The Wembley Central Big Local area was in the Borough of Brent, north-west London, and home to Wembley Central railway station, a high street, shops, a park, and three primary schools. In 2015 the boundary of the area was extended to include the new secondary school and adjacent playing fields.
The area had a population of 6,550 and higher population density than the wider borough (ONS, 2022; 2023a). The population was diverse, with 59 per cent identifying as Asian and 15 per cent as Black (compared to 33 per cent and 18 per cent in Brent) (ONS, 2023b; 2023c). The area was in the top 20 per cent most deprived neighbourhoods in England, with 24 per cent of children (aged 19 or under) living in low-income families (MHCLG, 2019; DWP, 2025).
Access to housing was a key local issue, with 46 per cent of housing privately rented and 25 per cent socially rented (ONS, 2023d; 2023e). Residents predominantly lived in purpose-built flats and 1930s terraced housing. The area was part of a wider redevelopment plan, with 11,500 new homes built in Wembley throughout the Big Local programme (Brent Council, 2015). The partnership felt that the Big Local area didn’t have a strong sense of identity due to people travelling through the area for work and leisure.
The Wembley Central Big Local partnership formed in 2014. Early consultation through an event and surveys helped to form their key priorities. They focused on fostering community spirit; improving the quality of life of children, young people, and older residents; health and wellbeing; and the environment. Working in sub-groups, the partnership held community clean-up days, commissioned a mural, and organised the Heart of Wembley festivals. Through a small grants programme, they supported varied activities, including art workshops, Bollywood dance classes, and a sensory event at the school.
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.
After facing significant interpersonal and governance challenges, the partnership no longer met Local Trust’s core criteria and disbanded in 2019. Local Trust released funds for two Big Local workers to remain in place to continue engaging the community and bring together a new group of diverse residents as a partnership. The workers knocked on doors and, during the Covid-19 pandemic, followed up on interest with calls and online meetings. With support from the Big Local rep and an interim chair, the new partnership came together in late 2020 to choose their Locally Trusted Organisation (LTO), elect co-chairs, and decide on their priorities. Partnership numbers remained consistent with new members attending throughout the final years of the programme.
Nine partnership members took part in community research training and developed their confidence and practical skills through consulting with residents to create a new plan. Later, Big Local funding was allocated to an external organisation to deliver a ten-week consultation involving surveys, workshops, and stakeholder conversations.
The new vision focused on empowering residents and creating more trust and togetherness. Sub-groups were formed around key themes including children and families, young people, older people, community cohesion, and establishing a community hub as a legacy project. The sub-groups attended training to build their skills and confidence in delivering projects. One sub-group was trained in recruitment and were actively involved in hiring a new worker, while other partnership members learned about legal structures and trustees. Partnership members took on leadership roles, for example in launching fitness classes, leading regular coffee mornings, and rebuilding an allotment site.
Throughout Big Local, workers were employed in administration, community development, and project management, and a consultant supported the partnerships’ legacy work. To help deliver on their priorities, the partnership built relationships with youth organisations and schools to provide activities for young people. Towards the end of Big Local, in 2024, the partnership decided to set up a Community Interest Company (CIC) — The Big Green Social Action Hub — and later secured a lease on a community hub to continue delivering activities beyond Big Local.
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.
Each partnership was expected to reflect the specific needs and characteristics of its own area and was therefore unique. However, every partnership was expected to meet the following criteria:
Partnership members were asked to participate ‘in their own right’, meaning they could not represent the views of any other person or organisation.
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.
Reps were individuals appointed by Local Trust to offer tailored support to Big Local areas, and share successes, challenges and news with the organisation. These roles ended in 2022, replaced by Big Local Area Advisors. Advisors were a specialist pool of people contracted to Local Trust, who delivered specialist and technical assignments to support the partnerships.
Throughout Big Local, a key priority for the partnership was to improve the quality of life of children and young people in Wembley Central. Recognising the high cost of renting space in the area, Big Local funding was provided for weekly stay and play sessions for children aged 5 to 12, with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Children regularly participated in a range of activities including table tennis, football, sensory play, and arts and crafts. Coffee mornings were also held for parents and carers to meet and access support around welfare benefits and creating an education, health, and care plan for their child. By the end of Big Local the partnership had supported around 95 families through this work.
