Britain has a crisis of connection. Public services have been stripped back, youth centres have closed, and the places that once held communities together are disappearing. When connection thins, something else fills the gap: isolation, anxiety and, too often, division.

And yet, in high streets, parks, festivals, events and market days this summer, we saw the opposite play out. We saw what happens when you put something vibrant, welcoming and human into public space and say, “This is for you.”

At Zest this summer, space became a verb. It became something we made deliberately and collaboratively, with young people shaping the experience every step of the way.