London YMCA Societal Wellbeing Lab

London to trailblaze a well-being lab that can informally test, experiment and prototype new social development institutions and activities for the well-being of London. Based on the Toronto-Google Sidewalk Labs partnership - with the focus on harnessing human capacity, rather than technology - using a YMCA existing space, combined with our in-house informal education insitution and research capacity, to provide an informal hub at the centre of a networked neighbourhood.

London YMCA Universal Basic Income Trial

London to differentiate itself from most UBI trials (which are lead by city governments and universities) to partner with YMCA’s wellbeing Lab – capturing the more informal everyday capacity creation of this trial. This neighbourhood scale innovative universal basic income trial would be linked to a mutual credit and complementary currency scheme, as well as our human development gyms and reskilling centres.

London YMCA Intergenerational and neighbourhood-based care model

London should spearhead solutions to providing spaces where its diverse population interact and build trust. YMCA could build on existing offer of accessible, affordable, high quality early years and day care to create intergenerational nursing home/ nurseries building up Londoner’s capacity to care from an early age. This is an integral part of the human development gym, which would create a team-based curriculum for children to encourage the skills we want in our Londoners: courage, care, craft, creativity etc.

London YMCA co-operatives / co-living / apprenticeship campus

YMCA has a rich tapestry of social and supported housing developments. Diverse increasingly complex challenges - from land-prices to loneliness - require innovative models. YMCA to use its expertise in supported housing and community infrastructure to deliver communal living models that support tenants - and the wider neighbourhood - to thrive. These models will be inclusive and intergenerational: with rooms available for all ages and targetting those who could otherwise not afford to live in London. Apprentices in particular will be catered for, and have access to our re-skilling and development gyms.

London YMCA / TFL partnership for wellbeing & inclusive transport

London should enhance its transport system, recognising the impact this could have on citizens whose average commute is 74.2 minutes. This new innovative ‘well-being’ transport will include a range of tools such as: advanced sensorsand real-time data to track and improve system functioning; guides and wayfinding to encourage active transport; increased (and inclusive) opportunity for skill-enhancement through a distributed human development learning programme.

London YMCA to promote innovative financing / management models for sports, health and wellbeing parks

YMCA to use expertise in recreational spaces and services to both reimagine what an outcome-based park would look like and test innovative funding mechanisms. Funding, accounting and regulatory models drive London, with parks budgets being cut (due to difficulties in accounting for non-financial value) and structural barriers to taking ownership of public spaces. YMCA will help to deliver multi-faceted social values whether through innovative land-value capture mechanisms; systems financing based on cost-reduction for the NHS or diversified spaces to provide resource-generating activities (solar powered vertical agriculture and horticulture training model).

London YMCAs to create human development / re-skilling gyms

YMCA’s story is one of creating the activities to bring well-being to all. With the 21^st century delivering unprecedented change (from life-expectancy to economic opportunities) we need to radically rethink how we support human development. YMCA will therefore trial a novel form of gym where membership involves belonging to future societal well-being. In practice this would drastically shape what activities and membership models we offer: from ‘good gym’ type activities to a membership based on courage.