Building Community Capacity
Building community capacity is about developing preventative community-based approaches and personalised care and support.
See our latest report Ten Actions for an Asset-Based Area
Read our report on Personalisation in Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.


Innovations in community-centred support
A directory of innovations for commissioners and providers to find out about community-centred approaches that are having a positive impact on people’s lives.
KEY RESOURCES
A review of the role of community in health and social care policy
An article that charts the policy interest in community provision.
Towards resilience: making community matter in social care
Report on the advantages of giving more power to communities and what that could mean for the reform of social care.
Social Care Innovation Network -phase II report
Phase II report from the network describes the challenges, and identifies key learning themes on asset-based approaches from the persctive of providers, commissioners and people in receipt of direct payments.
Getting under the skin of the social care innovation network
PHase 1 report from the network that looks at a new and better form of social care - based on the principle that people want a life and not a service.
Podcast on how to make place based, person-centred health & care a reality
Head of TLAP interviews chair of the board on his experiences as someone who access services and as an advocate for people’s rights. (8 mins)
Building Community Capacity: Economic Case Studies
A review of economic evaluations and studies that have been conducted on seven approaches to building community capacity.
Reimagining social care - a study in three places
A study on asset-based commissioning & strengths-based approaches in Thurock, Somerset & Wigan.
The Asset-Based Area
A briefing paper by Shared Lives Plus CE Alex Fox which describes ten features of an ‘asset-based area’ necessary for developing strong communities and sustainable public services.
How-to Guides for creating an Asset-based Area
A series of guides that support asset-based commissioning and practice. Written by the academic & consultant Clive Miller, they complement Alex Fox's Asset-Based Area briefing paper.
Developing a Wellbeing and Strengths-based Approach to Social Work Practice: Changing Culture
A report aimed at social workers that discusses the need to change their workforce culture to one that is 'strengths-based' for promoting wellbeing, early intervention and prevention.
Engaging and Empowering Communities - a shared commitment and call to action
A document that offers a compelling case for working collaboratively to create strong and empowered communities that are central to the transformation of the health and care sector.
Developing the Power of Strong, Inclusive Communities
A framework to support health and wellbeing boards fulfil wellbeing and prevention duties outlined in the Care Act.
Are we there yet? A planning tool and checklist for building community connections
A tool to help organisations assess their own capacity building activities in relation to older and disabled people.
Does it work? A guide to evaluating community capacity initiatives
This guide will help with evaluating projects/services and the impact they have on cultivating 'social capital'.
Case studies
BCC resources of additional interest
- Webinar on reimagining homecare - Wellbeing Teams
- Video: Touch Base South East - Personalisation for individuals who have sensory impairments with additional learning and other associated disabilities. (opens new window)
- Video: Doncaster Social Prescribing - The story of Joan and Badger (opens new window)
- People, places and possibilities: Progress on Local Area Coordination in England and Wales (opens new window)
- Health and wellbeing: a guide to community centred approaches (opens new window)
- Inside out and Upside down (opens new window)
- A Glass Half-Full - How An Asset Approach Can Improve Community Health and Well-being (opens new window)
- Lanscapes of helping: Kindliness in neighbourhoods and communities (opens new window)