Places, spaces, people and wellbeing / Community hubs and green space
In partnership with
What evidence is in this resource?
This resource comprises of:
- a systematic review and briefing on social relations: Places, spaces, people, and wellbeing
- a case study synthesis and briefing: community hubs and green spaces
Systematic review: places, spaces, people, and wellbeing
The systematic review and briefing look at the global evidence base for improving people’s wellbeing through changes to the community infrastructure. This covers:
- Public places and ‘bumping’ places designed for people to meet, including streets, squares, parks, play areas, village halls and community centres.
- Places where people meet informally or are used as meeting places, such as cafes, pubs, libraries, schools and churches.
- Services that can facilitate access to places to meet, including urban design, landscape architecture and public art, transport, public health organisations, subsidised housing sites, and bus routes.
The focus of our review has been on interventions operating at the neighbourhood level rather than city or national level. Virtual spaces, such as social media, are beyond the scope of this review, although these are important and there is a growing evidence base.
The evidence locks relate to the systematic review evidence only.
Case study synthesis: community hubs and green space
This review of practice-based case studies plugs some gaps in the evidence on how community
hubs and green spaces can enhance wellbeing in a place.
Case study evidence provides important and rich detail on these projects and activities, and how they are delivered.
This provides policy makers and practitioners with tangible illustrations to refer to in the design and modification of interventions.
Community hubs
Where you see the following symbols it indicates:
-
qualitative
-
quantitative
-
strongWe can be confident that the evidence can be used to inform decisions.
-
promisingWe have moderate confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
-
initialWe have low confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
Community hubs are community centres or community anchor organisations focused on health and wellbeing that can be either locality based or work as a network. Community hubs, such as healthy living centres, typically provide multiple activities and services that address health or the wider determinants of health, most of which are open to the wider community.
The evidence locks relate to the systematic review evidence only.
Community hubs may promote social cohesion through the mixing of different social, age or generational groups.
Community hubs may increase social capital and build trust between people in communities.
Community hubs may increase wider social networks and interaction between community members.
Community hubs: case study evidence
Specific to the delivery of community hubs, practice based case studies highlighted the following.
- Additional community wellbeing benefits: community empowerment, new groups in the community forming.
- Additional individual wellbeing benefits: from opportunities for social interactions and improvements in
mental health. - Organisational benefits: opportunities for networking and partnership, raising organisational profiles, improved access to commissions/funding.
- Delivery: Multiple activities developed, organised/ delivered by range of stakeholders with a variety of learning techniques used to develop and sustain projects.
- Unforeseen outcomes: new informal support networks in the community, creation of skills training programmes, ‘peer-led’ becoming widely appreciated, asset-transfer programme developed, reduction in health and social inequalities as community hubs support disadvantaged communities.
Community development
Where you see the following symbols it indicates:
-
qualitative
-
quantitative
-
strongWe can be confident that the evidence can be used to inform decisions.
-
promisingWe have moderate confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
-
initialWe have low confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
Community development is a long-term value-based process which aims to address imbalances in power and bring about change founded on social justice, equality and inclusion.
Community development projects can increase opportunities for social interaction between different ethnic and age groups.
Community development projects may lead to improved individual behaviour in terms of physical activity and healthy eating.
Events
Where you see the following symbols it indicates:
-
qualitative
-
quantitative
-
strongWe can be confident that the evidence can be used to inform decisions.
-
promisingWe have moderate confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
-
initialWe have low confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
Temporary events that took place a community level, such as festivals, markets, art events, street parties, concerts. Events ranged from a one-off activity to a regular, sometimes weekly, occurrence.
The evidence also showed that events having the potential to create feelings of exclusion among the wider community.
Events may improve social relations in a community by providing a ‘hub’ for people to meet.
Events can improve community cohesion by providing a neutral space for different groups to socialise.
Events may provide opportunities to connect to place-based culture or heritage.
