The Government’s Pride in Place programme will see up to £5 billion given to nearly 250 areas across the UK. Each area will receive up to £20 million of funding and capacity building support over the next 10 years, to make long-term improvements that residents want. The money is being managed through new structures called Pride in Place ‘Neighbourhood Boards’ which will become incorporated organisations over time.
This national programme is intended to be a break away from traditional top-down approaches to neighbourhood regeneration where council officers and elected councillors make decisions and plans and then ‘consult’ residents about what will happen. Often people feel this leads to decisions having already been made and tokenistic consultation that doesn’t give residents any real power in deciding how resources are used and what the priorities are.
Manchester has five Pride in Place areas, which have been identified by the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government. (They are based on “Middle Super Output Areas” (MSOA), an administrative unit for statistical purposes which unfortunately often doesn’t reflect a locally recognised neighbourhood area). Here we link to maps of the Manchester areas, which are:
Note that some Pride in Place boards are deciding to change their area boundaries, but these were the original MSOA areas at the start of the programme.
Group discussion at MCR PiP Network meeting- 22nd May
Manchester Pride in Place Network
Recently, community and faith groups from across these areas have created an informal ‘Manchester Pride in Place Network’ to enable them to share ideas and learning and reflect collectively on how the programme is unfolding. If you would like to be part of this network, please sign uphere.
WCN Pride in Place Consultation
Community Savers leaders in Wythenshawe through Wythenshawe Central Network were recently commissioned by Manchester City Council to carry out a consultation with a broad and diverse network of faith and community organisations about how they would like to see Pride in Place organised; their hopes and fears for the programme; and top local priorities for capital and revenue investments in the Benchill South and Wythenshawe Central area.
You can download some highlights from our approach and report here.
Participatory tools
We created a range of participatory tools and activities to enable diverse groups to participate. These included:
A set of Pride in Place playing cards that small groups could use as a discussion aid to think about all the different kinds of facilities that neighbourhoods might need or that might be missing or need investment
Giant maps of the area with all the local faith and community buildings and facilities marked on them enabling participants to write, draw and stick notes onto different parts of the map during participatory workshops with diverse local groups across a range of community locations
A photo-mapping neighbourhood walkabout from the Northernmost down to the Southernmost point of the Pride in Place area. Residents took photos of the features they love or are concerned about in the area, including bus stops, different kinds of homes, run down community buildings and local green spaces. Then we displayed all the images on a slide show at St Andrews Methodist church and had a big group discussion about what we could learn from them
A resident-designed survey completed one-to-one by WCN committee members with local residents across a variety of key community settings
Consultation workshop with Lifted Carers- 11th May
Key findings
Below we share some of Wythenshawe Central Network’s key findings:
Priorities for the process
Local residents should take up the majority (80%) of seats on the Neighbourhood Board and it should reflect a diverse range of groups including young people and people with disabilities
There should be regular public meetings for information-sharing, consultation & transparency
The Neighbourhood Board should listen to and properly consult local residents to ensure the funding is well-invested and reflects what is needed by the community
Notes from consultation at Wythenshawe Forum- 26th May
Priorities for community buildings
Community buildings & walkways to be fully accessible for a full diversity of disabled adults, young people & children
Buildings, activities and spaces that are open during the evening & at weekends allowing local residents to be together and socialise without cost
Protected & indoor play spaces for children amidst high levels of antisocial behaviour in open spaces
WCN Neighbourhood Walkabout event- 14th May
Priorities for investment
Investment and renovation in community-run buildings such as St John’s Social Club & Brownley Green Methodist Church
More youth clubs & activities for young people of all ages without costs associated
A wide range of affordable cafes, restaurants & shops within the Benchill area
Better transport links, more benches, bins & public toilets
Lina presenting WCN PiP Consultation report findings- 11th June
If you are a local resident based in Wythenshawe and would like to become involved in the work of WCN, please contact wythenshawecentral@gmail.com.
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
The winds of political change were felt through the Council Chamber at Manchester Town Hall on Friday afternoon as the Manchester Social Housing Commission launched their final report and recommendations...
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating aNeighbourhood Plan for the area.
Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence what gets built in their area, how the buildings are designed and where they are sited. This is a good fit with the aims of SH4M, which are to see more community control over planning, and in particular, more housing that meets local need in terms of size, environmental factors, tenure and location.
“Neighbourhood planning provides the opportunity for communities to set out a positive vision for how they want their community to develop over the next 10, 15, 20 years in ways that meet identified local need and make sense for local people. They can put in place planning policies that will help deliver that vision, or grant planning permission for the development they want to see” Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)
Two community meetings, in April and May 2026, were attended by Hulme residents, the local Labour councillors, members of the SH4M coalition and a community planning consultant, Dave Chapman, to explore what would be involved in a NP process, and what could be achieved.
Dave, a chartered planner from Devon, has supported similar projects around the UK and thinks NPs can be a valuable democratic tool. He accompanied residents on a walk-round before the first meeting, to get an idea of the geography and the kinds of amenities and issues that would be relevant for a NP, and afterwards produced a briefing paper outlining next steps.
