Summary report: The Future for Communities

This 18 month research project asked ‘what needs to happen for communities to feel and be more powerful in the future?’. The findings paint a picture of strong, resourceful communities affected by the challenges of poverty, transience and isolation; but also people and places where resilience and hope offer the prospect of positive transformation and change. In particular, it highlights the need for sustained investment in supporting community-level infrastructure – places to meet, organisations to bring people together and people to facilitate engagement.

The research was commissioned by Local Trust, carried out by IVAR, and funded by the Community Development Foundation and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.