Across the Poverty Truth Network, Commissions exist at many different stages of the journey.
Some are just beginning. Others are well underway. And some are starting to explore what happens next, in the embedding phase – how the work of a Commission continues to influence the place around it.
The early stages of a Commission are often focused on listening and creating space for Community and Civic Commissioners to build relationships, share experiences and develop a deeper understanding of poverty in their place. Over time, those conversations begin to shift how people see things. Assumptions can soften and new connection begin to forms, as ideas for what needs to change start taking shape.
We often describe this as the ripple effect of a Poverty Truth Commission, the way insight and relationships begin to spread outward, influencing people, organisations and systems beyond the Commission itself.
This article shares the story of Ilfracombe Poverty Truth Commission, because it offers a great example of that ripple effect beginning to embed locally. Rather than ending when the Commission cycle concluded, the work created through the Commission is now being woven into partnerships, programmes and decision-making structures across the town.
The context in Ilfracombe
Ilfracombe is a coastal town in North Devon with a strong sense of community, but also significant inequalities. Almost four in 10 children live in poverty, and healthy life expectancy sits at 59 – the lowest of any rural town in England.
The Ilfracombe Poverty Truth Commission was established in September 2024 in response to these realities, bringing together people who have experienced poverty alongside business and civic leaders from organisations across the town, like the NHS, Devon County Council and local schools. The aim was to explore the deeper causes of inequality locally and consider what might need to change.
As with all Commissions across the Network, the early phase focused on building trust, sharing experiences and developing a shared understanding of poverty in their area.
Themes
Through these conversations, several important themes began to emerge.
Community Commissioners described how poverty often appears as a web of interconnected challenges rather than a single issue. Housing insecurity, poor health, financial pressure, trauma and limited access to opportunities can combine in ways that make everyday life difficult to navigate.
Experiences of seeking help were also a strong theme. Systems can feel fragmented, processes rigid and support difficult to access — particularly when people are already under pressure.
Bringing these perspectives together helped create a shared understanding across the Commission. Community and Civic Commissioners were able to see more clearly how people’s experiences intersect with the systems designed to support them, and where those systems sometimes struggle to respond.
From this shared understanding, the Commission began identifying where change could make the greatest difference.
Shared priorities
Two areas of focus began to stand out.
The first was the need to humanise systems and services — ensuring people seeking support felt listened to, treated with dignity and met with compassion.
The second was the importance of earlier and more proactive support, recognising that timely help can prevent challenges from escalating into crisis.
Alongside these themes, wider issues around housing, employment opportunities, education and access to local support also emerged as important parts of the picture in Ilfracombe.
Where this work is already making a difference
Insights from Community Commissioners have already begun shaping developments across the town.
Housing
One area where this is visible is housing. Community Commissioners worked alongside partners to co-design a Healthy Homes retrofit specification for four buildings purchased by the council that are being converted into high-quality social housing this year (2026). The specification informed the architect’s design approach, ensuring the homes support residents’ physical, mental and social wellbeing.
Alongside this, work has also taken place on creating a Landlord and Tenants Charter, developed with local landlords and letting agencies, to improve conditions for people living in poor-quality private rented accommodation.
Skills and education
The Commission has also helped shape developments in skills and education. Adult education courses have been delivered in Ilfracombe for the first time in over twenty years, creating new opportunities for local people to access learning within the community.
The Ilfracombe ‘Campus’ model
Another significant development has been the creation of an Ilfracombe ‘Campus’ model. This approach positions services in the town as a connected network of support, helping ensure that when someone is not eligible for one service they can be connected to an alternative offer of help. The model is now being explored within NHS neighbourhood health planning.
Humanising Principles
Alongside these developments, the Commission has produced a set of Humanising Principles designed to help organisations reflect on whether their services are accessible, compassionate and responsive to people experiencing poverty. These principles are already influencing wider commissioning processes, including within Devon Public Health’s Substance Use process.
Work has also begun on staff learning resources aimed at improving understanding of poverty and reducing stigma within organisations. Early testing of these resources within North Devon Homes has helped staff better understand the circumstances people may be facing, reducing frustration and preventing avoidable escalation of issues.
The Commission’s impact has been far reaching, shifting how the town understands and responds to poverty and laying truly sustainable foundations for future support and understanding across complex systems. Multiple sources have highlighted how the Commission has strengthened trust and connection between organisations, whilst also legitimising lived experience as a form of expertise.
Embedding the work locally
With the initial phases of the Commission now complete, the focus has shifted towards ensuring this work continues to shape local systems.
Rather than maintaining separate Commission working groups, Commissioners agreed in early 2026 to embed the work created through the Commission within One Ilfracombe, the town’s multi-sector partnership forum.
This means key strands of work — including housing, adult education and employment, and the campus model — now sit within relevant local partnership programmes. Embedding the work in this way helps ensure it is supported by the wider system and connected to ongoing local priorities.
Community and Civic Commissioners continue to contribute within these programmes, helping ensure that the wisdom shared through the Commission remains central to future developments.
At the same time, learning from Ilfracombe is beginning to connect into the wider One Northern Devon Local Care Partnership, creating opportunities for insights from the Commission to influence work across the wider health and care system.
Civic Commissioners have also committed to acting as Poverty Truth champions, helping carry forward the learning from the Commission and supporting the completion of work that is still underway.
Seeing the ripples spread
Across the Poverty Truth Network, many Commissions are exploring what happens after the main phase of the Commission concludes. How do the relationships, insights and ideas developed through the process continue to shape the places we serve?
In Ilfracombe, that ripple is already visible. The wisdom shared through the Commission is informing housing developments, education opportunities, commissioning processes and new ways of connecting services across the town.
Just as importantly, it is influencing how organisations work together, and build relationships and trust across sectors that will continue long after the Commission itself.
The Commission may have completed its core phase, but the ripple continues to spread, and in Ilfracombe, that ripple is now being embedded in the structures that shape the town’s future.
To find out more about the work of Ilfracombe Poverty Truth Commission visit their website.