The partnership also established a long-term relationship with Daniel’s Den, an organisation running groups for parents and toddlers involving play and nutrition. In the early years Big Local funding was used for a session leader to deliver weekly activities for children to build confidence and for families to meet and build connections. The relationship with Daniel’s Den continued with the new partnership, and Big Local funding was allocated to play sessions for children under three during school holidays.
An early focus for the Wembley Central Big Local partnership was to support young people through a programme of activities, intending to reduce social isolation, improve education outcomes, and increase community cohesion. Big Local funding was allocated to local youth providers to deliver activities during school holidays. Young people aged eight to 18 took part in trips out, kayaking, arts workshops, and a six-week beatbox music and video project. Working with a local school, the partnership supported annual football and netball tournaments, which were well attended by local families.
The partnership was motivated to engage older children in decision-making. They planned to create a youth advisory board for residents aged 13 to 19 to contribute ideas to the partnership. With support from a Big Local worker, the partnership brought young people together to attend regular meetings, where food and activities (like trampolining) were provided. Some of those attending went to partnership meetings where they contributed ideas and fed back to the wider group. However, the partnership found it difficult to maintain momentum as the hub became a key focus, and many young people stopped participating in the activities. Although plans for long-term involvement of young people in the partnership were not realised, some young people did take part in first aid training and later contributed to the events management group, organising a Jubilee celebration event.
Early on, the Big Local partnership recognised the need for a community space to deliver activities in Wembley Central. They worked with property developers to access a space, where they installed office equipment and held music workshops and women’s support groups. Ongoing local development and loss of affordable space made it difficult to retain access to a permanent venue. Following the rebuild of the partnership, a key priority was to create a one-stop hub that would be welcoming and easy to access for the whole community. The partnership trialled different venues and spoke with property developers about the availability of upcoming space. Activities continued to be delivered through renting a room in a local building, however, as costs increased, the number of activities had to be reduced.
Towards the end of Big Local, in 2024, the partnership identified an opportunity to take on a council-owned bowls pavilion in King Edward’s park and bring it back in to use. They set up a Community Interest Company (CIC) – The Big Green Social Action Hub, participated in training on procurement and fundraising, and built lasting connections with local organisations. Despite challenges and delays, the CIC took on the lease of the bowls pavilion in 2025. Big Local funding was used for a building survey, a business plan, and refurbishing the building (including the kitchen and furniture). As Big Local came to an end, the CIC started transferring their activities and events to the new hub and were planning on using the space to offer training courses to residents.
The Wembley Central Big Local partnership created a programme of activity to improve residents’ physical and mental wellbeing. An early grant funded a 12-week self-defence class for women, involving mentoring and empowerment through martial arts. The 24 attendees were referred by Brent Victim Support and Wembley Safer Neighbourhood Team, and were taught about the law, how to report incidents, and creating a positive mindset. Participants reported feeling more assertive and confident in managing conflict.
To increase the availability of affordable physical activities, the partnership commissioned a local organisation to deliver outdoor fitness sessions in the park and weekly community walks. The partnership also created a programme of low-cost activities including salsa and Kizomba dance classes, Boxercise, and yoga for both children and adults (where 25 people attended regularly). After the end of Big Local, the CIC planned to continue offering exercise classes in the new hub.
To provide opportunities for people to meet and reduce social isolation, the partnership set up a weekly coffee morning where attendees could participate in board games, crafts, and Bingo. Around 40 people regularly attended these events. Some sessions had a special health-focus where guest speakers presented on topics such as building self-confidence, boosting mental health, and mindful nutrition. Attendees could have health checks (weight, blood pressure, and blood tests), learn about healthy eating, and be signposted to other services. GPs attending the event saw this as a way to empower residents to know how to look after their health and reduce health inequalities. At the end of Big Local, the weekly coffee morning had transferred to the Big Green Social Action Hub and was attracting new attendees.
