St Matthews Estate
Key points
- St Matthews Big Local partnership worked with major funders to deliver a multi-use games area and outdoor gym, which became popular with the entire community.
- An empowering youth programme offered young people training, support and opportunities to transform their neighbourhood.
- A weekly community café brought together women from different communities, fostered new friendships and enabled women to have a voice in local decision-making.
About the Big Local area
The St Matthews Big Local area was based in a compact housing estate sited between dual carriageways to the north of Leicester city centre. Fifteen minutes’ walk from one side to the other, the estate largely comprised purpose-built flats and a recreational space. Residents lived close together as the estate was much more densely populated than the wider area (ONS, 2022a).
Nearly 40 per cent of the 4,900 residents were aged 19 or under (ONS, 2022b; 2022c), with nearly two thirds of these young people living in low-income families (DWP, 2024). Unemployment rates were nearly twice as high as the wider East Midlands area and the percentage of residents lacking qualifications was also significantly higher (ONS, 2022d; 2023a).
In 2021, 78 per cent of the population were of Asian and Black African heritage (ONS, 2023b; 2023c). Despite the area being among the 10 per cent most deprived in the country (MHCLG, 2019), many people in the community described the estate as a welcoming safe haven.
How the Big Local area approached delivery
From the beginning, St Matthews Big Local partnership’s vision celebrated diversity and focused on helping residents reach their full potential. This approach was evident within the partnership itself, as members with no previous experience of formal meetings became skilled in complex decision-making around issues such as asset transfers and leases.
For the first two years, partnership members and volunteers delivered the programme themselves. The partnership initially pursued quick wins to show the community the kind of changes that could be made. Following feedback from residents, litter bins and benches were installed around the estate to improve the local environment and encourage neighbours to socialise.
In 2016, the partnership became one of the first Big Local partnerships to form its own charitable incorporated organisation (CIO). Leasing ground-floor space in a former pub, the CIO enabled St Matthews Big Local partnership to manage its own work, rather than working with a separate Locally Trusted Organisation. Partnership members, who were mostly residents, were also trustees of the CIO.
As the partnership increased their activities, they recruited and allocated funds to paid staff, from one part-time community development worker in 2016 to 16 staff in 2024. Reflecting the partnership’s vision of being community-led and providing local people with opportunities, many roles were filled by residents.
Throughout the programme, St Matthews Big Local built partnerships with organisations including Leicester City Football Club, the City Council and Leicester Adult Learning. Through the CIO they also secured around £600,000 from a wide range of funders. As part of its legacy strategy, the CIO later extended its area of benefit to Leicester and Leicestershire so it could offer services and support to other communities, as well as further delivery in the St Matthews area.
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 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.
What the Big Local area did
Community assets and spaces
Building informal connections to deliver an outdoor gym
With the only recreational space on the estate overgrown, St Matthews Big Local partnership was keen to improve access to free sports and fitness facilities. When the Leicester Deputy Mayor tweeted about outdoor gyms, the partnership chair replied suggesting building one on the St Matthews estate. This led to the council funding 90 per cent of the cost of the outdoor gym, with Big Local funding meeting the remaining £3,000. The outdoor gym was installed in 2017 and became well-used by the local community.
Working with multiple funders to launch a Multi-Use Games Area
The following year, St Matthews Big Local partnership obtained a 25-year, low-rent lease from the council on land next to the outdoor gym. Securing £194,000 from Sport England, the Cruyff Foundation and Samworth Brothers, they developed a Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA). A further £20,000 from the People’s Postcode Lottery enabled them to revamp the adjacent park, which was renamed the Austin Jackson Memorial Garden after a local police officer who died on duty.
The MUGA’s running track, floodlit football pitch and netball and basketball courts were free to use. Residents felt a strong sense of ownership over the facility, which was very popular, sometimes visited by over 200 people a day. Many local groups and organisations set up activities at the MUGA, including Leicester City Football Club’s Premier League Kicks programme.
