Executive Summary
Over the last three months, Lowton Community Hub has continued to demonstrate what is possible when health, wellbeing, family support, sport, volunteering and community connection are brought together under one roof. This quarter, we delivered more than 1,300 hours of direct community activity through our Family Hub partnership, Health and Wellbeing Services, Community Café, Martial Arts, Volunteering Initiatives and Community Events.
Behind every hour delivered is a conversation, a connection, a friendship formed, a skill developed, a confidence rebuilt or a person supported.
2026 Quarter 2 at a Glance
• 580 Hours Community Café
• 87 Hours Family Hub Services
• 140 Hours Health & Wellbeing Support
• 216 Hours Martial Arts Activity
• 260 Hours Volunteering
• 47 Hours Community Events
• 20 Hours Youth Support
• 24 Hours Community Events
Our approach is built around a simple belief. People do not live their lives in separate categories. Physical health affects mental health. Family circumstances affect wellbeing. Social isolation affects confidence. Confidence affects participation. Participation affects community.
Traditional services often operate in isolation. The Lowton Model brings them together.
A parent attending Baby Hub may discover exercise classes. A physiotherapy patient may become a volunteer. A young person joining judo may progress into leadership opportunities. An older resident visiting the café may become connected to wider support services.
The result is a connected community ecosystem where people can access support earlier, build meaningful relationships and improve their wellbeing close to home.
Our 2026 Q2 report highlights the activity delivered, the impact created and the opportunities ahead as we continue to strengthen our community.
Lowton Community Cafe
The Community Café remains the heart of the hub.
Open six days per week and operating from early morning, it provides a welcoming, affordable and accessible space for people of all ages. The café is operated by Carole and Steph, whose commitment and warmth have helped create an environment where everyone feels welcome.
For some people, the café is a place to meet friends.
For others, it may be the only conversation they have that day.
Families call in for breakfast before school. Older residents stop by for a brew and a chat. Visitors attending classes, appointments and community activities naturally gather within the café, creating opportunities for connection that would otherwise never happen.
The café plays a vital role within The Lowton Model because it removes barriers between services and people. It creates a natural meeting point where relationships can form and where individuals can discover support they may not have known existed.
Over the last quarter, the café has become far more than somewhere to eat and drink.
It has become a community living room.
580 Hours Delivered
Family Hub Services
Including:
• Baby Hub
• Toddler Classes
• Autism Support
Families are at the centre of every community.
In partnership with Wigan Council Family Hub, our services provide opportunities for parents, carers and children to connect, learn and support one another within a safe and welcoming environment. Services that were not once available in our area.
While activities focus on children, the wider impact often falls upon parents and carers. Many families arrive looking for activities and leave with friendships, support networks and increased confidence.
Baby Hub provides valuable opportunities for early years development while helping parents build connections with others experiencing similar challenges and milestones.
Toddler classes encourage physical activity, learning and social development while giving families a positive and affordable local activity.
Autism support sessions provide understanding, inclusion and community for families who often struggle to find suitable local provision.
By supporting families early, we help build stronger social networks, reduce isolation and create a foundation for healthier communities.
87 Hours Delivered
Health and Wellbeing Services
Including:
• Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation
• Mental Health Support
• Health Checks
• Exercise Classes
Health and wellbeing sits at the heart of our mission.
Many health challenges do not begin in hospitals. They begin within communities.
Our aim is to make support accessible before problems escalate.
Physiotherapy and rehabilitation services help people recover from injury, remain active and maintain independence. Early intervention often prevents longer-term health problems while improving quality of life.
Mental health support provides a safe and accessible pathway for individuals experiencing challenges that may otherwise go unsupported.
Exercise classes help improve physical health while reducing social isolation and encouraging long-term healthy habits.
Health checks create opportunities for education, awareness and prevention.
CV support may not traditionally sit within a health programme, but employment, confidence and wellbeing are closely linked. Helping someone move towards work can have a significant positive impact on mental wellbeing and quality of life.
Together these services support people to live healthier, more independent and more connected lives.
140 Hours Delivered
Martial Arts
Including:
• Leigh Judo Club
• Kokoro Jujitsu
• North West Judo Squad Training
• GBR Sport Jujitsu
• Women’s Self-Defence
Martial arts has always been about more than sport at the hub.
It is one of the most effective tools we have for developing confidence, resilience, discipline, respect and personal responsibility.
Young people learn how to overcome challenges, work towards goals and develop self-belief.
Adults improve their physical health while becoming part of a supportive community.
Parents, children and volunteers interact regularly, strengthening relationships both inside and outside the club environment.
The hub also continues to support regional and national development through North West Judo events including all regional Kata & Dan gradings as well as GBR Sport Jujitsu squad trainings. As well as bringing opportunities directly into the local community, it has resulted in Great Britain’s first Sport Jujitsu World Champion.
