Greater Manchester’s Place Partnership journey

By GM Moving | 02 May 2025 | TAGS: Local Pilot, Place based partnerships

We know that place matters. Where we are born, live, work, and play shapes our opportunities to live healthy, active lives. In Greater Manchester, nearly 1 in 3 residents (28%) are active for less than 30 minutes a week. There are stark and stubborn inequalities in activity data too with an 11-percentage point difference in inactivity rates between our most active borough (24% inactive) and least active borough (35% inactive), in the latest Sport England data. Our place-based approach tackles these deep-rooted inequalities and the barriers that prevent people from moving, being active, and thriving.  

As we prepare to enter the next phase of our work, we take pride in reflecting on the strides we’ve made and the journey that has brought us here. 

Background  

In Sport England’s previous strategy, Towards an Active Nation, a vision was set to invest in ‘Local Delivery Pilots’ to boost activity levels across the country. In 2018, Greater Manchester was one of the 12 original locations chosen to lead this innovative approach. Each of our 10 boroughs created its own place partnership – a network that includes local residents, community organisations, and key partners with a shared passion for building healthier, happier, and fairer communities. 

Initially, the focus was on three key groups: 

• Children and young people aged 5-18 in out-of-school settings 

• People out of work or at risk of becoming workless 

• Adults aged 40-60 with or at risk of long-term conditions, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and respiratory disorders 

Over time, we realised that community priorities differ. The approach has evolved to follow local data, evidence, insight, and energy, ensuring that every community’s needs are met. 

Impact and learning so far 

Over the past five years, the evaluation of the ‘Local Delivery Pilots’, now known as Place Partnerships, and long-term investment in 43 Active Partnerships have shown that local action, built on deep insights from communities, is creating positive and lasting change. We invite you to explore the some of the real stories behind this approach that bring to life how local people and organisations are transforming their communities. 

Read about the Use Your Energy Community Investment Programme in Tameside, where over 2,500 children and young people have become more active thanks to co-produced, community-led projects. Discover Stoneyfield Park Transformation in Rochdale, where an underused space has become a vibrant community hub through collaboration with local residents. Learn about how, or be inspired by Bolton’s Five Ways Happy Days Walk project, which creatively connects schools, parks, and community spaces while promoting the Five Ways to Wellbeing. 

Our commitment to learning goes beyond measuring results: we strive to understand how and why these changes are happening, and how they vary across different contexts. Since 2019, Greater Manchester Place Partners have worked with Substance and Sheffield Hallam University to evaluate the Place Partnership approach in Greater Manchester using a mix of different methods. This process explores how five 'enablers of change' are helping people live more active, healthier lives. Read our process evaluations to explore the detailed insights and learning from our work.  

To find out more: 

• Listen to our localities share their experiences and impact in Season 2 of The GM Moving Podcast, where those leading the work across Greater Manchester discuss how place-based approaches to behaviour change are supporting people to move more in their communities. 

• Watch this video which includes participants from various activities across Greater Manchester talking about the difference the Place Partnership approach has made to their places Watch the video here. 

What next? 

In November 2024, Sport England announced a significant investment of £250m from National Lottery and Exchequer funding for place-based work across the country, with £190m earmarked for 80–100 new priority areas. This significant investment is a core part of Sport England’s Uniting the Movement strategy and builds directly on the learnings since 2017. 

Alongside this, ongoing support for the existing place partnerships continues to drive progress, strengthening community impact while also allowing us to understand the long-term effects on physical activity levels and inequalities. 

As we head into the next phase of our work, we look forward to welcoming and supporting the new areas joining us on this journey. By sharing the insights, learning and proven approaches we've developed, we can help these new partnerships accelerate their impact. Together, we remain committed to building stronger, healthier, and more active communities, driven by the power of place and the voices of the people who live there. 

Local plans for the next phase  

As we move forward, each borough is building on its own insights, learning, and priorities to develop place-specific plans for 2025–2028. Alongside this learning, our locality teams have used the place partnership principles (shown below) to guide meaningful conversations in their communities, allowing them to shape their plans for the next phase of work. These plans reflect the distinct needs of their communities, underpinned by local data and lived experience. While approaches will differ, they share a collective ambition: to create conditions where more people can live active, healthy lives. 

Across Greater Manchester, there will be a strong focus on priority audiences who face some of the greatest barriers to activity, including: 

• People with long-term conditions 

• Lower socio-economic groups 

• Ethnically and religiously diverse communities 

• Individuals with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) 

• Women and girls 

• Children, young people, and families 

By continuing to learn from each other and sharing what works, our Place Partnerships teams across Greater Manchester will strengthen our impact and continue to tackle the deep-rooted inequalities and the barriers to inactivity.  

You can view each boroughs one-page summary of their plans for 2025-2028 below:

• Bolton 
• Bury
• Manchester
• Oldham 
• Rochdale 
• Salford
• Stockport
• Tameside
• Trafford 
• Wigan

Voices from our Community 

Hayley Lever, CEO, noted: 

"Despite fierce economic, structural, and systemic headwinds, Greater Manchester was reducing inactivity at nearly three times the rate of change nationally before the pandemic. And our activity levels recovered twice as quickly as the national rate. This work has been a priority here since 2015 and will continue to be. We have a long way to go, and we are going there together. International, national, and local evidence shows that this more systemic approach is necessary. Our biggest opportunity lies in the power we have collectively, to change culture." 

Conclusion 

Our journey from ‘Local Delivery Pilots’ to embedded Place Partnerships has already made a meaningful difference, helping to tackle inactivity and reduce inequalities across Greater Manchester. As we step into the next phase of this work, we are excited to build on the progress we’ve made and continue driving lasting, transformative change. 

We are incredibly grateful to Sport England for their ongoing support and for enabling us the to continue working in this way. Their belief in place-based approaches enables us not only to deepen the impact in our own communities but also to share our learning and experiences with the new areas joining this journey. 

Looking ahead, we are inspired by the potential for long-term, population-wide change, not just in Greater Manchester, but across England and beyond. By continuing to collaborate, learn, and adapt, we can reshape the way we address inactivity and inequalities and create healthier, fairer, and more active places for generations to come. 

Get involved 

If you’re inspired by the Place Partnership approach and want to learn more, we’d love to connect with you.

Here’s how you can get involved: 

• Explore our work: Visit the Place Partnership page on our website to discover more about our journey, impact, and future plans. 

• Connect with us: Reach out to Nicole, our Strategic Lead for Place Partnerships, to discuss collaboration opportunities or ask any questions. 

• Join the conversation: Take part in one of our monthly Place Partnership forums to hear directly from those leading the work, share insights, and exchange ideas with others driving change.