Jump to content

Community action/Yorkshire and the Humber

From Appropedia
Yorkshire country side, May 2009. Attribution: Gpmg
Community action has a lot to offer. See it, celebrate it and sample it. Through community we can do so much more than we think we can.

The gift of climate and ecological emergency is that we all get to work together. Ordinary citizens and community groups naturally share what they learn, and what they know of what helps. Everyone can help, everyone has something to offer, everyone is welcome. We all need to design, make and grow a better future for ourselves, our communities and our world. Together we CAN. Yes we CAN.

The aim of this page is to recognise, celebrate and encourage the self-empowerment of community agency networks (CANs) and community groups' activism across Yorkshire and the Humber. It's an introduction to local networks, groups, events, community resources and assets.

Yorkshire and the Humber
UK
Europe
Cosmolocal
  • News What if we stopped treating social care like a service? A small village community in Yorkshire showed me another way, theconversation.com (Aug 20, 2026)
  • News West Yorkshire moor brought under community ownership, thenews.coop (Oct 30, 2025) — Bridestones Moor, near Todmorden, will be managed by a CIC led by local ecologists, naturalists and residents
  • News Campaign launched to buy waterfall beauty spot, BBC News (Jul 17, 2025) — Campaigners say the community is ready to take responsibility for the future of the ancient woodland and waterfall
Read more
  • News Firefighters voice growing concerns over water supplies to tackle UK wildfires, theguardian.com (Oct 21, 2026) — Housing development recognised as one of a number of pressures increasing demand on an already stretched water network
  • News Severe drought declared in six areas of England as reservoirs run low, theguardian.com (Oct 15, 2026)
  • News Ardingly Reservoir falls below 20% as drought persists, BBC News (Oct 14, 2026)
  • News Citizens need to power Europe's future, demnext.substack.com (Oct 02, 2026) — The EU can enable new democratic institutions: in European countries; with a European Citizens’ Assembly as a 4th branch of government, and by legally enforcing the Global Citizens’ Assembly on AI, Claudia Chwalisz and Another Democratic Future
  • News Reclaiming the streets: the architects clawing back Europe’s car-centric spaces, theguardian.com (Sep 09, 2026) — The European Prize for Urban Public Space’s shortlist highlights projects helping people cope with climate crisis
  • News We’re the mayors of Paris, Milan and Phoenix. The heat crisis has us all facing the same question, Emmanuel Grégoire, Giuseppe Sala and Kate Gallego, theguardian.com (Sep 07, 2026) — Our three cities are learning from each other about how to protect residents. These climate policies are also public health measures
  • News Giving £2 a day to people in the Amazon helps protect rainforest, pilot project finds, theguardian.com (Oct 20, 2026)
  • News From Protesting To Worldmaking, Alternative Editorial (Oct 18, 2026)
  • News Hunter Valley community group wins landmark high court climate change case over coalmine, theguardian.com (Oct 07, 2026) — Ruling on Mount Pleasant coalmine shows ‘we cannot continue to dig up coal … and pretend the consequences have nothing to do with us’, group says

Networks and sustainability initiatives

[edit | edit source]

CDC videos

[edit | edit source]
Cosmolocal discovery club

Each week 3 different short videos from across the UK or world.

mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
Building a Secure Cycling Network, Cyclehoop, The Power of Cycling
Authors: European Cyclists' Federation and Content With Purpose, 3.36 mins.
Date: 2026-09-15
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
When will the drought end?
Authors: Tom Edwards, BBC London, 3.07 mins.
Date: 2026-08-26
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
The Route Forward
Authors: Cycling UK, 6.13 mins.
Date: 2026-09-22

Community action/United Kingdom/Cycling activism, Community action/South East England/Saving water / ...This week's featured Global videos / ... read more about Cosmolocalism

Yorkshire and the Humber video

[edit | edit source]
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
What's working well when it comes to food in Yorkshire?
Authors: Food, Farming and Countryside Commission, 3.30 mins.
Date: 2026-02-26
1116777187.jpgVimeo_play_button.png
Bridestones Rewilded CIC
Authors: HSS, 2.37 mins.
Date: 2025-09-08
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
'Our Future' - a poem by Lisa February
Authors: Our Future, 2.09 mins.
Date: 2024-08-09
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
The Way We Do Things Around Here
Authors: Kirklees Democracy, Jul 5, 2022
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
East Marsh Community
Authors: Ethex, Mar 8, 2022
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
We Make Our Places What They Are
Authors: Kirklees Democracy, 2.20 mins.
Date: 2021-10-13

UK and international events

[edit | edit source]

UK events

  • Event Nov 9 - 15, 2026 (Mon - Sun) — Living Wage Week, livingwage.org.uk
  • Event Nov 13, 2026 (Fri) — Kindness Day UK, Nov 13 annually, aiming to increase the value of kindness in society as well as increase the amount of kind acts that take place, making kindness a greater part in our daily life, kindnessuk.com
  • Event Nov 15 - 21, 2026 (Sun - Sat) — Road Safety Week, brake.org.uk
  • Event Nov 21 - 29, 2026 (Sat - Sun) — National Tree Week, The Tree Council's annual tree celebration. People across the country planting thousands of trees to mark the start of the winter tree planting season. "Trees and hedgerows are some of the most powerful tools we have in the fight against climate change.", treecouncil.org.uk

