Case studies

This resource describes how public health in a number of councils has started to use the opportunities of a local government setting to improve health and wellbeing.

Seeking to identify ways to close gaps of employment, deprivation and engagement in one of Bolton’s most deprived areas, Bolton Council provided funding and significant freedom of action to a housing association, as the best-embedded organisation within the community, to experiment with innovative forms of community engagement where traditional approaches had failed.

Wigan Council worked closely with survivors of domestic abuse to drive a step change in the borough’s response to this complex social problem. This included an award-winning media and engagement campaign, 'Love is Not Abuse', which challenged widespread assumptions about what constitutes domestic abuse and the most effective ways to communicate with victims.

In Salford and Gateshead, projects have been run to support young fathers and help them deal with the challenges they face. This case study is an example of the work that councils are doing to support young parents.

As part of wider efforts to improve frontline services for customers, Wrexham’s County Borough Council’s customer service and digital teams worked together to tackle the challenge of helping local people remember their bin collection days. Digital projects officer Huw Ap Dewi explains how collaboration and technology helped make a difference for local people.

An MJ award-winning initiative in the City of Wolverhampton to keep leisure centres in house but run on a more commercial footing

When Storm Desmond hit the North of England in 2015 it flooded around 100 properties in Wyre. Senior Communications Officer Stephanie Collinson explains how the council delivered much needed communications support to a community in crisis.

York Life is a new, free music festival for York. Funded by City of York Council (CYC) through the UK Government’s Additional Restrictions Grants and organised by a partnership between Make It York and York Music Venues Network.

This case study is an example of the practical use of asset-based approaches in communities.