Young people in Barking and Dagenham will shape a new community-led and owned creative hub as the Blagrave Trust, Barking & Dagenham Giving, and Good Ancestor Movement announce today (29th July 2026) an initial £1.8 million capital investment, plus more to be fundraised, to develop a base for youth creativity and enterprise.
The Blagrave Trust has committed £1 million in capital funding, with BD Giving committing £800,000, while Good Ancestor Movement has pledged to raise up to £1 million further from its network.
The investment marks a significant milestone in BD Giving's Spaces+Places programme, an 18-month community-led exploration into what community assets the borough needs most. It also reflects Blagrave’s new strategy, Leading with Hope, which commits long-term place-based investment to youth-led change across three areas, and Good Ancestor Movement’s commitment to wealth being held in communities in perpetuity, for the benefit of future generations.
The site of the Hub is yet to be identified but the focus is currently on Barking where residents identified a gap in flexible space for young changemakers, aged 16- 30 years.
Bhav Ghedia, Neighbourhood Steward:
We started with over 25 ideas which we debated, refined and in some cases set aside. It wasn’t always easy. It took time, we had to be patient, we had to compromise. But our conversations always came back to young people.
We challenged stereotypes and started thinking more along the lines of ‘What if they had somewhere to go; somewhere to connect and create.’ Now that vision is becoming a reality.”
BD Giving is a community-led funder and social investor that creates opportunities for local people to make decisions about how money is spent in Barking and Dagenham
Géraud de Ville de Goyet, Chief Executive at Barking & Dagenham Giving, said:
"Our partnership with Blagrave Trust and Good Ancestor Movement reflects a shared belief that creating opportunities for young people requires more than programmes and grants. It also requires places and spaces where connections happen, ideas can develop and communities can build power together.
This long-term partnership will make Barking a magnet for local young changemakers.”
Unlike many youth initiatives that rely on short-term funding, the partners are investing in a permanent community asset that can support generations of young people and act as a connector of other youth spaces and organisations in the borough.
The approach reflects Blagrave's commitment to long-term, place-based investment that builds community wealth, empowers local people and creates lasting infrastructure for young changemakers and Good Ancestor Movement’s approach to unlocking high-net-wealth individuals’ resources to build an economy that works for people and the planet.
Together the partners will set up a steering group of majority young people with experience of, or, who are challenging deep-rooted inequality. In time the ownership of the asset will transition to a democratic structure, creating one of the UK's most ambitious examples of youth-led, community-owned infrastructure.
A central part of The Blagrave Trust’s strategy is making bold, long-term investments in places where community power can grow. Barking and Dagenham was selected as one of the Trust's priority places because of its strong local leadership, young population, established culture of resident participation and the opportunity to build community-owned assets that will benefit future generations.
The funders have also committed to a long-term, place-based partnership, with Blagrave planning to recruit locally and work from a shared space with BD Giving in the borough.
The Blagrave Trust Chief Executive Eli Manderson Evans said:
"Leading with Hope is about backing young people and communities to shape their own futures. We chose Barking and Dagenham because young people here are already leading change and because the foundations for community-led decision making are already laid through the great work at Barking & Dagenham Giving.
We know young changemakers need permanent places, not just programmes. This investment is about creating infrastructure that young people can shape, use and eventually own — building community power, creativity and opportunity for generations to come."
The Good Ancestor Movement is dedicated to supporting people and organisations with access to substantial financial wealth in values-aligned wealth stewardship and radical redistribution.
Kiki Mager, Director of Resource Mobilisation at Good Ancestor Movement said:
"This partnership is about wealth, land and decision-making power being held in communities for the long term. At Good Ancestor Movement we believe that when philanthropy shifts from funding short-term projects to resourcing community ownership and collective power, we can build an economy where everyone can thrive together."
Further details about the hub, opportunities for young people to shape its development and community engagement activity will be announced over the coming months.