Mandy Wilson

One pandemic, many responses

Repository entry 1 July 2022

This is the third report from Local Trust’s research study exploring how 26 communities across England responded to the COVID-19 crisis.

It follows Strong than anyone thought, published in September 2020, which looked at the initial lockdown period and Now they see us, published in August 2021, which saw the communities adapting to a…

Rapid research COVID-19 Briefing #15: Community responses to COVID-19 – Changing community needs and looking to the future

Repository entry 1 November 2021

The pandemic has been accompanied by a searching analysis of its multi-faceted challenges, uneven consequences and intensifying social needs. Looking ahead, it is thought that a ‘long shadow’ of impact will be cast over the coming ‘COVID decade’. But how are needs experienced at community level identified and understood? This briefing a…

Now they see us: Communities responding to COVID-19

Repository entry 1 July 2021

The study is based on primary data collection from 26 communities across England and a literature review. Over 500 learning conversations have taken place with members of the community, activists and workers, alongside interviews with Big Local reps (individuals appointed by Local Trust to offer tailored support to a Big Local area and sha…

Rapid research COVID-19 Briefing #12: Community responses to COVID-19 – Potential and limits of community power in a pandemic

Repository entry 1 May 2021

New concepts of community power have risen up the policy agenda during COVID-19. Communities have widely been seen as integral to meeting local needs and as having the capacity to respond rapidly to the pandemic. The idea of community power is often assumed, in policy terms, to be a universally beneficial force. However, this fails to address i…

Rapid research COVID-19 Briefing #11: Community responses to COVID 19 – Power and communities

Repository entry 1 April 2021

Community spirit has flourished and community power has been realised during the pandemic. But as thinking turns to recovery and ‘building back better’, it is timely to think critically about how power operates within and between communities, and to consider what this might mean for its potential for transformation. In this briefing we look…

Rapid research COVID-19 Briefing #10: Community responses to COVID-19 – Striking a balance between communities and local authorities

Repository entry 1 March 2021

This briefing draws on research with five local authorities in England to examine how relationships between communities and local government have played out during the COVID-19 pandemic. It draws attention to a complex and interlinked response to the crisis from communities and local councils, founded upon a consistent and collaborative approac…

Rapid research COVID-19 Briefing #8: Community responses to COVID-19 – The role and contribution of community-led infrastructure

Repository entry 1 December 2020

Briefing 7 identified community-led infrastructure (CLI) as an additional dimension of the structures and systems that support civic life, alongside social and voluntary sector infrastructure. This paper takes this a step further by exploring what CLI looks like on the ground, how it is supported and its role in responding to crises, such as th…

Rapid research COVID-19 Briefing #6: Stepping up and helping out: grassroots volunteering in response to COVID-19

Repository entry 1 October 2020

In Briefing 5, Volunteering through crisis and beyond: starting, stopping and shifting, we provided an overview of literature on volunteering. It ended with a question: would all those who have stepped up in their communities call themselves volunteers?

Our current research into community responses to COVID-19 across 26 areas of England offers…

Stronger than anyone thought: Communities responding to COVID-19

Repository entry 1 September 2020

In the context of COVID-19 and public health-related lockdown measures, Local Trust commissioned a study examining how communities react to, cope with and recover from major crises. The study started in April 2020 and the first two phases are due to conclude in June 2021. It presents a unique opportunity to gain grounded insight into commu…

Rapid Research COVID-19 Briefing #4: Blending formal and informal community responses

Repository entry 1 August 2020

In Briefing 3: Grassroots Action, Rob Macmillan explored the literature on the value of informal community activity in conditions of crisis. This included a classification of responses (Whittaker et al, 2015) from established crisis response organisations to expanding organisations meeting the demands of the moment as well as extending organisa…

Rapid Research COVID-19 Briefing #2: Community resilience or resourcefulness?

Repository entry 1 June 2020

This research briefing builds on an initial review of the literature around community responses to disasters (Briefing 1: April 2020). Whilst being informed by some of the academic literature, it focuses directly on community responses to the COVID-19 pandemic on the ground. It aims to develop understanding of ideas about ‘resourcefulness’ …