Since they were introduced by the 2011 Localism Act, most NPs have come to pass in relatively well-to-do rural villages and towns, where the existing parish or town council can be designated a ‘Qualifying Body’ to produce a Plan. In urban areas, it is necessary to first set up a Neighbourhood Forum, which can then apply to become a Qualifying Body in order to prepare a NP for a specified Neighbourhood Area.
In Hulme, the first big decision will be what footprint to choose for the NP. The ward has significant non-residential land, including that occupied by ASDA, the two universities and the science park, and a section of the Oxford Road corridor. A big chunk of Hulme has been defined as City Centre in the new draft Local Plan (with a carve-out for the Aquarius estate achieved by lobbying last year by local residents involved in SH4M), while some of it was previously assigned to a Castlefield Neighbourhood Area, for a Neighbourhood Forum that never got off the ground (and has since lapsed).
Next steps
We are waiting for a meeting with city planners to get their thoughts on the boundary options from a planning perspective. There will then be a well-publicised open meeting to bring together lots of Hulme residents, organisations and businesses, with the aim of agreeing the Neighbourhood Area, establishing a Neighbourhood Forum, and getting ready to submit an application for designation.
Assuming the Forum application is approved (by the Council and an independent planning inspector) – and if we’ve managed to raise a bit of extra funding – the fun can begin!
Preparing a NP should take two to three years, and would have several stages:
Evidence gathering: and analysing data on Hulme as it is today.
Community consultation and surveys: determining the priorities and ideas of those living in Hulme.
Drafting the plan:: establishing a vision, setting objectives and planning policies.
Independent examination: to ensure the plan accords with national and local policy.
Referendum: of all those on the electoral register in the Hulme Neighbourhood Area as to whether the Neighbourhood Plan should be used by Manchester City Council to help decide planning applications.
There is also still time to try to influence the Local Plan itself, when it reopens for consultation next month.
Beyond the Neighbourhood, beyond Hulme… the Manchester Local Plan
The ten-year Manchester Local Plan is currently being prepared, and will go into ‘Regulation 19’, the final round of public consultation, on August 17th, for six weeks.
From July onwards, SH4M is offering to run workshops for any community groups across Manchester who would like to scrutinise the Local Plan and raise objections or submit amendments.
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
The winds of political change were felt through the Council Chamber at Manchester Town Hall on Friday afternoon as the Manchester Social Housing Commission launched their final report and recommendations...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly to take stock and think about what we are achieving, how, why, what needs to change, and what new directions and opportunities should we be exploring?
For the last two years we have been supported in this deeper work by the brilliant Nifty Sustainability CIC whose latest independent annual impact evaluation report is now available!
Achieving an increase in Manchester’s social rent housing targets from less than 5% to 21% social rent in all new developments of ten homes or above through Social Homes for Manchester including “What is the City but the People?“community reporter documentary and film screenings.
Supporting community-led dialogues and evidence development for joint submissions from local area teams to the Manchester Local Plan Regulation 18 consultation including achieving the rezoning of the Aquarius estate in Hulme out of the city centre.
Supporting the formation and development of Arbourthorne Community Network in Sheffield and Wythenshawe Central Network in Manchester with ACN now organising around Housing in the footsteps of SH4M and WCN now with 22 organisations and over 130 local residents in membership and organising collectively for a stronger voice for women and families in new local regeneration programmes.
£27,731 of new deposits across the network, a STAR award for Brinnington Savers, and a new savings group launched in Middlesbrough!
Network wide action to save and create new community assets including launch of Mums Mart’s new community space in Benchill (free to use for local groups for ten years); St Cuthberts Communities Together’s redevelopment for a worship space and community hub; and Aquarius Community Savers joinining Friends of Aquarius to save the Aquarius Community Centre for community benefit.
Expanding the leadership (to 54) and Leadership Team (to 8) and deepening our work on diverse and inclusive leadership and organising.
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
The winds of political change were felt through the Council Chamber at Manchester Town Hall on Friday afternoon as the Manchester Social Housing Commission launched their final report and recommendations...
The winds of political change were felt through the Council Chamber at Manchester Town Hall on Friday afternoon as the Manchester Social Housing Commission launched their final report and recommendations to a room of over 100 housing and planning professionals, councillors, officers, housing activists, residents and communities.
You can watch clips of different sections of the event using the links at the bottom of this article.
Chaired by The Right Reverend Dr David Walker, Bishop of Manchester, and opened by Cllr Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council, the event began with powerful community testimonies. One single mum wept as she described her experiences of fleeing domestic abuse with her two disabled and asthmatic children only to find herself stuck in poor quality damp and mouldy private sector accommodation having to carry her wheelchair-bound child up and down the stairs several times a day to use the toilet in a house with no aids and adaptations.
Vicky Leigh, a Commissioner and Assistant Principal of Manchester Academies Trust, described the experiences of families supported through their At Home project through which they have supported over 300 families. Vicky talked of a family who have been able to stay together in the same community in secure tenancy social rent accommodation in an area where many families have been and continue to be displaced because of the lack of decent and affordable homes. Vicky described Clare as “one of the lucky ones”. She has one daughter in year 10 living at home with her, and two older daughters, one living with her, and another living nearby with her own family in their own secure social rent home. Living close together means they can all support each other with school runs and childcare. On their journey to this situation however, they had lived in such poor-quality social housing that their ceiling collapsed and the bathroom from the flat above fell through into their home.
