Belonging as Infrastructure: Reimagining Community, Health and Local Growth

An evening conversation at the opening of Citizen Hub Wimbledon.

Date & Time

Wednesday 21st January 2026
Arrival from 6.00pm
Conversation 6.45 – 7.30pm
Informal conversations until 8.30pm

Location

Citizen Hub Wimbledon
267 The Broadway
London SW19 1SD

(Yes, it’s underground. Yes, it is a nightclub.)

For years we have tried to fix health, skills, employment and local growth through systems, strategies and services.

What if the missing ingredient has been belonging all along?

Citizen Hub is a growing movement creating places where people feel safe, seen and supported to grow. By bringing citizens, employers, services and community organisations into the same space, it creates the conditions for stronger outcomes across health, skills, enterprise and local economies.

On 21st January, Citizen Hub Wimbledon opens its doors for the first time. Beneath Broadway, in a 5,000 square foot underground nightclub, an experiment is underway.

This evening event is an invitation to explore a simple but challenging question:

How do you turn an unconventional space into social infrastructure that actually works?

Drawing on the success of the original Citizen Hub in Cambridgeshire, which has engaged thousands of people and generated tangible impact across employment, wellbeing and community connection, this conversation looks at what happens when places are built around people rather than systems.

This is not a launch, a presentation or a panel for panels’ sake. It is a thoughtful, open conversation about belonging, power, place and what comes next for communities like Wimbledon.

What to Expect

A short framing conversation hosted by the Citizen Hub team

Reflections from people working across community, health, skills and local growth

Space for discussion, challenge and contribution from the room

Tea, coffee and the bar will be available, with informal conversation before and after

Who This Is For

This evening is for people who care about places and people, including:

Civic and community leaders

Funders and investors in social impact

Employers and education partners

People shaping health, skills and economic systems

Anyone curious about new forms of social infrastructure

Hosted By

Ash Firth, Alex Hughes, Xavier Wiggins, Lauren Dark & Katy Davies

Citizen Hub Wimbledon team

Why Attend

Because the future of communities will not be built in boardrooms alone.

It will be built in places that feel human, unexpected and shared.

www.citizenhub.co.uk

Wimbledon@citizenhub.co.uk