Practical hope: four inspiring examples
14th July 2025
The TCPA’s case study resource ‘Practical Hope: Inspiration for community action‘ spotlights inspiring community projects such as local food-growing initiatives and urban community gardens. The case studies include practical advice and useful tips to help ensure that your community project is a success.
Llyn Parc Mawr Community Woodland Group: Stewardship for the benefit of wildlife and the local community
Llyn Parc Mawr Community Woodland Group is based in Anglesey, Wales. The community group manages 60 acres of Newborough Wood, known as Llyn Parc Mawr. At the core of the group’s work is the philosophy of creating a thriving woodland for the benefit of both wildlife and the local community’s wellbeing.
Read the case study: Llyn Parc Mawr Community Woodland Group – Town and Country Planning Association
Bradford on Avon Town Council: Creating a thriving, sustainable town and flourishing community
Bradford on Avon Town Council is located in the Avon valley in north-west Wiltshire. It is a lower-tier authority, sitting below Wiltshire Council, a unitary authority. The Council has 12 councillors and 27 employees. The historic town has a population of just over 10,000 people. Following the declaration of a climate and ecological emergency, a range of activities have been undertaken, including stopping the use of pesticides, becoming peat-free, and helping the community with the creation of a green wall in the town centre. Additionally, using funding from the Forestry Commission, the Town Council planted 3,500 trees to help aid biodiversity and increase the absorption of carbon dioxide.
Read the case study: Bradford on Avon Town Council – Town and Country Planning Association
Sunnyside Community Gardens: Nurturing an inclusive green space for the local community
Sunnyside Community Gardens is a charity that runs and manages a small green space in a built-up area of north London. The organisation has been gardening at Sunnyside for over 40 years. The group’s work is about so much more than just gardening and plants. They work to provide the local community, many of whom live in flats on the neighbouring estates, with a safe and inclusive environment to socialise, relax, and volunteer. Unusually for a community garden, Sunnyside remains open to the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Read the case study: Sunnyside Community Gardens – Town and Country Planning Association
Incredible Edible Leeds: Building kind, confident, connected communities through food growing
Part of the wider Incredible Edible Movement, Incredible Edible Leeds is a community group working to use food as the catalyst for change and to bring the local community together. One of its main projects is public edible beds, which can be found across the city. The edible beds serve a multitude of purposes, including educating people on where their food comes from and providing a free and sustainable source of healthy food.
Read the full case study: Practical Hope: Incredible Edible Leeds – Town and Country Planning Association
Header photo: Bradford on Avon green wall (courtesy of Bradford on Avon Town Council)