Community engagement within Big Local

The research answers these questions and more about community engagement in Big Local:

1. What’s happening – why and how are Big Local areas engaging their community?
2. What’s different – how and why does engagement differ between Big Local areas, and how is Big Local different compared to other programmes?
3. What’s working – what’s working, for whom and in what circumstances?
4. What’s being learnt – what’s being learnt or tried that could help others?

You can download the full or summary report, or explore the engagement wheels and case studies prepared by the researchers.

Case studies

Using activities to engage: Engaging people through events in SO18 Big Local

Building on existing engagement and collaboration: The importance of current participation in Brookside Big Local

Targeted work: ‘1000 conversations’: Community Organising and one-to-one interaction in St Peter’s and the Moors

Empowerment and capacity building: Helping residents and local organisations grow in Whitley

Communications and conversations: Partnership communication with the rest of the community in Big Kirk Hallam

Engagement wheels

The researchers developed five engagement wheels to help describe and understand engagement in Big Local:

• Wheel 1 – Purpose: what are the drivers of community engagement in areas? (this wheel is shown below)
• Wheel 2 – Context: what are the most relevant features of local context?
• Wheel 3 – Motivations: what motivates people to get involved?
• Wheel 4 – Approaches: what are areas doing?
• Wheel 5 – Effectiveness: what does effective practice look like?

Download a PDF of all the engagement wheels

To see the wheels alongside an explanation of their content and development, refer to the full research report.