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3ni, the national network for neighbourhood improvement aims to create and add value for its members by sharing the learning and innovation about what works to improve local neighbourhoods and outcomes for residents.
- Members are invited to regular sessions with peers, experts and practitioners to discuss issues at the forefront of community-led neighbourhood improvement.
- The network runs funded study trips to encourage knowledge and innovation-sharing.
- To support our calendar of events, the network will produce and publish session summaries and supporting research, including access to the latest cutting-edge data.
Upcoming events up in 2025
Work programme
3ni will publishing its 2025 work programme of work, research and member events shortly, including details of the next in-person meeting, study visit and first Action Learning Set for 3ni members.
Social Capital 2025
As part of the Social Capital 2025 series of papers that 3ni has commissioned in partnership with Demos and Local Trust, 3ni will be holding a number of events during 2025 exploring the role of social capital at the neighbourhood level.
Read the Social Capital 2025 papers.
Read 3ni Director Dan Crowe’s blog on the origins of the Social Capital 2025 papers, and how social capital can improve outcomes for children in doubly disadvantaged neighbourhoods.
3ni on the road
We’ll be at the following conferences as exhibitors and also running a workshop session and fringe event: more details to follow soon!
New Local’s Stronger Things 2025, 3 June, London
Local Government Association conference and exhibition, 1-3 July, Liverpool
Past events
3ni at the Co-operative Councils Innovation Network (CCIN) Conference, 12-13 February 2025
3ni showcased an exhibition stand at the CCIN AGM and Conference, demonstrating the new Discovery tool, and discussing the importance of strong local social infrastructure to building inclusive and resilient and underpinning co-operative, mutual and community enterprises. The event was hosted by the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
How We Did It: Moving towards a neighbourhood strategy, 4 December 2024
In partnership with New Local, 3ni held an online event to discuss the development of neighbourhood strategies. It featured learnings from Camden Borough Council about their route towards neighbourhood working and developing the infrastructure to make it happen, including the One Kilburn initiative.
3ni study visit to Wigan, 11-12 November 2024
3ni took 20 local government officers from 16 local authorities across England on its first study visit, showcasing innovative neighbourhood improvement in practice.
Wigan Council hosted the first day of the visit. Participants heard from Alison Mckenzie-Folan, Chief Executive of Wigan Council and senior officers and elected members, who reflected on the legacy of the pioneering Wigan Deal and the council’s ‘New Era’ of community wealth building. 3ni members also experienced firsthand the Be Wigan experience, the council’s pioneering interactive and immersive approach to culture change.
On day two of the study visit, participants visited two exemplary community organisations in Wigan: Northern Heart and Soul and Fur Clemt, learning about their innovative community-led responses to neighbourhood improvement.
Local Government Association Conference Fringe Event, 22 October 2024
How can community-led approaches build thriving neighbourhoods?
Together with Local Trust and chaired by Jess Studdert, Chief Executive of New Local, this fringe event explored how councils can support communities to address pressing challenges such as deprivation, overstretched public services, and eroding trust in institutions. It drew together a range of perspectives on effective neighbourhood working, and practical examples of what works, with contributions from Patrick Melia, Chief Executive of Sunderland City Council; Cllr Jane Ashworth, Leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council; Matt Leach, Chief Executive Officer of Local Trust; and Anna Francis of the award-winning Portland Inn Project, Stoke-on-Trent.
Read the summary notes to find out more about how community-led approaches to tackling today’s complex challenges.
Stronger Things, 4 June 2024, London
Double disadvantage: developing community capacity and resilience in priority neighbourhoods
Building on the learning from almost 15 years of delivering the Big Local programme, 3ni led an interactive workshop on how local authorities can identify levels and types of need at the neighbourhood level, with insights from Dover Big Local and Dover District Council.
Dan Crowe presents at the Stronger Things conference, June 2024. Photo: New Local
Local government workshop on ‘Neighbourhood-level approaches to identifying community strengths and addressing needs’.
The network’s first workshop surveyed the evidence on the role of social infrastructure investment in building community capacity, resilience and improving life outcomes in the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods.
The session included presentations from:
- Alison Mckenzie-Folan, Chief Executive of Wigan Council, on community capacity and resilience-building
- Rebecca Gipp, Head of Levelling Up Coordination at Essex County Council, on Essex’s Levelling Up Strategy
- Stefan Noble, Director at OCSI, on identifying community strengths and needs using the Community Needs Index 2024
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