UK community action events

Global or international events

  • Event Nov 05, 2026 (Thu) — Media Liberation Day, Change the Media, Change the Future, mediarevolution.org
  • Event Nov 13, 2026 (Fri) — World Kindness Day, Nov 13, annually, highlighting good deeds in the community focusing on the positive power and the common thread of kindness for good which binds us, randomactsofkindness.org
  • Event Nov 15, 2026 (Sun) — World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, third Sunday in November each year, worlddayofremembrance.org
  • Event Nov 16, 2026 (Mon) — International Day for Tolerance, Nov 16 each year, fostering respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of our world's cultures, our forms of expression and ways of being human, unesco.org
  • Event Nov 19, 2026 (Thu) — International Men's Day, Nov 19, annually
  • Event Nov 27 & 28, 2026 — Buy Nothing Day, en.wikipedia.org
  • Event Nov 27, 2026 (Fri) — Citizen Friday, actionism.space

2021-2030, UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, International community action events

Community involvement

[edit | edit source]
  • Kirklees Democracy Commission, "We're growing a stronger local", democracycommission.org.uk, link checked 17:15, 13 October 2022 (UTC)
  • Heading Upstream Published, Major report outlining Barnsley's success in promoting social justice through citizen and community action, 2017, citizen-network.org, link checked 09:19, 8 February 2025 (UTC)

Localism

[edit | edit source]
  • Supporting community business in Yorkshire and the Humber, powertochange.org.uk, added 11:45, 13 November 2021 (UTC)
  • Yorkshire Party, building a stronger Yorkshire in a fairer UK

Community and voluntary action

[edit | edit source]

Hambleton Community Action, Northallerton

Community resources video

[edit | edit source]
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
Living in Esk Valley Camphill Community
Authors: Esk Valley Camphill Community, 5.02 mins.
Date: 2023-10-26
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
Holmfirth Repair Cafe
Authors: Kirklees Democracy, Nov 8, 2022
36838823.jpgVimeo_play_button.png
Incredible Edible Todmorden
Authors: Estelle Brown, 11.38 mins.
Date: 2012
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
Community woodfuel project
Authors: csebristol, 9.43 mins.
Date: 2011-03-21
mqdefault.jpgYouTube_icon.svg
IET on Calendar
Authors: Estelle Brown, 3.20 mins.
Date: 2009-07-26

Food activism

[edit | edit source]

Land activism

[edit | edit source]

Social inclusion

[edit | edit source]

For multiple deprivation in England, measured by the Indices of deprivation 2007, the most deprived council districts in the region are, in descending order – Kingston upon Hull (11th in England), Bradford (32nd), Doncaster (41st), Barnsley (43rd), North East Lincolnshire (49th), Sheffield (63rd), Wakefield (66th), Rotherham (68th), Kirklees (82nd), Leeds (85th), and Scarborough (97th). These areas are mostly represented by Labour MPs, with a few Conservative MPs representing parts of Leeds (with a Lib Dem MP) and North East Lincolnshire, and all of Scarborough. Apart from Scarborough, they are unitary authorities.

The least deprived districts are, in descending order – Harrogate, Hambleton, Richmondshire, Craven, and Selby – all in North Yorkshire. Like all of North Yorkshire, they are represented by Conservative MPs, aside from Selby which elected a Labour MP at the 2023 Selby and Ainsty by-election. At county level, the least deprived areas are, in descending order – North Yorkshire, York and the East Riding of Yorkshire which all have roughly the same level of deprivation, and lower than the majority of England, including Cheshire and Northamptonshire.

The region as a whole is one of the more deprived in England, measured by having far more Lower Layer Super Output Areas (LSOAs) in the 20% most deprived districts than the 20% least deprived districts.

Kingston upon Hull has the highest proportion of people not in education, employment or training NEETs in the region (and fairly high for the UK – 10.6%). This is another demographic extreme it shares with Knowsley in Merseyside.

In March 2011 the region had the third highest overall unemployment claimant count in England with 4.4%. For the region, Hull has the highest rate with 7.8% which is the highest for any English district; North East Lincolnshire is next with 6.4%, and Doncaster has 5.2%. Richmondshire has the lowest rate with 1.8% and Harrogate is next lowest with 1.9%. W

Social care

[edit | edit source]

Community resources

[edit | edit source]

Citizens data initiative

Who Owns My Neighbourhood?, Kirklees land ownership data

Commons

[edit | edit source]

Reduce, reuse, repair and recycle

[edit | edit source]

About Yorkshire and the Humber

[edit | edit source]

Past events

  • May 5 Calder Bootstrap 2017, "a group of entrepreneurs, co-operators, activists and changemakers, looking to engage our community to co-create our next economy."

Campaigns

Yorkshire and the Humber is one of the nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It is one of the three regions covering Northern England, alongside the North West England and North East England regions, and covers the historic and cultural Yorkshire area.

Near you

[edit | edit source]

Hull - Leeds - Sheffield

Page data
Keywords English region
SDG SDG11 Sustainable cities and communities
Authors Phil Green
License CC-BY-SA-3.0
Language English (en)
Related 2 subpages, 4 pages link here
Redirects Yorkshire and the Humber, Yorkshire and the Humber community action
Views 173 page views (analytics)
Created June 7, 2014 by Phil Green
Last edit September 16, 2026 by Felipe Schenone
Cookies help us deliver our services. By using our services, you agree to our use of cookies.