Museum of Broken Dreams An exhibition of community-led projects that could have transformed Britain.

🏡Communities are already plugging gaps for local homes.

@nudgecommunity.bsky.social built 2 affordable flats for local residents above Plymouth's Clipper Pub & had another 25-home solution that never got the backing it needed (read the story in @right-here.org's 'Museum of Broken Dreams' ⬇️)

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Vacant Above the Shop Grant

👀 What if the UK Gov' built on Ireland's model & brought in capital grants — even more ambitious than these — for communities to fill vacant spaces & lead high street transformation?

@archhfund.org.uk @clhlondon.bsky.social @locality.org.uk @powertochange.org.uk

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How to Secure a Building: Tactics for Community Assets — Platform Places You’ve got an amazing idea for an empty building. But you can’t track down the owner or get them to the table. Now what? Read on for tried-and-tested tactics from the Platform Places network.

🔗 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 & 𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐣𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐲 🔗

Our practical resource 'How to Secure a Building: Tactics for Community Assets' collates wisdom and experience from friends and partners in the #PlatformPlaces network.

How to Secure a Building: Tactics for Community Assets — Platform Places You’ve got an amazing idea for an empty building. But you can’t track down the owner or get them to the table. Now what? Read on for tried-and-tested tactics from the Platform Places network.

🔗 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 & 𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐣𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐲 🔗

Our practical resource 'How to Secure a Building: Tactics for Community Assets' collates wisdom and experience from friends and partners in the #PlatformPlaces network.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 ‘𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐭’ 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠?
🔸Sufficient floor space
🔸Location: corner buildings, good visibility and/or footfall, or near existing high-footfall ‘anchors’
🔸State of property & viability
🔸Of community value, i.e. able to tell heritage/local stories (good firepower for a campaign)

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫?
🔸Size
🔸Location (who are you serving? Are you near where they live/spend time?)
🔸Condition (if permanent use, you can bite the bullet & raise funds for remedial works unlike a 3-month lease)
🔸Features (outdoor space, windows, ground floor access, kitchen, parking, storage?)

Whether you want to unlock 1 building or transform your high street with 5, then 10, then 20, the first space is critical.

We call this the 'catalyst' — a strategically-chosen building that acts as a proof-of-concept and inspires more ideas and action across your neighbourhood 💫

What makes for a good building? 🏘️ 🏛️

We get asked this a lot by community leaders who:
🔸 need affordable space for their idea or project
🔸 want to make that space a long-term community asset
🔸 want to see multiple local buildings transformed for local benefit

So what should you be looking for? 💡

💡 How are communities transforming their neighbourhoods?

🌱 How can others get started?

🏘️ What can funders or local authorities do today — to enable the revival of entire high streets, community hubs & green spaces for long-term local benefit?

Join us in Oxford next month! ⤵️

Bright pink graphic that reads: "Shape the future of community power."

We’re entering a new chapter of our campaign, and we want to shape it with you.

What should our campaign prioritise? Where can we have the greatest impact?

Take our survey by 17 April and help shape the future of community power:

✍️ locality.tfaforms.net/284

💡 How are communities transforming their neighbourhoods?

🌱 How can others get started?

🏘️ What can funders or local authorities do today — to enable the revival of entire high streets, community hubs & green spaces for long-term local benefit?

Join us in Oxford next month! ⤵️

We’re Recruiting! Communications Lead (Fixed-Term) — Platform Places In a nutshell We’re recruiting an experienced, creative and hands-on communications specialist to work with Platform Places and Footwork over the next 10 months – to develop our bold…

🔔 One more week to apply for our Comms Lead role 🔔

Join our small but mighty team working across @footworktrust.bsky.social and #PlatformPlaces: www.platformplaces.com/news/recruit...

#charityjobs #commsjobs #thirdsectorjobs

🏘️ With the National Retrofit Hub we launched 'The Role of Community Health Impact Assessments (CHIA) for Retrofit', a workbook for community organisers and policy/strategy designers working on retrofit at scale.

🔗 nationalretrofithub.org.uk/resource/the...

cc @impurbanhealth.bsky.social

Across England, community organisations are acquiring buildings as long-term tools for social justice & ecological resilience 🏘️

So, what does it take to start the journey from one precarious lease (or no space at all) to a portfolio that transforms a neighbourhood?

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Join our team! 💫

We're looking for an experienced, creative & hands-on comms specialist to work with #PlatformPlaces & @footworktrust.bsky.social.

You'll develop our bold narratives & inspiring content that help drive locally-led neighbourhood transformation: www.platformplaces.com/news/recruit...

Join our team! 💫

We're looking for an experienced, creative & hands-on comms specialist to work with #PlatformPlaces & @footworktrust.bsky.social.

