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Case Study:

The Elephant and Castle Virtual Community Hub

Community hubs have proven time and again their importance as spaces of connection for communities in the toughest of times. The Elephant and Castle virtual Community Hub is no different and showcases how successful digital provision has been and how important it will continue to be.

Published: 25 August 2022
5 minute read

Adapting can be the key to surviving and thriving for community groups

Over the last 17 months, community hubs have proven time and again their importance as spaces of connection for communities in the toughest of times. The Elephant and Castle virtual Community Hub is no different and showcases how successful digital provision has been and how important it will continue to be.

Activities reach hundreds of individuals of all ages, from all backgrounds, communities and walks of life

What is the Elephant and Castle virtual Community Hub?

The Elephant and Castle Digital Community Hub is located in one of London’s most diverse and fastest changing neighbourhoods, which is currently undergoing regeneration and development on a large scale.

The Hub, like so many others, became virtual by necessity when the Covid-19 pandemic hit in March 2020 and the city went into lockdown. Already providing a huge range of services from their temporary home in the Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre before it was demolished to make way for development, the hub led by Diana Barranco, decided that its future was online.

The aim during the pandemic was to bring classes and activities to people in their homes to help them cope with what was a very difficult situation. People, particularly families with children, were looking for activities to do. So, the hub kept in touch with their members and then expanded their reach online. In the first days of the lockdown, they set up all the online infrastructure that they would need to operate fully online. They created their website as a main platform (communityhubse1.co.uk), their Facebook page @Whatsonatelephant, YouTube channel and Zoom platform.

In addition to the hub’s many tutoring classes, exercise group and arts and craft sessions and choir which all moved online, the hub created a wide digital programme. From online quizzes to events with motivational speakers which received interest from as far away as the United States, the hub had expanded its reach outside of its Elephant and Castle neighbourhood home and had become an online space for all. Its activities reach hundreds of individuals of all ages, from all backgrounds, communities and walks of life.

As the pandemic continued, the hub was able to get older generations online, helping them access to the technology and helping them to be part of this virtual community.

How does the hub operate?

The Elephant and Castle hub has a focus on partnership for the mutual benefit of the community. They advertise and promote the work of other charities and community organisations in their area and their various activities. They partner with other organisations on projects such as Southwark Playhouse Theatre People’s company group, Silverfit, Arthritis Foundation, Apex College located in Elephant and Castle, Disability Sports Coach and Arts in the Park.

Funding form the Elephant and Castle Town Centre Development Corporation has made the hub possible. They are able to pay local people to run sessions for the community and allow those activities to be free of charge.

"It is a community. It means connection, means working together, means happiness and that’s why people go there."

Diana

Looking to the future:

There is obviously some doubt about what the future will bring. When asked what the phrase “community hub” meant to her, this was Diana’s answer.

In that, she was clear that this did not have to be a physical space. In her mind, the future is hybrid with a need for both online activities and physical interaction. They are looking at some temporary physical spaces to see if they can return to some in-person activities. But, overall, Diana is clear that the hub’s future will be led by the demand in the community.

Looking to the future:

There is obviously some doubt about what the future will bring. When asked what the phrase “community hub” meant to her, this was Diana’s answer.

In that, she was clear that this did not have to be a physical space. In her mind, the future is hybrid with a need for both online activities and physical interaction. They are looking at some temporary physical spaces to see if they can return to some in-person activities. But, overall, Diana is clear that the hub’s future will be led by the demand in the community.

Lessons for creating a digital community hub:

Diana, who runs the Hub said that there are some key lessons which she learned from the experience of setting up a fully digital community hub.

  • You need a dedicated online space – everyone is on social media; everyone operates in one way or another online. As a community hub, you need a digital presence. Your own platform and social media to engage with the community
  • Work within the timings that people want, listen to your community. Elephant and Castle Hub did a survey of their users to find out the best times to run activities
  • Promotion is very important, but cooperate with other local charities, don’t compete with them. Partnership is a viral element in having a successful hub – finding opportunities to maximise your collective impact and work out who is best placed to do things.
  • On the idea of partnership, everyone will have different resources. You can partner with organisations which have a physical space which you can use.
  • Work closely with your local community – a hub, whether digital or physical, can bring employment into the community, and you will always find people within your community who have skills that they can share.

So, as we begin the recovery phase of this pandemic, what does the future hold for London’s Community Hubs? Will delivery of services and activities online continue in the future, or are there some services which just can’t be delivered online?

"A community hub for me is the home for everyone no matter your nationality, age, you can connect with people without feeling scared to approach them. […] It is a place where you don’t have to go in search of people who have the same interests as you – they are all there in one place. It is a community. It means connection, means working together, means happiness and that’s why people go there."

Diana