Lina Dowouna and Reverend Kate Gray of Wythenshawe Central Network shared their experiences of tokenistic resident involvement and consultation processes in the latest wave of regeneration in Wythenshawe Town Centre. Reverend Kate explained that Wythenshawe Central Network know their own communities and know what kinds of tools and techniques work best, yet barely any local representatives have attended the workshops and meetings WCN have organised to gather the community’s views and priorities and share inspiring ideas for the future. This needs to change to rebuild trust:
“It really matters that this isn’t being done by the council. That makes a difference to people who feel excluded and done to. And I am sad to say that in the conversations that we have had in Wythenshawe, many local councillors are consistently absent from those conversations. And I want to challenge you to attend, and listen, and take part. That will help build active trust.”
Pledges to action
Bernard Sudlow of Hulme Community Forum and Sue Thomas O’Flaherty of Lifted Carers and Wythenshawe Central Network put a series of asks to key stakeholders who had agreed to participate as panellists at the event.
All panellists including Steve Fyfe for GMCA; Cllr Bev Craig, Leader of the Council; Cllr Gavin White, Executive Member for Housing and Regeneration; Matt Jones, interim Chair of the Manchester Housing Providers Partnership and Charlie Norman, Chair of the GM Housing Providers Partnership pledged to work with Commissioners to establish a Social Homes for Greater Manchester Scrutiny Panel focused on ensuring the Commission’s recommendations are taken forward in Manchester and across GM, that will meet quarterly until the next General Election.
Bishop David thanked Afzal Khan MP and Hannah Spencer MP for their attendance (despite having to leave early for constituency surgeries) and explained he will be personally following up with the Greater Manchester All Party Parliamentary Group of MPs to explore how to advance the Commission’s national policy recommendations.
In addition to participation in the scrutiny panel, Matt Jones Interim Chair of the Manchester Housing Providers Partnership and Charlie Norman, Chair of the GM Housing Providers Partnership expressed their full support and pledged to work with partners to ensure repairs are being carried out in a timely fashion and investment is made to remove dangerous damp and mould; and to ensure that providers are limiting demolitions to cases of last resort.
Cllr Bev Craig and Cllr Gavin White acknowledged that there was more work to do to ensure Manchester City Council works in collaboration with communities when planning for local areas. In addition toparticipation in the scrutiny panel, they committed to working with Social Homes for Manchester to co-create a policy on Community Led Development and expressed their political commitment to achieving a target of 30% social rent in the new Local Plan for Manchester.
Cllr White said:
“When we go to Regulation 19, we need that feedback: give us that evidence to present to the inspector to ensure that we can get the Local Plan through. It is the political aspiration to get 30% social rent entirely but that’s what we need in Regulation 19.”
Addressing inequalities
Dr Cordelle Ofori, Director of Public Health for Manchester City Council, who was invited to share her expertise on the links between health and housing inequality said:
“I am really supportive of this because the Right to Health and the Right to a Home go hand in hand. In Manchester […] between the poorest and the most affluent parts of the city, for boys it’s a 9-year gap in life expectancy and for girls it’s a 7-year gap. That’s completely unacceptable …But the things that make the biggest difference to health inequality are the things that sit outside of health services, and housing is a really important part of that […] If all of your money is going on keeping a roof over your head, you haven’t got much left for everything else. It’s also important for children’s education, it’s important for being able to get more training to move up the job ladder and get a better job, it’s important for so many things.”
Cordelle highlighted Making Manchester Fairer’s three key focus areas of (i) Shifting power to communities; (ii) Tackling poverty including fuel poverty; and (iii) Tackling racism and discrimination. Cordelle highlighted how racially minoritised groups are more likely to live in social housing, more likely to live in poor quality housing, and more likely to be in housing that is overcrowded; and the need to address the particular housing needs of disabled families. She called on all partners engaged in taking this work forwards to think about: what are the implications specifically for different population groups in Manchester amidst these recommendations; and how can we ensure these inequalities are addressed in the actions that are taken.
Celebrations and next steps
Several contributors celebrated the approach that has been taken by the Commission which you can read about in the concluding pages of the main report which shares detail on the methodology, challenges, and success factors as evaluated by Commissioners.
Bishop David thanked colleagues at Manchester City Council for their support and engagement without whom the process would not have been possible and added:
“This has been a really exceptional engagement for me. I have sat on a large number of housing commissions over a large number of years…and yes, you have meetings and you visit a few places, and you produce a report and present your recommendations, and yeah we’re doing all of that. But the distinctive thing about this, is the extent to which it’s been the voices of people living in social housing or living in estates around the city who have driven the process forward. That has been unique. I’ve long been committed to what they call coproduction and codesign, but I’ve never seen it done so determinedly as the Manchester Social Housing Commission has done it.”
The SH4M coalition is the legacy structure which will now take forward the Commission’s findings and recommendations and seek to maximise implementation, working always in partnership with community leaders across Manchester, Greater Manchester and England. The coalition will publish an annual progress tracker each year at least until the next General Election.
