Pride in Parades II: Strategies for Renewing Neighbourhood Social Infrastructure
Are there examples of local shopping parades in deprived neighbourhoods that have declined, but come back to life? How did they do it? What lessons can we learn from them that could be applied in other areas that have seen…
Read morePride in Parades I: The State of Neighbourhood Social Infrastructure
One of the most common concerns that residents of some of the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods raise with us is the decline of their local high street. But often the concerns they raise with us are often not about their town…
Read moreNeighbourhood Policy Green Paper: Summary of Consultation Responses and Policy Testing Exercise
In May 2025 the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods (ICON) launched its Neighbourhood Policy Green Paper, Delivering Neighbourhood Renewal: Proposals for Change. This contained 20 policy options, which we committed to testing in line with four tests: strategy, evidence, scale, and…
Read moreNo Short Cuts: Towards a National Strategy for Neighbourhood Recovery
Over the course of the last year, the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods has identified the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods in England. On our visits to these neighbourhoods, we have listened to residents about their hopes and aspirations. We have commissioned and…
Read moreFuture Outlook For Disadvantaged Neighbourhoods in England in 2030
In ICON’s previous work we have established the significant gaps that exist between neighbourhoods on economic opportunity, health, and crime. We know that in all three the deepest disadvantage is found in Mission Critical Neighbourhoods and Mission Priority Neighbourhoods We…
Read moreThe Missing Links: Connecting Disadvantaged Neighbourhoods to New Economic Opportunities
The Independent Commission on Neighbourhood's new Policy Working Paper, The Missing Links: Connecting disadvantaged neighbourhoods to new economic opportunities. The paper shows how economic isolation continues to shape outcomes in many disadvantaged neighbourhoods, limiting access to jobs, growth, and investment.…
Read moreSocial infrastructure and social capital – the active elements of community resilience
What role does social infrastructure play in strengthening community resilience? To investigate, ICON asked the academics Adam Coutts and Diego Mauricio Diaz Velásquez to conduct in-depth review of the evidence on social capital, social infrastructure and resilience. This review identifies…
Read moreHyperlocal Digital Inclusion
ICON asked Sophia Knight to explore the connection between neighbourhoods and digital inclusion. The ideas set out here are the author's, and so should not be ascribed to the Commission as a whole, or to any individual Commissioners or their…
Read moreWhy place matters: neighbourhood effects on crime and anti-social behaviour
Crime and anti-social behaviour are top priorities for the residents of ‘mission critical’ neighbourhoods. That is clear from national statistics, public opinion research by the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods (ICON) with Public First, and from ICON’s visits programme, during which…
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