Locality

Thanks so much for hosting this meeting and championing the #PowerOfCommunity

Great to be at @locality.org.uk' roundtable in Parliament on putting community anchor orgs at the heart of national policy.

Heard from Afzal, CEO of @wittonlodge.bsky.social, a brilliant anchor in my constituency.

If we’re serious about devolution, we have to be serious about partnerships.

JUST LAUNCHED: our report and action plan Creating Places for Everyone explores the vital role of place-based community organisations in the pursuit of racial justice & sets out how we will support our members to make positive social change.

📖 https://locality.org.uk/creating-places-for-everyone

Creating places for Everyone. Launch webinar 20am, 22 March. Join us to learn about our research on place-based, community led approaches to racial justice

New research & action plan - join us at our launch event to hear what we’ve learnt and how we've developed a new practical support offer for our members that puts racial justice at the heart of our work.

Book your place: https://locality.org.uk/events/creating-places-for-everyone-launch-webinar

How social investment saved a treasured pub read the blog to find out more

Tees Valley’s Half Moon Inn faced closure due to rising costs and a deteriorated building.

Despite warnings he was “mad”, Martin stepped in.

How did he turn risk into success & what role did social investment play?

Read more in our blog with @goodfinanceuk.bsky.social

➡️ https://bit.ly/406aSRx

Participatory democracy is good for you! Neighbourhood governance in a Neighbourhood Health Service  - We're Right Here How to make the UK's health system more prevention-focused, neighbourhood-based, and community-led, written by Locality.

Participatory democracy is good for you! Neighbourhood governance in a Neighbourhood Health Service.

Sam Pluckrose-Oliver, @locality.org.uk
👉 www.right-here.org/participator...

Reading list 🧵8/10

Have your say! Help shape the future of good finance. Take our quick survey, share your lived experience, win a £50 voucher

🔊 Calling charities & social enterprises.

Help shape @goodfinanceuk.bsky.social's future. Share what works, what doesn’t & what support you really need for your social investment journey in their short survey.

🎁 Win a £50 voucher

👉 https://goodfinanceuk.typeform.com/to/xpAtn7MV

"It's crucial to ensure that decisions about local public services reflect the real needs and strengths of the local area."

Read our blog with @right-here.org on how government can ensure community organisations sit at the heart of decision-making about the health of their communities 👇

Image of 2026 diary. Text reads "Trends and predictions for social investment in 2026"

.@goodfinanceuk.bsky.social asked 3 experts to predict emerging trends in the world of social investment for 2026.
Their blog unpacks the biggest developments in the social investment space and what this means in practice for charities and social enterprises.
Find out more: https://bit.ly/3ZHeCsi

Proud to collaborate with @right-here.org @localtrust.org.uk @hopenothate.org.uk and @powertochange.org.uk on how New Neighbourhood Governance arrangements can put power in the hands of local people.

Read the blueprint: bit.ly/A-blueprint-...

Decisions taken now will determine whether communities gain real influence or whether old patterns of bureaucratic governance & exclusion are baked into a new system.

Blueprint co-written with @localtrust.org.uk @hopenothate.org.uk @locality.org.uk @powertochange.org.uk
bit.ly/A-blueprint-... 🧵2/2

Social investment unpicked: An e-learning programme for anyone who wants to learn more about social investment. Limited spaces remaining. next cohort begins 3 February. CPD certified

Ready to expand your #SocialInvestment knowledge in 2026?
Good Finance e-learning program Social Investment Unpicked is beginner friendly and CPD-accredited! Join the next cohort starting 3 Feb.
Register now: https://goodfinanceuk.typeform.com/to/Wz6GBWPz?typeform-source=www.goodfinance.org.uk

Guardian’s Hope appeal raises more than £1m for charities opposing hatred Five organisations whose work fosters community, tolerance and empathy will share proceeds of readers’ generosity

We did it - The Guardian appeal reached a million pounds!

These donations will help Locality members create resilience, pride and opportunity in some of our most disadvantaged neighbourhoods.

A huge thank you to readers and to the amazing Guardian team.

www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

Help with Pride in Place Practical lessons in community-led regeneration. If you are working in or near a Pride in Place area, this webinar is designed for you.

💡 @locality.org.uk's free online event offers practical lessons in community‑led regeneration for anyone working in or near a Pride in Place area.
📅 Wednesday 21 January
👉 buff.ly/lL3fhJP

Guardian Hope appeal raises £950,000 for charities tackling racism and division Appeal, now in its final few days, raising funds for organisations trying to stop rise of hatred across UK

The Guardian's Hope charity appeal is now at £950,000.

With only two days left can we get it to £1m?

