3ni newsletter
March 2026 |
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3ni supports local government and the wider public sector by promoting community-led, neighbourhood regeneration, drawing on emerging next practice, and lessons from past initiatives, including the pioneering Big Local programme. |
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Learning from Big Local
The session invited people into a reflective, energising look at what Big Local has really meant for neighbourhoods, not just in terms of projects delivered, but in how communities grow confidence, connection and resilience over time. Drawing on early insights from Chloe and her team, it explored how Big Local showed the power of patient, people‑centred investment. Attendees heard how Big Local areas built momentum through listening, nurturing leadership and creating spaces where residents felt represented, valued and able to shape what happened next.
Stories from BEAT in Leeds brought these ideas vividly to life. Their journey, from early tensions and fragile progress to transforming a troubled park and finally securing a long‑dreamed‑of community building, showed how perseverance, shared ownership and everyday acts of trust can reshape what people believe is possible. As the document puts it, leadership became less about having answers and more about listening, and the physical space they fought for became a symbol of pride, permanence and community power.
The session closed with a sense of collective clarity: meaningful community change takes time, honest relationships and a commitment to being led by residents. Through discussions on engagement, asset‑mapping and partnerships, participants reinforced that trust grows slowly, conflict is normal, and the strongest foundations come from investing in people as much as places. It left the room with a shared feeling that this work matters deeply, and that no one is doing it alone.
Watch Tajinder's thoughts on the whole day and her key takeaways:
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| | Pride in Place: Building a Movement for Neighbourhoods
Pride in Place marks a new chapter for councils: one where residents are supported to drive the change they want in their communities. When we gathered local government officers late last year, we explored how to turn that ambition into day‑to‑day practice. Take a look at the key lessons. |
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| | Turning a moment into a movement
Pride in Place is, at its heart, a social programme where people living in deprived neighbourhoods across the country are given real power for change. But it can only achieve its potential if we truly back it up, argues Dan Crowe, our director, in his latest article with the MJ.
Read the article now. |
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| | North East Study Visit
Stepping away from desks can change inspire, challenge and shift perspectives. That's why we took government officers to visit organisations doing great work in the North East, putting residents at the centre of everything they do.
You can now learn how these organisations do it, day in, day out, in our new report. |
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| | MHCLG Pride in Place winter eventsWe hit the road with MHCLG and Local Trust for a series of five Pride in Place events, offering a chance to dig into the potential of community‑led change. We also brought our own workshop into the mix, exploring how meaningful partnership with communities starts with humility, openness, and shared purpose.
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| | Just neighbourhoods? This new research from our friends at the University of Reading examined how neighbourhood scale planning operates in disadvantaged neighbourhoods, and the extent it supports more equitable outcomes in place-based decision-making. Its recommendations include creating special planning arrangements that put communities in deprived areas in a genuine position of co-production in planning for place. Dan Crowe from 3ni was a member of the Just Neighbourhoods Advisory Group. Read the report now. |
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Spotlight
This is where we highlight the work of a 3ni member, from local government, the public sector or a local community we are working in.
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Wigan has long been shaped by industry and resilience, but the past century’s economic shifts have left deep inequalities across many of its neighbourhoods. Even with this backdrop, the borough has spent the last 15 years building a reputation for bold, community‑centred innovation, most notably through the Wigan Deal. After the pandemic, local leaders took stock of what had genuinely changed and where things had fallen short. They recognised that while progress had been made, inequalities had deepened and the council had sometimes tried to “fix” communities rather than work alongside them. From this honest reflection came a renewed, collective movement: Progress with Unity.
Reviving the borough’s original motto, Progress with Unity sets out six simple but powerful ways of working. In just a year, this shared approach has sparked real momentum, from new education partnerships to health initiatives with local sports clubs. At its heart is neighbourhood reform: investing in community energy, shifting power locally and redesigning public services so they help unlock, not overshadow, community capacity. With long‑term national investment and new partnerships supporting this work, Wigan is showing that cultural change is possible when collaboration is genuine and values lead the way. |
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Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions at info@3ni.co.uk.
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