Residents were at the heart of Big Local. Partnerships worked with the wider community to understand their priorities, build awareness of Big Local, and shape activities. This work also focused on engaging residents as volunteers and decision-makers, so that local people could feel a sense of ownership over what happened in their area.
Community engagement was critical for driving genuine resident-led change. However, meaningful engagement takes time, resources and support. Some partnerships found it difficult to connect with residents beyond their own networks or to engage underrepresented groups. Sustaining engagement, particularly when encouraging residents to progress from participants to volunteers or decision-makers, proved equally challenging. To address this, many partnerships allocated funds for a dedicated community worker to help them widen their connections and relationships with residents and maintain momentum over the course of the programme.
Big Local offered a new and important space for resident-led decision-making. Partnerships had the freedom to decide their own structures, processes and procedures. Recognising that these spaces could sometimes feel too formal and even intimidating to some residents, they explored ways in which the participatory governance of Big Local could be more open and accessible. Partnerships engaged residents by:
This engagement helped generate buy-in, strengthened social infrastructure, and increased local activity. High levels of resident engagement also helped to ensure that activities reflected the needs and aspirations of the residents themselves.
