Holding on to Hope: Lessons from Community Britain – Co-operative Party

Read our latest polling report

Read our ground-breaking new polling report, Holding on to HOPE: Lessons from Community Britain, in partnership with Hope Not Hate.

Our latest report explores how people across Britain feel about their country and their communities – and the results are striking.

When people look at the national picture, the mood is bleak. The most common word people now associate with Britain is “declining”, and 70% of people say they feel ignored by politicians. But at the local level, it’s a different story. People still believe in their communities – and in each other.

  • A clear majority of people are proud of where they live
  • 60% say their neighbourhood is peaceful and friendly
  • Two-thirds say the path to rebuilding trust is better public services
  • And 65% support giving more power to local government and local people

What this tells us is simple: people haven’t given up. But they need politics to meet them where they are by delivering real power to communities, and giving people the tools and trust to shape their own futures. If we want to change how people feel about politics, we have to start where hope still exists.

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Download Holding on to hope: Lessons from Community Britain

About Community Britain

Community Britain is the newest campaign from the Co-operative Party that highlights the role communities are already playing in solving our nation's most pressing challenges and reclaims the role of communities as a serious political and economic force – not just a feel-good afterthought.

We asked community leaders, experts and representatives from around the country what community meant to them. The result is an essay collection, Stories from Community Britain, that showcases the communities across the country who are already pioneering solutions to important issues like climate change, economic stagnation and social cohesion.

Taken together, these stories provide a blueprint of what our country could look like if every community had the power, ownership, and resources to shape the places they live. You can download Stories from Community Britain here.

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