Heart Of Pitsea
Key points
- Heart of Pitsea Big Local set up a youth forum which distributed £60,000 a year on projects to support young people to develop skills, educate residents about crime and run sports clubs.
- The partnership nurtured healthier lifestyles by developing a new park, improving existing green spaces and supporting residents to grow their own fruit and vegetables.
- They also opened a men’s shed as their legacy organisation to tackle social isolation in the long-term.
About the Big Local area
The Heart of Pitsea Big Local area was based around the town of Pitsea and included several small housing estates close to the town centre.
Only 40 minutes from London by train, Pitsea was in the 10 per cent most deprived areas in England (MHCLG, 2019). There were high levels of youth unemployment, and 30 per cent of children lived in poverty (DWP, 2024a; 2024b; 2024c) which was over 10 per cent higher than the average in the South East. The area also experienced high levels of anti-social behaviour (Police UK, 2024).
Located on the Thames estuary in Essex, Pitsea became part of Basildon in the late 1940s, and locally there was a feeling that Pitsea was often overlooked in favour of the larger Basildon area, particularly regarding regeneration and other resources.
Pitsea’s 8,100 residents had good access to green and open spaces (ONS, 2022). Access to shops was also good and the area was easily walkable, but there was poor lighting which made residents feel unsafe. There was also poor availability of civic spaces such as libraries, leisure centres and community centres (OCSI, 2019).
How the Big Local area approached delivery
The Heart of Pitsea partnership’s first Big Local plan was structured around five priorities for the area: supporting residents to have healthier lifestyles and better mental health; increasing activities, training and employment opportunities for young people locally; improving community safety; bringing residents together to improve the local environment and foster a sense of ownership; and developing a local park and a men’s shed to increase community pride and connection.
Heart of Pitsea Big Local partnership maintained an average of 10 partnership members throughout the programme, which included young people and representatives from local businesses, the council, and health agencies. At first there was an application process to join the partnership, but this was later dropped to make membership more accessible. In 2020, Heart of Pitsea adopted a co-chairing approach to partnership meetings to make them more participatory and engaging. This increased members’ confidence and led them to take on more responsibilities and deliver activities. The partnership also employed two workers to support project delivery and administrative responsibilities.
The partnership set up a separate youth forum, Youth YOUnique Generation, facilitated by the partnership chair. The aim of the forum was for a diverse mix of young people aged between 13 and 17 to steer the focus of the weekly sessions. They funded activities for young people with their £60,000 annual budget, including first-aid training, a social club, football coaching and a Climate Ambassadors’ initiative: the last of which distributed energy saving tips, planted herb gardens, replanted the community centre’s front garden, and litter-picked.
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.
Many Big Local partnerships funded workers to support the delivery of Big Local. They were paid individuals, as opposed to those who volunteered their time. They were different from Big Local reps and advisors, who were appointed and paid by Local Trust.
What the Big Local area did
Investing in young people
Funding sports schemes to provide opportunities for schoolchildren
The Heart of Pitsea Big Local Youth Forum commissioned a local school sports provider to deliver eight days of sports and games during the summer, in an area that was known for high levels of anti-social behaviour. Youth Forum members developed marketing, commissioning and project management skills. They promoted the scheme in two local primary schools to ensure it reached their target audience and helped to build local networking between parents. On average 87 young people attended each day. These activities helped schoolchildren to be more active while increasing use of Pitsea’s green spaces.
Heart of Pitsea Big Local partnership also funded the creation of a local martial arts club to run after-school karate sessions for 48 weeks. The funding enabled 45 schoolchildren to take part by making the sessions low-cost and covering the costs of uniforms. The club also created opportunities for teenagers to develop leadership and teaching skills by supporting the tutors. This club became sustainable and continued to run beyond the Big Local funding.
Place-based pride and connection
Building a sense of community ownership and local pride
The Heart of Pitsea Big Local partnership worked with the council to supply and install Christmas lights for the first time in twenty years. This improved residents’ perception of the town and helped increase footfall to local shops and Pitsea market. Heart of Pitsea Big Local partnership also established an annual “Community Christmas” event which was very popular. Members worked with local partners to ensure it continued beyond the Big Local programme, and remained an annual community event.
