Heeley Development Trust

For over two decades now, Heeley Trust has been working to improve public spaces, secure buildings and other assets for the community and deliver all kinds of projects for the people who live here and beyond.

They are here to make lasting change. They believe in community ownership and bottom-up approaches to economic and social issues. And whilst the projects may seem diverse (from A Different Gear bikes to Sum Studios), at their heart they all seek to be independent, not-for-profit, led by local people and are all about Place – delivering key ingredients of a successful “whole” neighbourhood.

It's been a painstaking journey for Andy Jackson and the team, raising funds and grant money to transform negative equity abandoned churches and heritage buildings into fully functioning destinations for local businesses and community services - what he terms as the Fourth Anchor of place-making. Festivals like the Big Boulder in Heeley People's Park seek to bring all of it together and celebrate the spirit created by the Trust.