Together, Commissioners have met with Ministers, ministry teams, representatives of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Greater Manchester, and special advisers; have submitted written evidence to successive national consultations and audit committees; and have presented evidence to Lords and MPs. Partner organisations such as Mustard Tree met directly with Angela Rayner in 2024 to share on the extent and impacts of the housing and homelessness crisis in Manchester in advance of the April 2025 budget.
Importantly, throughout these engagements we have developed new connections and relationships that have supported ongoing advocacy, parliamentary questions and ministry negotiation on community rights in planning, and new opportunities for joint working, including: the Women’s Budget Group on the gendered impacts of the housing and climate crisis; and the Lloyds Local Collaborations programme.
A key request to the GM APPG is to work with SH4M to establish a working group to advocate for the reforms needed nationally to enable accelerated delivery of ecologically sustainable social rent homes across Greater Manchester. We look forward to working with Manchester City Council and partners across Greater Manchester through the new Social Homes for GM Scrutiny Panel and a wealth of other legacy projects. These include: new neighbourhood planning processes in Hulme and Moss Side; work to explore Community Land Trust pilots in Miles Platting and Wythenshawe; a network of organised communities with a deeper understanding of housing and planning systems and potential community led placemaking innovations just as five Manchester Pride in Place areas have been announced; and a new transparency and accountability data portal project with GMCA. A new Social Homes for Trafford coalition has also launched; and we are keen to share learning with groups across the city-region and nationally.
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
At our latest quarterly network meeting on 14th May, the Community Savers leadership and CLASS staff team spent some time considering the latest local election results in Manchester, Stockport, and Sheffield; reflecting together on what the results mean for Community Savers own community action.
We should preface this post by saying that neither Community Savers nor CLASS have any party political affiliation as organisations with charitable objectives organising directly for public and community benefit and not for the benefit of any political parties.
Community Savers Quarterly Network meeting, May 2026
Our discussion took us into three key areas for ongoing reflection and review:
1. Non-partisan voter mobilisation?
One leader recalled seeing people queuing up at the polling stations on election day in days gone by and we all reflected on the widespread disillusionment people feel in communities that have experienced long-term entrenched and intersecting inequalities with poor quality political representation. The local political system is broken when three ward councillors can make or break a community’s priorities for their area (not the case everywhere or in all areas); and when a local councillor is elected with only 9% of the vote of the eligible electorate (as was the case for Miles Platting and Newton Heath ward).
Voter turn out was low in some Community Savers areas but higher than usual in others where there was a sense that Reform had been very organised and mobilised large numbers of their supporters while other parties such as Labour and the Greens had not been able to leverage the same motivation with voters that may have once all voted Labour now split between Labour and the Green party.
Leaders with new Reform councillors felt that people had voted Reform as a protest vote because they were so tired of being let down by their existing councillors and their either continuously broken promises, or worse, complete lack of engagement with the community. Others highlighted low voter turnout in their area is not only about disillusionment but also how many people don’t know how to vote as well as many not having the right ID. Young people leave school with no understanding of the voting system or how to register to vote. Education around this could be a role for Community Savers in future. This could be even more important come the next General Election with the potential for a change in voting age to 16.
Community Savers are looking ahead to the next elections in May 2027 to consider whether there is a role for the movement in non-partisan voter moblisation to re-ignite their community’s passion to represent their interests through the voting system and have reflected that an important route towards that is to increase engagement with community action and the civic life of their area.
2. Youth and family mobilisation
Mobilising more people into community action – making people feel included and creating mutually supportive communities – must include young people and young families, and this has long been part of Community Savers strategic direction including after our interactions with the Youth Federation and Know Your City TV crew in Nairobi. The largest age cohort of our current membership are Over-50s which brings wisdom, experience, and long term knowledge of our communities. However, it is key to engage young people and families in our community action and we are proud of Women in Community Action in Arbourthorne who have managed to do this through the organising they have done over time around Arbourthorne Primary School, from which we have much to learn.
We are therefore really excited to be in the final stages of partnership development with two new projects focused on training up and mobilising young people and women:
Power in Balance is a national youth organising programme for gender equity led by the Advocacy Academy through which we hope to recruit twenty young people aged 18-30 to participate in a programme of community organising training (ten from Manchester and ten from Sheffield) in order to then support them to take action on the issues they care about in Community Savers neighbourhoods.
The Womens Power Project led by the Civic Power Fund aims to address the structural inequalities faced by low income women and the women’s sector by providing capacity building support to key grassroots organisations to enhance their strategic advocacy, campaigning, and governance capacity with a focus on developing their practice as community organisers able to sustain momentum for change by bringing women together and building power from the ground up.
We have applied to participate in both programmes and hope to receive confirmation soon. These have the potential to provide us with new routes through which to engage wider and more diverse groups in community action across our local populations which in turn will lead to a renewed sense of agency to effect change.
3. Political competition is healthy for local democracy
Many leaders reflected that the new political landscape – particularly in Manchester that has long been held almost entirely by Labour – has the potential to bring new opportunities for influence and leverage to communities that have fought hard for many years for their voices to be heard only to be stymied by the party line and Executive directives preventing local flexibility and collaboration.