The response from readers has been amazing.
Find out more here: www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

@theguardian.com @katharineviner.bsky.social @patrickjbutler.bsky.social

How illegal HMO properties are risking lives (and how Guardian readers can help) – video Josh Toussaint-Strauss investigates how illegal HMOs contribute to a crisis of poor housing and how local grassroots organisations are trying to help

Today as part of the Guardian appeal, this film explaining illegal HMOs features Locality members Canopy Housing and Back on the Map.

They tackle the issue by buying and doing up homes, and renting them out at affordable rates.

Please read, share and support:
www.theguardian.com/world/video/...

Guardian readers raise £750,000 for charities uniting divided communities Hope appeal supports causes battling backdrop of extremist violence, anti-migrant rhetoric and racism

The Guardian's charity appeal has reached £750,000!

These organisations show that when people come together to listen and support each other, they create opportunities and hope.

Can we get to £1m? Please share & donate:
www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
@antlondon.bsky.social @theguardian.com

‘It restored my hope’: how community action is confronting racism in Belfast An initiative linking people across race, class and faith offers an antidote to silence, hate and growing division Donate to the charity appeal here

Today's Guardian features 174 Trust's 'Circle of Change'.

People from different backgrounds meet monthly, share stories and fundraise. The project tackles division and builds understanding.

Please read, share & donate to the Guardian appeal:

www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

@theguardian.com

Guardian readers’ Christmas appeal donations surpass £500,000 Hope appeal is raising funds for five UK charities that build trust, hope and change at grassroots level

The Guardian's 'hope' appeal has reached £500,000! Some of this will help Locality members create opportunities and connections.

As one reader said: “this country is full of decent and wonderful people who want to help those around them"

Please share & donate: www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

'Abusing Muslims is not going to fix this country': rising hate in the UK Hate crimes are rising around the UK, after a summer of flags going up on lamp-posts across the country and racist riots in 2024. Taj Ali is a Muslim journalist who has been collating evidence of thes...

Check out this film about rising hate in disadvantaged communities.

Part of the Guardian charity appeal, it ends with Locality member Back on the Map who are improving their area and creating hope.

Please share & donate

www.theguardian.com/society/vide...

@tajali1.bsky.social @theguardian.com

❄️Season's greetings from all the team at Locality❄️
The Locality office will be closed from 24 Dec- 4 Jan.
We will occasionally post updates for @theguardian.com's charity appeal. We look forward to seeing you in the new year with an amazing events schedule locality.org.uk/events

Thank you so much to Guardian readers for their generosity, helping Locality members to bring together their communities in a time of division.
Find out more, donate and share the campaign ⬇️

Good Finance logo with text: What the State of Social Enterprise report reveals about social investment: read the blog to find out more

Applications for loans, grants & equity are falling — yet trust in social investment is rising. What’s really going on?
Good Finance’s latest blog unpacks SEUK’s State of Social Enterprise report and what it means for charities & social enterprises.
👉 www.goodfinance.org.uk/latest/post/...

A great read. Back on the Map are doing incredible things in Sunderland - local people coming together to transform their neighbourhoods and create opportunities.

Communities are our defence against hatred. Now, more than ever, we must invest in hope For this year’s Guardian charity appeal we are asking readers to donate to Citizens UK, The Linking Network, Locality, Hope Unlimited Charitable Trust and Who is Your Neighbour?

Our friends at @locality.org.uk have been picked as one of five charities for this year’s Guardian charity appeal.👏👛

Locality supports grassroots community organisations to inspire much-needed hope in places across the UK.

Learn more and donate if you can: www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

Meet @locality.org.uk
They’re one of the 5 @theguardian.com Christmas Charities for this years theme of HOPE

More than £100,000 raised for Guardian’s charity appeal in less than a week Hope appeal supports grassroots charities who work in communities hit by division, distrust and racism

Supporting Locality, @citizensuk.org, @thelinkingnetwork.bsky.social, Hope Unlimited, and Who is Your Neighbour, the Guardian appeal has already raised over £100,000. Find out more, donate and share 👇https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/dec/10/guardian-charity-appeal-raised

‘This country’s divided’: how a Sunderland charity is changing that – one house, park and shop at a time Far-right rhetoric fuelled rioting here in 2024, but Back on the Map is helping to unite the community, through good accommodation, new shops, and an aim to genuinely uplift and improve people’s lives

Locality members Back on the Map are featured as part of @theguardian.com charity appeal. Back on the Map is transforming the local area, fostering hope and belonging, and bringing people together in a time where some communities feel more divided than ever.

theguardian.com/society/2025...

We’re honoured to be included with the wonderful people of @citizensuk.org @locality.org.uk Hope Unlimited and Who is your neighbour
The theme is #Hope
@theguardian.com is recognising all our work in local communities where we’re building connections as an antidote to polarisation, distrust & hate

Congratulations to @locality.org.uk on being chosen as a partner for The Guardian’s Charity Appeal 2025!

In line with this year’s theme, Locality works with communities to foster connections and strengthen local leadership, helping to tackle loneliness, division, and hate.

Support them here 👇