Mid-Essex (which covers Chelmsford, Braintree, and Maldon) is home to many types of community assets, ranging from local social groups to district-wide health and wellbeing support.

There are many community venues across the districts that can be used in a variety of ways to support the community. The community is supported by vibrant groups of volunteers who develop and lead activities that improve residents’ quality of life. In the development of this report, we have identified more than 2,741 assets across Braintree District, Maldon District, and Chelmsford and we will count many more as we continue to learn from local communities. We need to ensure that there is infrastructure support, funding mechanisms, and policy-level support for many assets so that they can continue to function and support both people affected by the wider determinants of health as well as their staff and volunteers.

The report observes that community assets are often looked upon as a first port of call for people in the community and without them, they would not know where to turn.