There is hope that a more diverse mix of representation across the city will trigger a more responsive politics in Manchester and across the UK.
There is also fear that division and polarisation will continue to create conflict and tension within our communities and Community Savers have recently completed a three day programme of workshops with Birmingham Race Action Partnership to deepen and explore our own internal understanding on intersecting inequalities, race, migration, sex and gender identity; and to develop skills for holding conflict, tension, and difficult conversations in our local areas. The Leadership are currently exploring where to take this learning next and how to continue our work together.
One thing is clear: these results must not result in the further stigmatisation of multiply disadvantaged communities. It is the system that is broken, not the people.
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
Hannah Berry – Social Homes for Manchester Project Lead
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has accomplished a lot since it was launched in 2023 by Community Savers leaders, and a coalition of partners including GM Tenants Union, Greater Together Manchester, Shelter, Mustard Tree, and Steady State Manchester. Not least, an 18 month long Social Housing Commission, which is about to launch its final report and recommendations.
All this has been achieved by people volunteering their time, so having had the fortune to be employed by CLASS as a dedicated project worker for the campaign, I’m eager to see how I can help build momentum and fulfill all the ambitions of the influencing plan!
I fell into community engagement work by accident in 2002, while on a sabbatical from Ethical Consumer magazine, and one job has led to another, culminating in my current role. I set up and coordinated Manchester Women’s Network (bringing together community groups), Manchester Women’s Design Group (to lobby and influence on planning issues), and co-directed a ‘popular education’ organisation which ran workshops in low income areas of Manchester and Salford. More recently, at GM level, I worked for the ‘Ambition for Ageing’ neighbourhood development programme, and the GM Equality Alliance, where I learned a lot about city-wide and regional policy making.
Until last month I was based at Fuel Poverty Action, a straight-talking member-led organisation which fights for warm homes and clean, affordable energy, under the control of people and communities (I really like SH4M’s environmental focus for this reason). I was the Operations Lead, but like CLASS, we were a small team, so I picked up useful campaign skills.
Being involved in GM Housing Action (GMHA), and our community-led housing project, GM Housing Futures (whose legacy SH4M is taking forward), was also a pretty good grounding for this role. What feels exciting, is meeting all the wonderful activists and leaders in the Community Savers network, through whom the campaign already has roots in many wards and neighbourhoods, and the structures and expertise needed to extend its reach. I look forward to posting regular updates on the SH4M news page, and activating the mailing list, as I continue to work alongside the SH4M Steering Group, Community Team and lovely colleagues at CLASS.
Menna Hassan – Independent Living Worker, Ageing Well in Place in Hulme
I began work as the Independent Living Worker on the Ageing Well in Place in Hulme project in March. Working with older adults is incredibly meaningful to me. Every day I have the opportunity to support individuals in maintaining their independence and confidence in their own homes and communities. Sometimes this support involves helping someone access services or navigate housing and wellbeing systems, and other times it simply means listening and making sure someone feels seen and supported.
A key part of my role is also ensuring safety and wellbeing through risk assessments, safeguarding processes and Duty to Refer when appropriate. My goal is always to make sure people feel secure, respected and empowered to make decisions about their own lives.
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
Over 70 residents, community leaders, council officers and public provider stakeholders attended the amazing #CommunityPoweredNeighbourhoods event on 17 March 2026 cocreated by Wythenshawe Central Network, Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) and the We’re Right Here campaign as part of this years’ #GMLiveWellFestival.
It was an absolutely brilliant day full of excitement, hope, innovative ideas and grassroots solidarity!
We were welcomed by John Hopkins Co-Chair of Wythenshawe Central Network who explained our objectives: to bring community-led projects and initiatives together with communities across Manchester and GM – and especially new Pride in Place areas – to share learning, build relationships, and explore potential ideas for their own local areas, including through the launch of two reports:
Andrea Lowman, Director of Development at Wythenshawe Community Housing Group and Commissioner welcomed us to Wythenshawe and shared WCHG’s commitment to supporting community-led innovations in the area.
Anoushka Deighton then told us all about the We’re Right Here campaign calling for new rights and powers that would change where power lies in English planning including the Community Right to Buy and a new approach called a Community Covenant. Anoushka told the story of how she had worked together with other local residents and community leaders to take ownership over Stretford Public Halland how their next steps are to draw up a Community Covenant with Trafford Council.
She handed over to the inspiring team at Market Drayton Community Covenantwho are the first pilot of this approach. We heard from Melanie France, Public Health Principle, at Shropshire Council; Judith James, Parish Councillor, Moreton Saye Parish; and Iana Jacobson, Chair of the Ukranian Community Hub. Three representatives of the Market Drayton and Rural Parishes Community Covenant which has now been operating for 18 months with over 17 member organisations. “This is an authentic, power-sharing group working collaboratively with Shropshire Council and the local community to make decisions that are decided by us, for us!”
This is a pilot project testing the model of Community Covenants and Neighbourhood Governance funded by Power to Change. A Community Covenant is basically a power-sharing agreement between the local council and a network of local community groups and representatives and you can read the Market Drayton Community Covenant here.
