues for activities. In addition to small grants, a Community Spirit Fund enabled those involved in Big Local to access small pots of money to grow community spirit through activities open to all. This included skittles and curling at a local hall, public art at Coseley Station, and plants and equipment for the garden at Coseley Bowling Club.
Through dedicated sub-groups, East Coseley Big Local supported work to improve the environment at key sites in the area, notably Coseley Station and a local stretch of the Birmingham Canal. The Coseley Station Group was a group of volunteers (borne out of an existing allotment group) who worked to improve the station by maintaining planting and window boxes, and installing benches and a mural. The group was subsequently supported to join the Community Rail Network.
Coseley’s stretch of Birmingham Canal had fallen into disrepair, and with fly-tipping, graffiti, hazardous waste, and a collapsed wall, it was barely used. Funding from Big Local, the Canals and Rivers Trust, and the European Regional Development Fund was invested in a £100,000 project to improve biodiversity as part of the Black County Blue Network. This match-funding helped provide new signage and planting, cutting back overgrown trees and vegetation, and improvements to the canal towpath for safety.
Early plans indicated the importance of the local economy in East Coseley, particularly the ability and willingness of residents to spend locally, and development of new business ideas. Local businesses were promoted through the Coseley Grapevine, and the partnership worked with UnLtd to support emerging micro-entrepreneurs, though other endeavours were more successful.
An initial priority was to support work addressing debt and financial exclusion in the area, and to make a positive impact through social investment. Big Local funding was invested in Castle and Crystal Credit Union (the credit union covering the area) – a £15,000 repayable corporate deposit and a £5,000 grant. It was estimated that approximately 50 residents collectively saved £30,000 on interest on loans per year by borrowing through the credit union. The corporate deposit was repaid in 2022 and, with the support of residents, Dudley CVS (the Locally Trusted Organisation) managed a grant programme using these funds to support further activities in East Coseley.
Loneliness and social isolation were not major themes in early East Coseley Big Local plans, but became more important over time, following the lockdowns of the Covid-19 pandemic. Through the first lockdown in particular, the partnership supported and participated in online coffee mornings, quizzes, craft sessions, and community lunches. They also helped older residents and those in vulnerable situations through regular phone calls, providing technology to connect online, shopping, and collecting medicines.
The Big Local partnership began supporting small initiatives to bring people together in events and small activity groups – starting with a free Christmas meal, and expanding to a Community Cinema, craft sessions, walking football, and a men’s group.
The partnership collaborated with Just Straight Talk (an organisation focused on wellbeing and mental health) on Just Start Talking. Two people were employed as Community Connectors, and were quickly able to engage residents through coffee mornings and craft sessions, before establishing Pom-Poms 4 Loneliness. Residents came together to make pom-poms, which were hung on benches, fences, lampposts, and road-signs in the neighbourhood, with a label providing information about loneliness and social isolation. The aim was to get people talking and make connections in an appealing, quirky way. Word spread (aided by a regular slot on local radio) and the Pom-Poms 4 Loneliness Facebook page amassed over 3,000 followers, with photos being submitted of pom-poms hung in unlikely places across the world.
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 East Coseley Big Local told Local Trust they used their Big Local funding.
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) (2024a) ‘People on universal credit: not in employment’. (Accessed 21 February 2025)
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) (2024b) ‘Jobseekers allowance’. (Accessed 21 February 2025)
Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) (2019) ‘English indices of deprivation 2019’. (Accessed 18 February 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022a) ‘UK Census 2021: Population density’. (Accessed 18 February 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022b) ‘UK Census 2021: All persons’. (Accessed 18 February 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022c) ‘UK Census 2021: Age structure of the population: Population aged under 16’. (Accessed 18 February 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022d) ‘UK Census 2021: Age structure of the population: Aged 65 years and over’. (Accessed 18 February 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023a) ‘UK Census 2021: Owner occupied housing’. (Accessed 18 February 2025)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023b) ‘UK Census 2021: Social rented housing’. (Accessed 18 February 2025)