The partnership identified a local allotment space as an opportunity to engage older members of the Wembley Central community. The Big Local partnership supported volunteers to take on the space and renovate it for use. The team installed fences, a pergola, and raised beds to provide wheelchair access. The allotment opened twice a week, and the group had 20 regular volunteers, many of whom were also active members of the older people’s subgroup. Partnership members volunteering at the allotment encouraged others to attend partnership meetings, bring along new ideas, and take on leadership roles.
During Winter, the group organised sewing classes to make baby quilts and volunteered at a baby bank that provided clothes, toys, and equipment for under-fives. Volunteers also attended a digital skills training workshop and a six-week gardening course, later receiving a prize for the size of their pumpkins. As a group, they became affiliated to the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) and arranged trips and outings to other allotments and RHS events. Towards the end of Big Local, the group were planning to bring young residents with special educational needs and disabilities from a local secondary school to the allotment to take part in activities. They had also secured further funding to employ someone to coordinate activities.
An ongoing focus for the Wembley Central Big Local partnership was to encourage community cohesion and connection between residents. In the early years, the partnership organised four Heart of Wembley Festivals on the Wembley High Road to create an opportunity for residents to celebrate and experience other cultures. They secured sponsorship from local businesses and worked with local schools to host dance and music performances, street theatre, and food stalls.
Later, the partnership attended training to build their skills and capacity to host their own events. They organised annual day trips to the seaside, providing low-cost coach travel and beach accessories. Trips to Margate and Bournemouth had 100 attendees each.
To commemorate the 75th anniversary of Windrush, the partnership organised an event to celebrate local diversity and talent. Around 200 people of different ethnicities and generations came together to enjoy Caribbean food and dance. Partnership members were proud that they had delivered a successful event and persuaded the local MP to attend and give a speech. The partnership continued to hold Windrush days each year and after the end of Big Local the CIC had secured funding to hold a four-day intergenerational festival at the new hub with singers, poets, musicians, and comedians.
Big Local funding was used for several projects focused on supporting Wembley Central residents to access essential items, such as food. Rather than competing with other organisations, the partnership saw their role as signposting and supporting residents to access these services. In response to the cost of living crisis, they supported a local organisation to supply food hampers and baby formula to 50 residents. At Christmas time they set up a scheme for residents to apply for £30 vouchers for local supermarkets and gave these out to 100 people. The partnership worked with the primary school to provide lunch for 550 students from families in low-income households (including students from refugee and asylum-seeking families), alongside school uniforms and toiletries for 30 students, and 20 dongles for wi-fi access.
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 Wembley Central Big Local told Local Trust they used their Big Local funding.
Brent Council (2015) ‘Wembley Area Action Plan 2015’. Available at: democracy.brent.gov.uk/ieIssueDetails.aspx?IId=15278&PlanId=0&Opt=3#AI14285 (Accessed 17 March 2026)
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) (2025) ‘Children in low income families: local area statistics’. Available at: gov.uk/government/statistics/children-in-low-income-families-local-area-statistics-2014-to-2024
Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) (2019) ‘English indices of deprivation 2019’. Available at: gov.uk/government/statistics/english-indices-of-deprivation-2019
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2022) ‘UK Census 2021: All persons’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/datasets/populationandhouseholdestimatesenglandandwalescensus2021 (Accessed 17 March 2026)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023a) ‘UK Census 2021: Population density’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/datasets/TS006/editions/2021/versions/4 (Accessed 17 March 2026)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023b) ‘UK Census 2021: Ethnic group: Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/datasets/TS021/editions/2021/versions/3 (Accessed 17 March 2026)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023c) ‘UK Census 2021: Ethnic group: Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/datasets/TS021/editions/2021/versions/3 (Accessed 17 March 2026)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023d) ‘UK Census 2021: Private rented housing’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/housing/bulletins/housingenglandandwales/census2021 (Accessed 17 March 2026)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2023e) ‘UK Census 2021: Social rented housing’. Available at: ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/housing/bulletins/housingenglandandwales/census2021 (Accessed 17 March 2026)
