What can support the foundations for healthy and connected lives?
Findings from Rocket Science’s research for Hampton Fund.
In this blog, Richard Barron CEO of Hampton Fund and Dina Papamichael Director of Consultancy at Rocket Science reflect on recent research by Rocket Science in Hampton Fund’s funding area within Richmond. The research explored community assets and needs to inform Hampton Fund’s future grant making priorities.
Richmond is seen as a great place to live and work by many of its residents, but the pressures faced within the borough align with those felt elsewhere in London and across the UK. In early 2025, Rocket Science analysed public datasets, convened community stakeholders, talked to local funders and engaged with Hampton Fund’s individual grant recipients to understand more about the community’s strengths and individuals’ access to resources and support. Three key findings outlined below represent wider trends across the capital.
Concentrated, complex and interconnected needs
Challenges relating to health, income, debt and multiple deprivation are concentrated within specific wards in Hampton Fund’s funding area. The needs and experiences of residents are interconnected and there are evidenced links between e.g. physical health and mental health, poverty and health, and unemployment and loneliness. Consultation with community practitioners highlighted that residents’ needs were becoming increasingly complex over time. The complexity and geographic concentration of challenges means that both locally targeted and holistic support can be impactful, underpinned by resources and training for practitioners.
The role of housing as a help or hindrance to stability and wellbeing
Despite the general interconnectedness of needs, housing stands out as a driver of other cost-related and wellbeing pressures faced by residents across London. There is an interaction between high housing costs and poverty, with many families under severe financial distress, including half of those being supported by Hampton Fund’s fuel grants facing a choice between heating and eating. Beyond housing costs, poor housing quality and limited long-term stability can disrupt the most foundational element of individual and family security. Having a suitable and comfortable home can be a cornerstone for a wide range of other positive outcomes e.g. relating to employment, mental health and education. The importance of stable housing has led London boroughs to back measures such as ending unfair evictions and increasing standards for landlords within the private rental sector.
Declining individual and societal ‘safety nets’
Residents are experiencing a decline in their own financial ‘safety net’ alongside barriers to accessing local services and support. The cost-of-living crisis has meant that residents have used up previous savings, and the consultation found that where some families are just about managing with the income that they have, unexpected costs such as a new tyre or a broken fridge can push them into crisis. At the same time, what support is available locally is not always clear to community members. Within small geographical areas, available resources should ideally be facilitating strong relationships between services, as well as creating smooth referral pathways that link residents to the support that can help them most.
What’s next?
Hampton Fund are using the report findings in defining grant making priorities for the next couple of years. As soon as Rocket Science’s findings have been translated into a plan, this will be shared publicly. As always, we are keen to discuss so please reach out to Richard and Dina for more info.
