Trust Matters

INSPIRE is leading a comprehensive capacity-building project tailored for trustees, aiming to enhance their community development knowledge, establish networks between trusts, enable active participation, and ultimately improve the effectiveness of community trusts in meeting community needs.

From the early days of research and deep engagements with practitioners, to Trust Connect Workshops in Cape Town, Kimberley, and Gqeberha, trustees and other ecosystem stakeholders gathered in participatory discussions to experience firsthand the power of shared learning for trusts’ maturity. The workshops were not only about capacity-building but also an introduction and groundproofing of the Trust Maturity Framework, ensuring that it reflects the true experiences of community trusts. Through open conversations and coaching circles, we assessed the key challenges that trusts face— related to governance, vision and strategy, impactful delivery, and capacity—and explored practical solutions to make trusts stronger and more effective.

Our Community Trust Intermediaries’ Sessions built on this momentum, creating spaces for trust administrators, social performance practitioners, financiers, and legal experts— who form part of the trust ecosystem. Together, we unpacked the realities and support offerings to trusts. Through it all, we are seeing a collective commitment to strengthening the role of community trusts as true drivers of socio-economic development.

As part of this project in February 2025 we hosted an in-person 2 day Learning Event titled INSPIREd Community Trusts: Building the Ecosystem for Community Ownership to Thrive for REIPPPP trusts, particularly trustees, and this highly anticipated event served as a milestone event to strengthen our approaches to community ownership and improve the quality of relationships necessary for Community Trusts to thrive.

The project outcomes include:

• Develop an in-depth understanding of types of REIPPPP trusts, identify and connect with trusts and survey them for experiences and needs.
• Create platforms to engage with trusts, validate research findings and co-design ideas for support offerings.
• Develop prototypes and select priority prototype-ready for implementation.
• Implement and evaluate capacity building offerings.
• To have supported community trust stakeholders who are better capacitated and networked with peers, allowing for enhanced, more effective, and impactful trust operations and investment.