Great Big Green Week 2026:  Working together to make a difference in our neighbourhoods

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The Great Big Green Week logo -Green abstract layered logo with organic, rounded shapes in multiple shades of green, forming a stylised landscape-like design with no visible text.

This Great Big Green Week, we’re highlighting some of the ways residents, colleagues and partners have been working together over the last year to make neighbourhoods cleaner, greener and more welcoming places to live.

From community litter picks and wildlife events to gardening projects and energy-saving advice, we continually work alongside residents to improve local spaces, support nature and encourage more sustainable ways of living. Many of these activities are shaped by resident feedback, helping us focus on the issues that matter most to local communities.

A year of action in neighbourhoods

Seven Neighbourhood Action events took place across our neighbourhoods, bringing residents, colleagues and local partners together to improve shared spaces and respond to issues raised locally.

In Buckinghamshire, work included clearing car parks at Berrysfield (Aylesbury) and improving communal green spaces in Denham and Iver.

In Hertfordshire, waste was cleared at Cains Court in Waltham Cross, and residents in Westmill, Hitchin took part in community skip days to recycle and responsibly dispose of unwanted items. At Moselle House in Watford, around 20 bags of waste and a truckload of rubbish were cleared, making a noticeable difference to how the area looks and feels for residents.

Over 140 people also joined us in Westmill, Grange and Jackmans, North Hertfordshire for the Great British Spring Clean, collecting 91 bags of litter and helping to tidy communal areas.

Three images showing a community clean-up: on the left, a group of Settle volunteers wearing high-visibility vests walk along a path carrying litter pickers and full rubbish bags; in the centre, a Settle operative loads waste and bags into the back of a small utility truck; on the right, a resident pushes a wheelbarrow filled with cut greenery along a residential street.
From left to right: colleagues taking part in the Great British Spring Clean, including Acting CEO Nicola Ewen; an operative loading a truck at the Moselle House Community Action Day; and a resident using our community skip day in Westmill, Hitchin to recycle garden waste.

Supporting nature and biodiversity

Residents have been helping to shape greener neighbourhoods through a range of wildlife and planting projects:

  • In Amersham, Buckinghamshire, residents worked with colleagues and volunteers from Wild Amersham to organise a wildlife-themed community event, bringing families together to take part in nature activities share ideas for improving green spaces on the estate.
  • Bulbs were planted at a Community Action Day with residents and volunteers from Sustainable Amersham, helping to bring more colour and biodiversity to the area.
  • In Chipstead, Buckinghamshire, residents helped shape plans for the planting of new flower beds, with further tree planting planned later this year.
  • Through the Rooted in Community project, Settle residents used an interactive map to identify where they would like to see new trees, shrubs and planting.
Three images showing a community gardening and engagement event: on the left, two Paradigm colleagues in high-visibility clothing plant flowers in a small soil bed surrounded by potted plants outside homes; in the centre, a group of Paradigm colleagues and volunteers from Wild Amersham stand together on grass in front of a blue gazebo with outdoor games laid out nearby; on the right, residents gather around a table with refreshments set up on a grassy area next to a block of flats at the Amersham community event.
From left to right: colleagues planting new flower beds in Chipstead; and scenes from a community action day and wildlife-themed community event in Amersham.

Investing in communities

We’re also supporting resident-led ideas through the Community Benefit Fund, helping people connect with nature, learn new skills, improve green spaces and support more sustainable ways of living.

Current projects include a sensory garden at Garden City Academy in Letchworth, the Home Harvest Project with Green Care at Norton CIC and Oughton Court Community Garden in Hitchin.

A further three sustainability-focused projects have also been approved through the latest phase of funding, with more details to follow as these projects get started and residents begin to get involved.

Two images showing landscaped community spaces: on the left, a paved courtyard at Oughton Court in Hitchin with planted greenery, shrubs and benches outside modern flats; on the right, a wooden raised planter filled with soil and young plants, positioned in an outdoor area belonging to Garden City Academy with a small picket-style border around the planter.
From left to right: improvements to the communal garden at Oughton Court, improving and maintaining the shared outdoor space; and part of the sensory garden planted at Garden City Academy in Letchworth.

Sharing advice and support

Residents have also been able to access practical guidance to support more sustainable living:

  • During Big Energy Savers Week, we shared tips on Settle and Paradigm websites and social media channels to help residents reduce energy use, lower bills and stay warm at home.
  • In Westmill, North Hertfordshire, a community drop-in offered support on fuel bills, keeping homes warm, and condensation, damp and mould.
  • At events in Amersham and Letchworth, residents took part in repair cafés, toy swaps and bike repair sessions to reduce waste and reuse items.
Two images showing community activities: on the left, three Settle colleagues from our Money Advice Team sit with a volunteers from one of our home energy partner organisations around a small table at a community centre with leaflets and a display board behind them reading “Home Energy Advice”; on the right, an outdoor scene at Jackman's Community Fun Day in Letchworth where a person repairs or adjusts a bicycle mounted on a stand under a canopy, with tools and equipment visible nearby.
From left to right: a community drop-in at Westmill Community Centre as part of Neighbourhood Action Week, where the Money Advice team partnered with Better Housing, Better Health; and a bike repair café at Jackmans Family Fun Day in Letchworth.

Listening to residents

Settle residents are working with the Green Panel to develop actions around recycling, sustainable living, climate action, and protecting nature and green spaces. These will continue to develop, with updates shared on Settle Connect.

The Engagement team are working with Community Champions across Paradigm neighbourhoods, helping us understand what matters to residents, including sustainability and other local priorities.

Looking ahead

Thank you to everyone who has taken part over the last year.

We’ll continue working with residents to make neighbourhoods cleaner, greener and more sustainable places to live, and as we come together as one organisation, we’ll keep building on this work and creating more opportunities to get involved.

You can find also out about future events on Connect and our social media channels or visit our Get Involved page if you’d like to take part in any ongoing projects mentioned.

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