We also heard from Dave Baxter atWigan and Leigh Community Charity who told us all about his experience of working to bring five villages together in a former coal mining community to create Abram Communities Together Neighbourhood Plan. This is a mechanism for the local community to make their own plan for their area that becomes enacted as a legal policy instrument within the wider national and local planning framework and sets out the parameters for what kinds of developments can take place. Dave explained that it is a long challenging journey requiring several battles with the council, extensive community consultation, and lots of support from planning policy experts but has resulted in the community having their own local policies for their neighbourhood in Abram Ward.
Many participants were excited to learn from East Marsh United who had set up their own Community Land Trust and taken ownership of some houses that had fallen into disrepair in an area of Grimsby known locally at the time as “Murder Mile”. Together, local community activists had brought the community together to mobilise around climate resilience (the area is actually marshland) and to demonstrate how to be an ethical landlord amidst so much poor quality private rented sector and run down social housing. Find out more about East Marsh United here.
We also heard all about Our Sale West; Middleton Cooperating; and about Community Land Trusts and Community Led Housing from Rachel Summerscales at GM Community Led Homes and the SH4M Steering Group; and Tom Chance, CEO of the National CLT Network and Commissioner for the Manchester Social Housing Commission who launched the Alternative Models report setting out how Manchester City Council can create a more enabling environment for Community Led Development.
Community land trusts – or CLTs – are democratic, non profit organisations that own and develop land for the benefit of the community. They typically provide affordable homes, community gardens, civic buildings, pubs, shops, shared workspace, energy schemes and conservation landscapes.
The network highlights how CLTs are:
Run by ordinary people: They are community organisations run by ordinary people who want to make a difference to their local community, putting control of assets into the hands of local people. They can be set up by the community or a landowner, developer or council.
Protect community assets forever: They ensure that their homes are permanently and genuinely affordable. CLTs act as long-term stewards of land and the assets on it. They ensure that it is put to the benefit of the local community, not just for now but for every future occupier.
And a worldwide movement: Started by black leaders in the civil rights movement and others in the peace movement in the USA, CLTs are now a worldwide movement. In both urban and rural areas, CLTs are a key part of the future of land, affordable housing and community facilities.
After everyone’s five minute elevator pitches we moved into a marketplace event where residents from different communities including Benchill Pride in Place area were able to network with all these brilliant initiatives and take away learning for their own local community.
The reflections and feedback at the end of the day were overwhelming and there was a sense of new beginnings in the air.
Janice, from Tone and Trim community gym, said:
“I’ve lived in Wythenshawe all my life … I work with young people from aged 3 to working with people from 80, 90 plus. I believe in my area I’m very proud to be from Wythenshawe and Benchill… I’m really proud also to be part of the Dandelion who have supported me to run my own project and I’m also proud of the people where we live because we’ve had to struggle round here to get this (Pride in Place) so I hope this becomes a reality, because it sounds really good. My passion is for the young people, give them what they need, and let us as we get older take the lead and show them the way. And hopefully with support from some of you guys, we can get more information and ideas behind our passion and our vision for our area. I’m really pleased I came today because I didn’t know about half the stuff that was being created already so that’s made me excited”
Joe and Tom had travelled across from Trafford to get ideas for their newly formed coalition Social Homes for Trafford.
Joe said:
“Today’s event has been absolutely brilliant because its an opportunity to network with other people working towards the same goals as us”
Tom said:
“It’s also been really useful to hear from people who are further into their journey because it’s quite early days for us and we’ve been able to go away with new ideas”
Rev Kate Gray from the United Reform Church said:
“In my little group we found out about Pride in Place. We hadn’t heard about what that really means and how that connects with other areas like Abbey Hey and Gorton so we got out the maps and talked about that and made a plan for this weekend to share that with our faith community….And then I really loved hearing about the project East Marsh United and the specific things about housing, being an ethical landlord and also about Community Covenants and Neighbourhood Plans. I loved the reality of it: it took ages! It’s really helpful to hear that. Its gritty, its long-term work. So, ok, “sticking power”.’
There was a consensus that this event was just the beginning and plans are already afoot for:
a joint trip by groups from Middleton, Miles Platting, and Wythenshawe to travel over to East Marsh United
a community-led Pride in Place networking event for all five Manchester areas
and a GM gathering of grassroots-led initiatives focused on innovative means for ensuring community control over neighbourhood planning, housing, land use and community assets.
Community Land Trusts, community-led development, Community-Led Housing, GM Live Well, housing, Manchester, Miles Platting, SH4M, social homes for manchester, Social housing, We're Right Here, Wythenshawe, Wythenshawe Central Network
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
Latest Commission report calls for renewed commitment to community-led housing
wp_gms | 17 Mar 2026
The fourth and final policy brief from the Manchester Social Housing Commission explores the benefits of community-led models for social rent and regeneration and will be launched at Wythenshawe Central Network‘s GM Live Well festival event today.
Manchester Social Housing Commission is calling for a major expansion of community-led housing and regeneration to bring Manchester up to speed with other major cities.
The Commission’s latest policy brief, “Alternative Models for Social Rent,” argues that giving residents a stronger role in designing, developing and managing homes could increase the supply of genuinely affordable housing while strengthening communities across the city.
