25 August 2026
Pride in Place: young People in Ipswich Help Shape £40 Million in Community Regeneration Plans
Young people from Whitehouse, Stoke Park and Chantry are playing a direct role in deciding how £40 million of government investment will transform their neighbourhoods over the next decade.
The group came together on Wednesday 12th August at CHIp Hub on Princes Street for a session focused on branding and content creation. The session is part of the government’s Pride in Place programme, through which Whitehouse and Stoke Park & Chantry will each receive £20 million in long-term funding – with residents deciding how it’s spent, and young people given a direct voice in that process.
The youth collaborators were asked to reflect on what already exists in their areas, where they actually spend their time, and what they’d like to see change – including a collaging activity using magazines to build a picture of what they want Ipswich, and their own neighbourhoods, to look like.
A few themes came up again and again. On green space, the youth collaborators were clear that a shortage of parks isn’t the problem – it’s a shortage of places within those parks where they can actually spend time. Youth clubs told a similar story: it’s often the branding, not a lack of interest, that puts young people off walking through the door. Events were another recurring theme, with collaborators pointing to the kind of gatherings that bring young people together and saying they’d like to see more of them.
With these themes in mind, the collaborators worked together to create branding for both Whitehouse and Stoke Park & Chantry, drawing heavily on natural green spaces, vibrant colours, and community inclusivity.
This session was one strand of a much bigger push to get residents involved in Pride in Place – handing young people real ownership over what happens next, and a genuine role in shaping Pride in Place overall.
Earlier this year, Ipswich Borough Council opened applications for two new Pride in Place Neighbourhood Boards – one for Stoke Park & Chantry, one for Whitehouse – inviting local people to help set priorities and decide how the funding is spent, with no formal qualifications required. The council was explicit that it wanted to hear from people whose voices aren’t always heard, including younger residents.
Between the boards and sessions like this one, there are now several routes into shaping how Whitehouse, Stoke Park and Chantry change over the next ten years. The youth collaborators will keep attending community events over the coming months, gathering wider resident views on how the £40 million should be spent – feeding into the same boards now getting under way. It’s a clear example of young people not just being consulted, but embedded in decisions that will shape their neighbourhoods for the next decade – better-branded youth clubs, more places to actually spend time, and more events that bring young people together.
Want to get involved? Find out more about the Pride in Place Neighbourhood Boards on Ipswich Borough Council’s website.
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