Green Spaces for People

Green Spaces for People, an exciting partnership between social landlords Places for People, The Riverside Group and Peabody, has received £15.6 million from the Big Lottery Fund’s Changing Spaces programme. Over the next four years, Green Spaces for People will regenerate over 70 open spaces across England. Individual projects will range in value from approximately £22,000 to £1 million.

The Green Spaces for People portfolio will create and enhance green spaces for the entire community, areas our local residents can enjoy and where they feel safe. The partnership believes that well-designed and successfully delivered green spaces can be catalysts for social cohesion, strengthening community spirit, tackling anti-social behaviour and adapting to climate change.

The projects will raise awareness of the importance of quality green space in the lives of our residents, and the partners will share best practices with other social landlords and relevant stakeholders to ensure that similar green spaces can be improved elsewhere.

Creating opportunities

The Green Spaces for People portfolio will provide play, sports and youth facilities, community and sensory gardens, community parks and wildlife habitats within existing neighbourhoods.

The projects will benefit residents by:

  • Improving access to high-quality green spaces
  • Providing children and young people with safe places to play
  • Redressing the environmental inequalities faced by communities
  • Strengthening community spirit and engagement
  • Enhancing biodiversity in urban areas
  • Discouraging anti-social behaviour through a sense of pride and ownership in the area
  • Raising awareness of the health and well-being benefits of green space
  • Engaging the community through employment, training and volunteering opportunities
  • Reducing the impact of climate change
  • Creating spaces that will encourage communal interaction

About the partnership

Places for People, The Riverside Group and Peabody are responsible for managing approximately 115,000 homes and supporting over 300,000 residents throughout the UK.

As high-profile providers of quality housing, we believe that we have a good understanding of the economic, social and environmental issues affecting more than 5 million social housing residents across the UK. We each have a proven track record in delivering quality services to our communities.

Residents close to each project have already been engaged in the design process, and will continue to be involved throughout the duration of the programme. Portfolio consultation has also included a wide range of stakeholders, government and community agencies at national and local levels to help ensure that the portfolio of green space improvements will be sustained into the future.

Further information
Interested in learning more about Green Spaces for People? For more details, contact: 

Places for People
Contact: Gordon Dickson
gordon.dickson@placesforpeople.co.uk
0161 875 1490

The Riverside Group
Contact: Paul Booth
paul.booth@riverside.org
0151 295 6197

Peabody
Contact: Sue Forsyth
sue.forsyth@peabody.org.uk
020 7021 4441

The Big Lottery Fund