Responding to crisis and urgent need
Educating residents about crime prevention
Reducing crime was a top priority for residents during community consultation. In response, The Youth Forum developed ACTION, a two-year project to educate residents. They ran workshops for parents, children, and young people to discuss different types of crime, signs of domestic abuse and anti-social behaviour, and where to turn for help and support in crisis.
The initiative was mainly volunteer-run by partnership members and Youth Forum members, while some activities were commissioned. The final year of the project was delivered by the partnership’s Locally Trusted Organisation (LTO), Billericay and Wickford Council for Voluntary Service (BWCVS).
Community engagement
Engaging residents to grow healthy food and improve the environment
Early on, Heart of Pitsea Big Local partnership adopted the national Incredible Edible gardening scheme to improve the local environment by growing fruit and vegetables. This volunteer-led project was supported by the Big Local worker who helped build a rapport with the community.
Incredible Edible operated with four regular volunteers and often attracted passers-by. Young people got involved by planting, harvesting and scrumping crops during the holidays. The gardening scheme ran weekly in five community garden plots across the Heart of Pitsea Big Local area. The volunteers gave away over 500 packs of harvested fruits and vegetables to the surrounding homes which helped build a great feeling of achievement and community spirit, as well as encouraging healthier diets and lifestyles.
Health and wellbeing
Working with local charities to provide local health services
Working with local agencies, Heart of Pitsea Big Local partnership was able to provide community-based solutions and access to a range of health services. They allocated funds to Motivated Minds CIC to run a regular walking club, supporting isolated residents to get out and socialise. This provided rehabilitation for some residents who were recovering from poor health and injury.
The partnership also commissioned Hearing Help Essex to provide a free, walk-in service for hard-of-hearing people to have their hearing aids maintained, whilst receiving advice from a trained volunteer. The sessions grew in popularity as they provided residents with easy access to services, without having to travel out of the area to the main hospital for regular check-ups. The Audiology department at Basildon Hospital supported the sessions and worked with Hearing Help Essex to provide updated hearing aids for younger people.
Setting up a Men’s Shed CIC to combat male social isolation
Heart of Pitsea Big Local partnership established a men’s shed, specifically to combat social isolation. The partnership had a long-standing relationship with the local Chalvedon Club community centre and, a few years after setting up the project, they received permission to site the shed next to it.
The partnership set up a CIC to manage the shed beyond the Big Local funding. Not only was it a long-term physical legacy in the area, but the CIC also rented the space to a local men’s suicide prevention charity. This helped to generate income and enable them to run men’s woodworking workshops in a supportive environment.
Community assets and spaces
Improving green spaces to support healthier lifestyles
Although there were marshes nearby, community consultation highlighted the need for a more accessible green space. Heart of Pitsea Big Local partnership developed an empty field into a new park with children’s play areas, and the community were consulted on design and layout of equipment. The project also installed an outdoor gym to give residents on lower incomes the opportunity to exercise. The Legacy Park was funded by Heart of Pitsea Big Local and developed by Basildon Council, with the council still maintaining it towards the end of the Big Local programme.
The partnership also refurbished Elm Green Park, which Essex Council supported by donating play equipment accessible for disabled children. Maintenance was taken on by Basildon Council, which was ongoing towards the end of the programme.
Working with the council to support biodiversity with a wildlife area
Alongside work on the parks, the partnership approached Basildon Council to create a new wildlife-friendly educational nature zone in a wooded area behind a local primary school. Two years after conversations began, the council installed a new pond and wetland area, new benches, signage and wildflower areas. They also installed a stumpery log pile for insects and a hibernaculum for frogs, toads and reptiles.
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 Heart of Pitsea Big Local told Local Trust they used their Big Local funding.
References
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) (2024a) ‘Universal credit: Employment status by age’. (Accessed 16 October 2024)
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) (2024b) ‘Jobseekers allowance by age’. (Accessed 16 October 2024)
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) (2024c) ‘Children in low income families: local area statistics’. (Accessed 16 October 2024)
Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) (2019) ‘English indices of deprivation 2019’. (Accessed 16 October 2024)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022) ‘UK Census 2021: All persons’. (Accessed 16 October 2024)
Oxford Consultants for Social Inclusion (OCSI) (2019) ‘Left behind neighbourhoods’ (Accessed 18 November 2024)
Police UK (2024) ‘Top reported crimes: Anti-social behaviour (12 month total)’. (Accessed 16 October 2024)