Many towns have great places, community assets and local businesses that are often overlooked simply because people don’t know they’re there. 

In Radcliffe, there were already community groups, walking activities, neighbourhood organisations and local champions doing great work. The challenge wasn’t a lack of activity. It was connecting these assets together in a way that encouraged people to explore and experience more of their town.  

The project needed to: 

• Reach a diverse range of residents and stakeholders. 

• Ensure local people felt genuine ownership of the routes. 

• Make walking and cycling accessible and appealing. 

• Build on existing strengths rather than duplicate efforts. 

• Create signage and resources that reflected the reality of life in Radcliffe.  

We knew that if people were involved in shaping the routes, they would be far more likely to use them, share them and champion them.  

We designed a community-led engagement process that started with listening. 

First, we worked to understand the people, groups, organisations and informal networks that make Radcliffe what it is. We mapped local stakeholders, explored where people already walked and cycled, and identified places that mattered to local residents.  

We then created multiple ways for people to contribute, including: 

• Community workshops. 

• Online crowdsourcing activities. 

• Street-based conversations. 

• Guided exploration of local routes. 

• Social media engagement. 

• Conversations with community groups already embedded in local neighbourhoods.  

Importantly, we went to people rather than expecting people to come to us. We worked alongside local organisations, community leaders, schools, sports groups, faith groups and grassroots networks to make participation as accessible as possible.  

Together, we began identifying routes that linked not only destinations, but stories and relationships too. The result was the Reconnect to Radcliffe campaign, a collection of community-informed walking and cycling routes encouraging people to reconnect with: 

• Nature. 

• Friends. 

• Local businesses. 

• Community spaces. 

• Their streets. 

• The wider town itself.  

The routes were then tested, refined and improved with local people before being translated into accessible maps and materials that could be widely shared.  

The project created far more than a set of walking routes. It helped people see Radcliffe differently. 

Through the engagement process, residents identified local landmarks, businesses, green spaces and community assets that many people walked past every day without noticing.  

The resulting routes encouraged people to: 

• Be more physically active. 

• Explore their local area. 

• Support local businesses. 

• Connect with neighbours and community groups. 

• Discover places they hadn’t visited before.  

By involving the community throughout the process, the routes became something people recognised as their own rather than something imposed upon them.  

Most importantly, the project showcased Radcliffe’s strengths, proving that some of the best resources for improving wellbeing are often already sitting on our doorstep.  

Places come alive through the people who experience them. 

This project reminded us that communities don’t connect with infrastructure alone. They connect with stories, memories, relationships and places that matter. 

When we asked people where they walked, they rarely started with street names. They talked about the café they loved, the park where they met friends, the view they enjoyed, the market they visited or the community group that made them feel welcome.  

That’s why this work became about much more than signs and maps. It became about belonging. 

At Collaborate Out Loud, we believe every place already contains the ingredients of a thriving community. Sometimes what people need is help to see what’s already there and permission to explore it together. 

Reconnect to Radcliffe showed that when communities help design the future of a place, they don’t just create better routes. They create stronger connections to the places they call home.