A testament to the hard work of the athletes and coaches in the GB Youth set up but also centralised training in our, accessible state of the art facility proving that elite sport and community sport do not have to be independent of each other.
We also have to congratulate our partners Kokoro Jujitsu lead coaches Ian Charston and Steve Boughton for being awarded their 6th and 5th Dan grades respectively. Kokoro have made the hub their home since their beginning and have supported its growth on and off the mat. True dedicated partners through shared values, being recognised by their governing body reflecting their dedication to transforming people’s lives through the martial arts.
Many participants first enter the hub through martial arts and later engage with wider volunteering, wellbeing and community activities.
This is a key example of how The Lowton Model creates pathways between services rather than operating them independently.
216 Hours Delivered
Volunteering
Including:
• Slice of Hope Development
• Centre Management
• Maintenance and Cleaning
• Community Support
Lowton Community Hub is a not-for-profit, voluntary organisation. It is run for the good of the community with no paid staff. The maintenance and management of the hub and service delivered depends on people choosing to give their time, skills and energy to keep the hub open, active and growing.
Volunteering is not a side activity here. It is the structure that holds everything together.
The 260 hours recorded this quarter represent people stepping in to run sessions, manage the building, maintain facilities and support day-to-day operations. Without this contribution, the hub simply would not function at its current scale.
The power of the our team of volunteers has never been more clear or made us more proud that the direct role in developing our Slice of Hope project, helping shape a long-term youth and community initiative focused on opportunity, engagement and progression for young people.
They have also supported centre management tasks that keep services running safely and consistently. This includes cleaning, setup of spaces, maintenance work and ensuring the hub is ready for families, patients, young people and community groups every day.
Beyond the practical work, volunteering creates a different type of impact that is harder to measure but easy to see in people.
For some, it is a first step back into community life. For others, it becomes a pathway into new opportunities.
What stands out most is not the number of hours, but what those hours represent.
People choosing to invest in their own community.
People helping create something that others can benefit from.
People building a hub that belongs to everyone who uses it.
260 Hours Delivered
Community Events
Including:
• Lowton Family Fun Day
• Open Day
• Grading Day
• North West Judo AGM
Community events provide opportunities for people to come together, celebrate achievements and discover new opportunities.
Many people first engage with the hub through an event before accessing wider services.
Events help create visibility, strengthen relationships and encourage participation from people who may otherwise remain disconnected from community activities.
They provide an important reminder that communities thrive when people spend time together.
24 Hours Delivered
Looking Ahead
The past quarter has seen steady growth across the hub. New sessions have been introduced, existing groups have strengthened, and more people are now using the space each week across judo, physio, café activity, community sessions and family support. The demand keeps growing and that tells you something simple. People want connection, support and activity close to where they live.
None of this happens in isolation. It relies on people.
You have a community that turns up, takes part and supports each other. You have volunteers who give time without asking for anything back. You have partners who bring expertise and help shape what we deliver. You have staff and coaches who keep sessions running when it would be easier not to.
That mix has created momentum. The challenge now is to keep building it without losing what makes it work at a local level.
Moving forward, the next stage of development focuses on widening what we offer and making access easier for more people in the area.
Whats Coming soon
Publicity & Spreading the Word
There is another part of this development that needs attention.
The hub has grown through action more than promotion. We have focused on delivery, not marketing. That has built something strong on the ground, but it has not always been visible outside of it.
There are a few reasons for this. Time has been limited. Energy has gone into running services day to day. There is also a tendency to wait until things feel fully finished before sharing them. That means a lot of good work has stayed unseen.
That is changing.
The next phase includes a consistent approach to sharing what is happening across the hub. This includes daily updates on social media, regular blog content, and more structured storytelling around projects, people and progress.
The aim is not promotion for its own sake. It is clarity. People cannot use what they do not know exists.
There is also an open invitation here. If people want to contribute ideas, support content, or help shape how the hub is shared, there is space for that. A small team focused on communication could make a significant difference to reach and engagement.
What would change if more people in the local area actually knew what was already available to them right now?
The Lowton Model in Practice
Many organisations provide individual services. Few provide connected pathways between services. The strength of The Lowton Model is not found in any single programme.
It is found in the connections between them.
A family attending Baby Hub may become regular café users. A parent may join an exercise class. A patient may become a volunteer. A young person joining judo may progress into leadership opportunities and employment support. An older resident attending the café may become involved in dementia support activities.
Every service creates another touchpoint.
Every touchpoint creates another opportunity to support someone.
This integrated approach allows support to happen naturally, locally and often before problems become crises.
Total Community Impact
1,374+ Hours Delivered Across the Community in Three Months
Every hour represents a person supported, a relationship built, a skill developed, a conversation had or a positive experience created.
This is what community wellbeing looks like when it is delivered locally, collaboratively and under one roof.
Thank you for all of your support. This is The Lowton Model in action.