Local neighbourhood design
Where you see the following symbols it indicates:
-
qualitative
-
quantitative
-
strongWe can be confident that the evidence can be used to inform decisions.
-
promisingWe have moderate confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
-
initialWe have low confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
This involves the scale, form or function of buildings and open space.
Changes to neighbourhood design may increase social cohesion by bringing together people from different ages and social backgrounds.
Community-led neighbourhood design projects have the potential to improve social relations.
Changes to neighbourhood design may positively affect sense of belonging and pride in a community.
Changes to neighbourhood design improve community members’ perceptions about the attractiveness of the area.
Changes to neighbourhood design may lead to increases in physical activity, as well as other health benefits.
Green and blue space
Where you see the following symbols it indicates:
-
qualitative
-
quantitative
-
strongWe can be confident that the evidence can be used to inform decisions.
-
promisingWe have moderate confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
-
initialWe have low confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
Green and blue space is any natural green space – parks, woodland, gardens – or blue space, such as rivers, canals, or the coast.
The evidence locks relate to the systematic review evidence only.
Green and blue space interventions that provide the opportunity to participate in activities or meetings can improve social interactions.
Green and blue space interventions may increase community cohesion by encouraging mixing of different cultural and socio-economic groups.
Improvements to green and blue space may lead to increased social networks, social interactions and bonding and bridging social capital.
Green space changes can improve family wellbeing by providing something for families to do together.
Improvements to green and blue space may results in positive behavioural change, encouraging physical activity and healthy eating.
Green space: case study evidence
Specific to the delivery of green space interventions, practice based case studies highlighted:
- Additional community wellbeing benefits: opportunities for social activities and volunteering, increased skills, knowledge and confidence within the community, community empowerment via participant-led activities
- Additional individual wellbeing benefits: gaining employment and a sense of purpose, a transformative change in some people’s lives.
- Organisational outcomes: strengthened organisational capacity; strengthened or new partnerships; increased influence or organisational profile.
- Delivery: multiple and layered interventions developed in response to local need and to reach disadvantaged groups, effectively reduce wellbeing inequalities and achieve broad aims of wellbeing and empowerment.
- Learning processes to gather insights to improve interventions were prominent in some cases.
- Mechanisms identified: building connections and partnerships, asset-based approaches, adapting to local need, community participation and co-production
Alternative use of space
Where you see the following symbols it indicates:
-
qualitative
-
quantitative
-
strongWe can be confident that the evidence can be used to inform decisions.
-
promisingWe have moderate confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
-
initialWe have low confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
Alternative use of space involved temporary changes to the way that people interact with a space e.g. closure of streets for children to play; a ‘civic game’ that involved collecting items from different places; public art installations; a ‘pop-up park’.
Interventions which change the use of a space temporarily may improve social interactions and opportunities for social interactions.
Interventions which change the use of a space temporarily may increase opportunities for interaction between people from different ethnic or social groups.
Interventions which change the use of a space temporarily may lead to increased civic activity
Unwanted outcomes
Where you see the following symbols it indicates:
-
qualitative
-
quantitative
-
strongWe can be confident that the evidence can be used to inform decisions.
-
promisingWe have moderate confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
-
initialWe have low confidence. Decision makers may wish to incorporate further information to inform decisions.
Community members may perceive that sometimes changes to neighbourhood design can create new problems or transfer existing issues from one area to another.
Changes to neighbourhood design, temporary change of use of space or even some features or urban regeneration may lead to exclusion or segregation of certain groups.
Community development projects may lead to some people being or perceiving that they are excluded.
Downloads
- Briefing: places, spaces, and people
- Full report: Places, spaces, people, and wellbeing
- Briefing: community hubs and green space
- Full report: community hubs and green space
You may also wish to read the blog article on this document.
Downloads
- Briefing: places, spaces, and people
- Full report: Places, spaces, people, and wellbeing
- Briefing: community hubs and green space
- Full report: community hubs and green space
You may also wish to read the blog article on this document.