The report highlights how community-led models – including housing cooperatives, cohousing, and community land trusts, can rebalance power relations between landlords and tenants, enabling communities to have a more meaningful voice in local decisions and improving health and social cohesion. It urges policymakers to make these approaches a central part of Manchester’s housing strategy. Despite Manchester’s history as a pioneer of cooperative housing, the report finds that Manchester has fallen behind other major cities like Leeds, Liverpool, Bristol and London with community-led housing currently representing a tiny share of the city’s homes.
David Rudlin, Commissioner and one of the founders of Homes for Change housing coop in Hulme said:
“Manchester has a long tradition of residents coming together to provide homes for each other,” the report states. “But these approaches play almost no role in our current housing strategies, despite strong evidence that they have delivered both affordability and wider community benefits in Manchester and across the country.”
Healthy lives – not just bricks and mortar
The report argues that the current housing system treats residents primarily as ‘customers rather than citizens’ with no meaningful voice in decisions about their neighbourhoods.
Community-led housing models change that balance of power by giving residents direct roles in ownership, governance, or management of housing developments. Evidence cited in the report suggests these models can deliver:
High-quality and responsive housing management
Lower rent burdens relative to household income
Improved public health and reduced loneliness
Greater social cohesion and local participation
Protection against displacement and gentrification
Community-led developments also protect land and assets for community benefit in perpetuity, reinvesting profits locally and maintain long-term affordability, helping safeguard homes for future generations.
Four opportunities for Manchester
The Commission identifies four key ways community-led housing could grow at scale in Manchester:
1. Community homes within large developments Major regeneration schemes could allocate a proportion of homes to community-led organisations, allowing residents to co-design or manage housing within large projects.
2. Communities as partners in regeneration Neighbourhood organisations such as community land trusts could play a formal role in regeneration schemes, helping ensure development benefits existing residents and protects communities from displacement.
3. Development on small public sites Small parcels of publicly owned land could be made available to community-led groups, following models already used by other UK cities.
4. “Socialising” existing homes Community organisations could acquire and refurbish empty or poorly maintained properties, bringing them back into use as social housing.
The report also highlights the role that regional bodies such as the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and local authorities including Manchester City Council could play in enabling these approaches through policy, funding and land disposal.
Building on Manchester’s cooperative legacy
The Commission notes that Greater Manchester was the birthplace of the cooperative movement and once played a leading role in community-led housing innovation. Today, however, community-led homes account for a very small proportion of housing in the city.
With housing need continuing to grow, the report concludes that empowering communities to play a larger role in housing delivery could help Manchester build not just more homes, but stronger and healthier neighbourhoods. Andrea Lowman, Commissioner, and Executive Director of Development at Wythenshawe Community Housing Group who will open today’s launch event said:
“At WCHG, we are keen to explore how community-led housing can enable residents, councils and housing providers to work together on regeneration that addresses the housing crisis while also creating healthier, more connected communities. As this report states, “If Manchester truly wants to be a city built on collaboration, these models provide a practical way to make that vision a reality.”
Wythenshawe Central Network will launch the report in partnership with Commissioners and the Social Homes for Manchester coalition at a joint GM Live Well Festival event 3-6pm, Tues 17th March, at St Andrews Methodist Church in Wythenshawe today.
Header image credit: Homes for Change housing cooperative in Hulme, Manchester.
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Community-led, housing, Manchester, regeneration, Social housing
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
It’s been a busy few months for the Wythenshawe Central Network!
October
Leaders from Wythenshawe Central Network (WCN) attended an event at the Open Space in Wythenshawe Civic held by Manchester City Council and MUSE. They met Leader of the Council Bev Craig and spoke to her about the network’s three main asks for the Civic Regeneration:
Increasing the number of social rent homes to be included in the redevelopment
Working with the community to explore shared governance options for the Culture Hub
Calling for more transparency, accountability and meaningful community partnership in the Wythenshawe Town Centre regeneration process
WCN also hosted a workshop bringing together councillors, community / faith groups and representatives from Wythenshawe Community Housing Groups to learn about different governance models as a possibility for the new ‘Culture Hub’ in Civic. We heard from Tom Chance, CEO of the Community Land Trust Network, about examples of successful community-led housing schemes across the country. This opened up useful conversations about whether such options could be explored for Wythenshawe. In case you missed it, presentation slides from this workshop are available for viewing here: https://www.wythenshawecentral.org.uk/wcn-voices-and-presentations/
November
By hosting stalls and community events, including a ‘Meet, Munch and Mingle’ at Brownley Green Methodist Church Hall, WCN leaders have been increasing their membership through regular engagement with local residents. Asking critical questions such as “Will new leisure and retail facilities be affordable for the existing community?”, WCN have held spaces for important conversations about local developments. From building new connections and relationships, notably over some delicious food made by Joy from Know Africa, the network now has over 20 organisations and 100 individual residents among its’ membership.
January
The network held another open meeting which brought together members, local residents and representatives from a range of community groups and local organisations to learn more about the new “Pride in Place” funding.
