Big Conversations: Unlocking Community Wealth in Oxfordshire

5 days ago4 min read

Written by Alice Williams with with extracts and contributions from Annie Davy and Makena Lohr and Katherine Chesson.

Over the last few months Annie Davy and Makena Lohr have been working alongside local Community Wealth Building (CWB) experts on the ground to gather valuable insights about how to foster community wealth in Oxfordshire.

Annie and Makena are co-founders of Flo’s the Place in the Park, a community enterprise hub that gave new life to a decommissioned children’s centre in East Oxford. They have worked on a freelance basis for this project seeking to bring to light the impressive work of the community wealth building sector in Oxfordshire. Annie has had a long career in local authority, education and community work sectors. Makena is cofounder of several charities/community groups and is currently undertaking a Churchill fellowship project on community hubs.

*Big Conversation Event at Tap Social. Photo coutesy of Annie Davey via Linkedin*

Over the course of 4 events, they showcased 27 case studies which can be viewed on the Oxfordshire Inclusive Economy Partnership (OIEP) website, each one highlighting community enterprise achievements and offering valuable insights into what works, whilst learning about big challenges and inequities in some of our systems that need to change for community wealth building to grow and flourish.

This is just a glimpse of the hundreds of groups making a difference in our county. It builds and adds to other reports and case studies which have also added to the picture of what good and transformational work is happening in the county.

Public sector organisations must partner creatively with communities. Trust and collaboration are essential to address systemic inequalities effectively. We call on local authorities, funders, and public organisations to be brave. Take bold steps to engage with grassroots leaders as equal partners, invest in creative solutions, and recognise the value of lived experience in shaping policy and practice. Jacqui Gitau, African Families in the Uk

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What stood out across all of these stories was how much these changemakers have accomplished—often against the odds. Instead of being supported, they’re too often drained by the wider systems that often extract their energy and resources that could be multiplied for the good of communities.

The challenges our communities face are immense, and the ideas and calls to action in these stories are vital. Collective action is urgently required—from public sector, anchor institutions, businesses, communities, and individuals.

There are periods when I am paid, other times I am not-. We need more consistent funding so the sector can be more inclusive. We are delivering a vital service to society. We need those in positions of power to collaborate with us, trust us, and enable us to use our skills for the benefit of the community and the planet. If I wanted to misuse money, I could find far easier ways to do it than running a community garden! Tila Ridriguez, Bridge Street Community Garden, Banbury

With over half of the 27 case studies coming from the CAG Oxfordshire membership as well as CAG itself and our Community Wealth uilding Project Owned by Oxford we spoke with Katherine Chesson, CAG Director who said:

The Community Wealth Building Big Conversations were a chance for me to get to learn more about other organisations and leaders working to amplify and empower the expertise of our local communities. There is so much talent, skill, and wisdom right here in Oxfordshire and community wealth building, for me, means how do we recognise, keep and reward that talent to the benefit of Oxfordshire's residents. The member groups that comprise the CAG network are doing so much of this work and I continue to be impressed and humbled by their contributions. Going forward, there is a real opportunity to:

streamline how local councils can support community groups through a common social value framework;
shift the burden of accountability and risk in grantmaking from small grassroots groups to larger anchor organisations or even infrastructure support organisations such as CAG;
develop funding models that can truly address long-term challenges community groups are working to change.

I hope these 'Big Conversations' are the start of a more collaborative, community-centred approach to making change, which I feel is critical if we are to move closer to a world centred on climate justice.

The feedback from the Big Conversations has been overwhelmingly positive, with strong engagement from both local authority officers and community organisations.

Look out for the upcoming report, which will include calls to action to Oxfordshire's local authorities, to our universities, health trusts, businesses, as well as the Voluntary and Community Sector infrastructure organisations . The calls to action have ideas and practical next steps proposals for these institutions — to overcome obstacles and use collective ideas, innovation, and sustainability based on experience from the ground up to create fairer and healthier places to live and work.

We were able to take on a new space and open the OCA café on Cowley road. It came full circle, because it's the same building where in 2018 Costa café was where we made our original plans. Now the money that is spent in that café flows directly to support the community. Hassan Sabrie, Oxford Community Action