The partnership felt that the MUGA’s success came from consulting and involving residents in the design process, and by utilising the space to empower residents through training opportunities such as sports coaching. It created opportunities for young people through football, sport, mentoring and personal development. In addition, the partnership ran their own programmes, including women-only training, football and basketball sessions.
Investing in young people
Using sport to equip young people with skills and employment opportunities
Young people had a strong voice in St Matthews Big Local partnership: some teenagers sat on the partnership and others inputted through consultations. Young people were able to shape the sports on offer at the Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA), and the partnership established a pathway that moved young people from watching or participating in sport to gaining coaching or other qualifications, volunteering or working for St Matthews Big Local.
One school pupil, who felt there weren’t many opportunities for them, visited the MUGA during lockdown. Though they didn’t play sports, they were supported to volunteer, and this led to them completing a certificate and working as a coach. They supported St Matthews Big Local holiday sessions and led peer research about youth violence, which was shared at a national conference.
Empowering young people to support their neighbourhood
St Matthews Big Local partnership empowered young people to make decisions about their community through ring-fenced funding that young people could allocate, and also the establishment of a youth forum and youth club.
Relationships built with young people through sport programmes at the Multi-Use Games Area enabled the partnership to progress further projects. In 2022, the youth forum developed into ‘Changemakers’, a group of young people who took action to improve their community and support residents in vulnerable situations. Changemakers spent time with older residents, ran bingo sessions, gardened, installed bird boxes and helped at the food bank. Through their involvement, these young people made a difference, while building relationships across generations and between cultures.
Local economy
Delivering training to upskill residents
Over the ten years of the Big Local programme, the partnership supported over 400 residents to access hundreds of courses with Leicester Adult Learning, from English-language classes to first aid. Big Local funding provided up to £250 per person towards accredited courses, or £150 for non-accredited courses. Many parents used these funds to pay for childcare costs so they could attend a course. In some cases, this led directly to employment. For instance, one resident gained a job after completing a food hygiene course.
Place-based pride and connection
Connecting women through a weekly community café
The partnership established St Matthews Ladies Community Café in the early years of Big Local, which was attended each week by up to 40 women from diverse backgrounds. They brought their children, made new friends and built their own community.
This thriving women’s group then used their collective voice to discuss community issues, such as crime, safety and transport, with local stakeholders. As the Big Local programme wrapped up, it became an independent group with its own committee.
Responding to crisis and urgent need
Flexing to offer a vital community service during the Covid-19 pandemic
When Leicester experienced the longest lockdown of any British city in 2020 and into 2021, St Matthews Big Local partnership remained open, organising a food bank and hot meal service. Funders who were aware of their community work contacted them to offer support, and Leicester Food Partnerships contributed £600 of food every week.
Demand for the food bank was so high that some residents had to queue for three hours to gain access, so individual time slots were allocated to help ease queues and improve efficiency. A click-and-collect system was later put in place so that residents could come and pick up pre-packed items.
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 St Matthews Estate Big Local told Local Trust they used their Big Local funding.
References
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) (2024) ‘Children in low income families: local area statistics’. (Accessed 9 December 2024)
Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) (2019) ‘English indices of deprivation 2019’. (Accessed 9 December 2024)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022a) ‘UK Census 2021: Population density’. (Accessed 9 December 2024)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022b) ‘UK Census 2021: Age structure of the population: Population aged under 19’. (Accessed 9 December 2024)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022c) ‘UK Census 2021: All persons’. (Accessed 9 December 2024)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022d) ‘UK Census 2021: Economic activity status, England and Wales’. (Accessed 9 December 2024])
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023a) ‘UK Census 2021: Highest level of qualification: No qualifications’. (Accessed 9 December 2024)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023b) ‘UK Census 2021: Ethnic group: Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh’. (Accessed 9 December 2024)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023c) ‘UK Census 2021: Ethnic group: Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African’. (Accessed 9 December 2024)