This new initiative announced by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will award £20 million of funding over the next 10 years to Benchill South and Wythenshawe Central (see map below) alongside other areas across the UK, including Gorton South and Clayton Vale in Manchester. The funding will be managed by a neighbourhood board and aims to give power directly to local people to reshape their communities.
Meeting attendees were invited to share their hopes & fears about the initiative through open group discussions. We spoke about the importance of ensuring local voices are involved in decision-making so they can have a genuine influence throughout the process. Gavin Evans, Neighbourhood Manager from Manchester City Council presented on the most recent guidelines for the funding and to answer questions from local residents. WCN are hoping to receive funding to carry out further consultations and engagement to gather local priorities about how the Pride in Place funding process should be managed.
Coming up…
WCN is excited to be hosting a joint event on Tuesday 17th March with Social Homes for Manchester and We’re Right Here as part of the GM Live Well festival (9th-23rd March), called “Community Powered Neighbourhoods”.
The event is focused on inspiring examples of community- powered neighbourhood governance, bringing groups across Greater Manchester together to share stories and exchange learning. Representatives from Community Covenants, Neighbourhood Plans and Community Land Trusts will present and there will be time for networking around project stalls showcasing exciting projects and campaigns. Residents from the different Pride in Place areas will be able to network in the ‘Pride in Place’ corner as well as ask questions to City Council representatives. We will also hear about key reforms that coalitions of communities and national groups are campaigning for to create more power for communities.
Lots of exciting developments happening in Wythenshawe and WCN are looking forward to supporting community-led projects as they unfold!
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
At Community Savers, we believe that the people who live in a neighborhood are the best experts on what that neighborhood needs. This year Aquarius Community Savers (ACS) has proven that principle tenfold. Here is a look at what we’ve achieved by working together with many other local partners.
Protecting the Heart of Hulme: Aquarius Community Centre
The Aquarius Community Centre is more than just a building; it’s a lifeline. With One Manchester’s lease ending in 2027, the Friends of Aquarius Community Centre campaign has been working to ensure it remains a community-led hub.
We are thrilled to share that Odd Arts has submitted a formal proposal to take on the lease. Their plan isn’t just about management—it’s a commitment to a “community-led decision-making” model that keeps the power in the hands of residents and local partners.
Members of Aquarius Community Savers and Ageing Well in Hulme
Housing Justice: The Social Housing Commission
Our members, Bernard Sudlow and Sally Casey, have been the voices of the Aquarius estate on the Social Housing Commission. Their advocacy is moving the needle on systemic change:
A Win for Social Housing: Thanks to persistent advocacy, the target for social rented homes in new developments has jumped from less than 5% affordable or social rent to 21% social rent in the draft local plan. We continue to push for the 30% goal advocated for by Social Homes for Manchester.
Defending Our Neighbourhood: We successfully secured recognition of the Aquarius estate as a residential area in the new draft Local Plan for Manchester, a vital step forward in protecting our facilities from being swallowed by city centre expansion.
Knowledge is Power: Training & Exchanges
Building a resilient community requires skills. This year, ACS members completed training in Conflict Management, Financial management, and Fundraising. In July, a highlight was our learning exchange to https://ambitionlw.org/Ambition Lawrence Weston in Bristol. Seeing their success with community-led renewable energy and asset management sparked fresh ideas for what we can achieve right here in Greater Manchester.
Ageing Well in Place in Hulme
The Ageing Well in Place initiative is transforming how we support our older and more vulnerable neighbours in Hopton and Meredith Court.
New staff members: We welcomed Roísín, our Development Worker, in 2025, and we are excited to appoint an Independent Living Worker in Spring 2026.
Health Integration: Our new partnership with Cornbrook Medical Practice ensures that health services are integrated directly into our community work.
The “Naturally Occurring Retirement Community” (NORC) Model: We are bringing services to the people, making it easier for residents to stay independent and connected.
A New Space for Connection
After five years of campaigning, the Hopton community space is finally under construction! While planning delays have shifted the opening date, the vision remains clear. The space will be managed by the newly formed Hopton and Meredith Tenants and Residents Association (HMTARA).
Planned activities include:
The Breakfast Club: Already serving 23 people every weekend (with deliveries for those who can’t leave their flats).
Wellness & Skills: From Tai Chi and music workshops to IT clubs and DIY sessions.
Savings and Safety Nets
Aquarius Community Savers continued to support our community to put away small amounts for particular goals throughout 2025. We now have 35 regular members in the savings club who deposited a total of £7,152 in savings in 2025! We also continue to manage a Crisis Fund for those in urgent need. Whether it’s fuel top-ups, a weekly food shop, or essential furniture, our committee is here to help. Referrals are handled with care and can be kept anonymous.
We are looking forward to continuing this progress in 2026!
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Tags:
Community Savers, housing, Hulme, Manchester, Social housing
Social Homes for Manchester (SH4M) has been supporting a process in Hulme to explore the possibility of creating a Neighbourhood Plan for the area. Neighbourhood Plans (NP) give communities power to influence...
Reflection, learning and generous leadership are at the heart of the ComSavs/CLASS approach. We find our way by feeling the stones and we can only do that by pausing regularly...
May 24, 2026
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