When we first met, I was working as a Learning Mentor and Deputy Safeguarding Lead (DDSL) at Briscoe Primary — a school right at the heart of one of the most under-resourced communities in Pitsea. I’d been there for 22 years, not just as a staff member, but as a resident raising my own kids. I knew the area, the families, and the struggles: not just professionally, but personally.
Northlands Park was just down the road. On paper, it looked like an asset: open space, green areas, a lake, playgrounds — all the things a community should treasure. But in reality, it was known as Murder Park.
Gangs, drugs, violence. It wasn’t safe. No one used it. We were effectively trapped in our own homes, isolated and financially struggling, and those issues spilled into school every single day.
Every morning, I’d meet with 15+ families struggling with housing, mental health, poverty, and the sheer stress of raising kids in an area that felt forgotten. There was nowhere free, safe, or welcoming for them to go. The park could’ve been that place, but it wasn’t. The community had shut down around it.
ATF (Active Thames Foundation) turned up. Another parachute project, I thought. Another group of well-meaning outsiders telling us what they thought we needed. I sat in that Discovery Day full of cynicism. I’d seen it all before: plans made without us, assumptions made about us, and nothing ever sticking.
But this day was different. They listened. Properly listened. Not just to our problems, but to our potential. And they didn’t just talk, they stuck around.
Slowly, the walls started coming down. ATF weren’t there to lead for us, they were there to walk with us. What began as a simple consultation grew into a true partnership. Youth groups started popping up. Local people began shaping their own programmes. The park started to feel safer. Families came out again.
It wasn’t overnight, and it wasn’t perfect. But something had shifted.
For me personally, it reignited belief. I’d spent years feeling like nothing would change, like we were shouting into the void. But this? This felt real. It was one of those moments that reminded me why I stayed in this job so long, to be part of something that grows with the community, not over it.
Impact:
- Community Reconnection: Northlands Park slowly became usable again. Families began reclaiming the space.
- Youth Empowerment: Young people weren’t just participating — they were leading. They had a voice in shaping activities and decisions.
- Trust Rebuilt: The relationship between service providers and residents transformed. ATF weren’t “outsiders” anymore. They were part of the community’s fabric.
- Wellbeing: Mental health, isolation, and engagement all showed signs of improvement — in school, in homes, in the park.
What this taught me and what I think every organisation needs to hear, is that real change doesn’t come from top-down strategies. It comes from relationships. From trust. From sticking around even when it’s uncomfortable or slow.
ATF didn’t bring the answers, they helped us find our own. And that’s what made all the difference.
For more information – and transformative stores about community participation – click here.