You'll develop our bold narratives & inspiring content that help drive locally-led neighbourhood transformation: www.platformplaces.com/news/recruit...

How community property portfolios build local power & wealth Platform Places: Community property portfolios

Read more in our article for the Winter issue of STIR, exploring inspiration & how-tos, from Leicester & London to Bristol & Sheffield:

#CommunityAssets #MycelialNetwork #StirToAction

www.stirtoaction.com/articles/pla...

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1️⃣ Build your partnership – the groundwork is relational.

2️⃣ Secure funds (pre-development, capital, revenue)– and rarely does it all arrive at once!

3️⃣ Negotiate your first space(s) – whether social value lease, peppercorn rent, or asset transfer

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Across England, community organisations are acquiring buildings as long-term tools for social justice & ecological resilience 🏘️

So, what does it take to start the journey from one precarious lease (or no space at all) to a portfolio that transforms a neighbourhood?

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How community property portfolios build local power & wealth Platform Places: Community property portfolios

What shifts when communities own multiple buildings — not just one? 🏘️

“Scaling brings resilience,” says Angie Wright (b inspired, Braunstone). “It brings deeper impact, with an interconnected network of spaces that support each other.”

Explore our new article for #StirToAction ⬇️

Pride in Parades II: Strategies for Renewing Neighbourhood Social Infrastructure - Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods Are there examples of local shopping parades in deprived neighbourhoods that have declined, but come back to life? How did they do it?

Do parades & arcades get enough attention when we talk high streets & community assets?🏘️🛍️

This story-led report by Popular for @iconeighbours.bsky.social spotlights these hubs for retail, community & connection - and the local organisations in 5 places who've revived them to serve local needs 🌱

People and Place: Camden | Footwork Trust A programme in 2026 for community innovators who are transforming Camden’s neighbourhoods by bringing buildings and spaces to life.

🎉 Announcing the People & Place: Camden community innovators!

🏘️ These 9 groups & individuals are transforming Camden’s neighbourhoods by bringing buildings & spaces to life.

💪 They join our 2026 support programme, in collaboration with @camdencouncil.bsky.social

Meet them & their project ideas ⬇️

What could help make more Nudges possible? Community businesses often struggle to get money quickly, to buy properties when they become available. Pre-agreed financing has been essential for Nudge but a more agile facility to fund community buyouts is needed.

What we’re learning from High Street Rental Auctions – and how they can catalyse change - Power to Change One of our five community-led high street innovators - Make CIC - creates affordable, creative and maker spaces rooted in local need. In this blog in a mini ...

📝 New blog out today from Louise Cross at Make CIC, sharing learning from testing High Street Rental Auctions in Birkenhead. Key insight: HSRAs can catalyse change but are just one tool among many. Real progress involves relationships, community insight & practical support. Read now: buff.ly/P3wxuvY

Buy up empty shops for community use, councils urged Steve Reed, the communities secretary, has told local authorities to use compulsory purchase powers to revive and repurpose vacant high street properties

🔔 From grassroots to government, the message is clear: communities should lead the revival of high street property & councils are key enablers 🔑

CPOs are one possible lever, but we know a growing number of developers & landlords working *with* communities to activate assets for social impact.

Local Property Partnerships: Pilot Programme 2024-2027 — Platform Places Shifting multiple buildings into community use and ownership The National Lottery Community Fund has supported Platform Places and partners with almost £2.5 million over three years — made possible by...

Kindred LCR leads one of the five pilot #LocalPropertyPartnerships (supported by @tnlcommunityfund.org.uk), reimagining underutilised buildings into hubs for socially-trading organisations in Knowsley and St Helens: platformplaces.com/programme

✨ Geographical clusters of socially-trading organisations = greater impact ✨

@kindredlcr.bsky.social's figures speak for themselves. 70% job growth. 420K people supported.

Social investment is powering real change in Liverpool CR. And unlocking buildings, with a place-based approach, is key 🔑

How community property portfolios build local power & wealth Platform Places: Community property portfolios

What shifts when communities own multiple buildings — not just one? 🏘️

“Scaling brings resilience,” says Angie Wright (b inspired, Braunstone). “It brings deeper impact, with an interconnected network of spaces that support each other.”

Explore our new article for #StirToAction ⬇️

Community power on the high street: Taking on buildings for local transformation — Platform Places Highlights & How-tos | 6 months of the Local Property Partnerships pilot (2024-2027)

It’s already planting seeds:

🌱 Housing associations are emerging as strong allies
🌱 Private asset owners are engaging in dialogue
🌱 Councils are supporting in diverse ways

Explore what’s been happening, with practical tips to try in your neighbourhood 💡 ⬇️

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In 5 neighbourhoods – from Darnall Ward to Wandsworth Town – community leaders are creating Local Property Partnerships to unlock multiple spaces for community use & ownership.

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