Sustaining Place-Based Systems Change: What We Heard, What We Know, and What We Must Do Next
Renaisi-TSIP’s inquiry on sustaining place-based systems change arrives at a moment when the sector is grappling with a fundamental truth: the work of shifting local systems cannot be contained within the boundaries of a programme cycle.
The interim paper that Renaisi-TSIP published as part of this inquiry opens with a line that captures this reality with precision: “Place-based systems change is an approach, not an outcome… sustaining place-based systems change requires ongoing work. It is never finished.” That sentiment echoed through every one of Pathway Fund’s regional listening events last winter. .
In Bristol, Birmingham, across the East Midlands and North West, communities told us they are rich in ideas, relationships and ambition, but starved of the long-term, flexible capital required to transform local systems. They are tired of pilots, short-termism, andbeing asked to demonstrate sustainability in environments where the financial architecture makes that almost impossible. What they want is investment that matches the scale of their vision and the depth of their commitment.
This is why Pathway Fund’s new strategy places place-based investment at its core. We are committed to building long-term, community-rooted financial infrastructure that enables places to lead their own change. We’ve partnered with Renaisi-TSIP on their inquiry to sharpen our understanding of what that requires and where the sector must evolve. In Renaisi-TSIP’s , they set out five interim paper reviewing the current landscape of approaches to funding and investing in place-based systems change, they set out five common approaches and open up critical questions that we must all grapple with if we want to meaningfully invest in systems change. We reflect on each approach below, setting out how we believe Pathway can contribute to systems change.
Anchors: Essential, Trusted – and Exhausted
The first approach – supporting community anchors – emerged strongly in our listening events. Anchors are often the only institutions with the trust and legitimacy to convene across sectors. They hold memory, relationships and accountability.
But they are also exhausted. Many are being asked to carry the weight of systemic change while simultaneously firefighting the consequences of austerity, rising demand and shrinking local authority budgets.
Renaisi-TSIP asks, “Which resourcing methods… enable anchors to have the flexibility, longevity and community-embeddedness needed?” Our listening events offered a clear answer: anchors need multi‑decade investment, not multi‑year grants. They need the freedom to experiment, adapt and build local wealth – not just deliver services.
Our strategy recognises this. We are exploring blended finance models that combine grant, patient capital and community-led investment to strengthen anchors without overburdening them.
Coalitions: Powerful When Built on Shared Power
The second approach – developing coalitions – reflects a growing recognition that no single organisation can shift a system. Coalitions can challenge fragmentation, build shared purpose and create the conditions for collective action.
But Renaisi-TSIP surfaces a hard truth: too many coalitions dissolve when the funding ends because they were never built on shared power. The question it’s interim paper poses – “How can you shift from a partnership that is being funded to do work together… towards a long-term coalition united by a shared vision for systemic change?” – is the right one.
Our listening events revealed that communities want coalitions that centre lived experience, redistribute rather than consolidate power, and have governance structures that outlast programme cycles. They want coalitions that are accountable to residents, not funders.
This is why Pathway Fund is working closely with the Impact Economy Collective. Their place-based work shows what becomes possible when coalitions are rooted in community priorities and supported by long-term, values-aligned capital.
Statutory Agencies: Necessary Partners, Not the Sole Drivers
The third approach – embedding change in statutory agencies – acknowledges that systems cannot shift without public sector transformation. But our listening events revealed a deep scepticism about top-down change.
Communities have seen too many promising initiatives evaporate with political cycles. Renaisi-TSIP asks, “If change is driven by policy that is subject to political cycles… can this really be viewed as systemic?” We know that communities would say no.
Our strategy therefore focuses on community-led accountability. Public sector partners must not only participate in systems change – they must be held to the ambitions set by residents. When communities control capital, they can shape the behaviour of institutions. This is where place-based investment becomes a lever for influence.
Devolving Investment: Real Power, Not Symbolic Participation
The fourth approach – devolving investment decisions – aligns strongly with what we heard in our listening events. When residents control resources, priorities shift. Confidence grows. Power moves.
But communities were clear: devolution must be real.. They want decision-making forums that reflect the diversity of the place, investment processes that are accessible and transparent, and support to build capability rather than gatekeeping that reinforces inequality.
Pathway Fund is designing investment models where communities set priorities, shape criteria and steward capital. We are learning from Big Local, Local Motion and The Giving Lab – but we are also pushing further by embedding community governance into the heart of our investment strategy.
Endowments and PBII: Transformative if Designed for Equity
The final approach – building place-based endowments and leveraging PBII – may be the most transformative. But Renaisi-TSIP’s interim paper raises a critical question: “Could this approach worsen inequalities between places…?”
Our listening events made the risk clear. Wealthier areas can build endowments; poorer areas cannot. Without intentional design, PBII could reinforce the very inequalities we seek to dismantle.
Pathway Fund is therefore committed to building equitable, community-controlled capital. This means seeding endowments in places that have historically been underinvested, blending philanthropic, public and private capital to reduce risk, ensuring governance is led by residents, and supporting community organisations to become investment-ready. This is about conceding material power.
Where We Go From Here
While these were only early findings, Renaisi-TSIP’s interim paper presents a call to action. Our listening events are a mandate. Our strategy is a commitment. And our work with the Impact Economy Collective shows what is possible when places lead.
Sustaining place-based systems change will require long-term, flexible, community-controlled capital; governance that redistributes power; coalitions built on shared purpose rather than shared funding; public sector partners who are accountable to communities; and investment models that prioritise equity overthe false promise of efficiency.
At Pathway Fund, we are ready to play our part. Because systems change will not be sustained by pilots, programmes or promises. It will be sustained by communities with power, capital that is structured to enable this work to flourish, and the freedom to shape their own futures.
Want to learn more about how this can happen? Join Renaisi-TSIP’s launch event on the 21st April, at Coin Street, London to understand what they’ve uncovered through their inquiry into sustaining place-based systems change.
Asher Craig, CEO of Pathway Fund
April 2026