Solutions Spotlight
The production floor at Baker Industries in Kensington doubles as a starting line
A 46-year-old workforce program offers people starting over after prison or homelessness a paycheck, a routine, and a shot at what comes next.
Solutions Spotlight
Stories about what's working in Kensington, Philadelphia. In-depth reporting on programs, people and ideas making a real difference in the neighborhood.
Community Life
At K&A, a free grocery store in Kensington gives shoppers 20 points twice a month
Customers at Greater Goods get 20 points twice a month and choose their own groceries. The only requirement to register is a photo ID.
Solutions Spotlight
Solutions Spotlight
Hopeworks Kensington offers paid job training and career help for young adults
The nonprofit provides paid training, career support and real work to help 17- to-26-year-olds move into full-time jobs averaging $43K a year.
Solutions Spotlight
New workshop series asks Kensington residents to help shape greener public spaces
Neighbors and community organizers gathered at the Kensington Engagement Center to kick off Co-Creating a Greenprint for Kensington, a workshop series organized by NKCDC focused on expanding and improving safe public green spaces.
New nonprofit promises paid, yearslong mentors for kids in Kensington and North Philly
Friends of the Children offers families a commitment that the program will be there in a child’s life from kindergarten through high school graduation — “12+ no matter what,” they say.
Solutions Spotlight
Philly’s school safety program to shield kids from violence was working. So where did it go?
A key violence prevention program disappeared from schools across Philly this fall, including in Kensington—just when students needed it most.
Clean Streets
Washington state has one-stop shops for addiction care and recovery. Could they work in Kensington?
The “health hub” model creates locations where anyone, regardless of insurance status, can walk in and access primary care, infectious disease care, mental health assessments and opioid use disorder treatments such as methadone and buprenorphine.
Clean Streets
Philly is piloting a crime scene clean-up program in Kensington
A new city program that hires a professional cleaning service to handle blood and other remains after outdoor shootings launched this month in the 25th police district.
Solutions Spotlight
Kensington already has a police-assisted diversion program some consider a “triage” for people who use drugs. Here's how it works.
While some have described PAD’s model “as a sort of triage/urgent care,” it’s unclear what the program’s role – if any – will be in the Parker administration's “triage centers” plan.
Solutions Spotlight
Philly DA’s illegal gun possession diversion program reports a 76% decrease in re-arrests among participants
Of the 186 people the program has served since September 2021, 67% reported full-time employment at the time of graduation, and only 5% of participants had been rearrested in the first year after graduating.
Clean Streets
Klean Kensington pays teens to clean and green their own blocks
Abandoned lots, sidewalks and side yards that span between F and H streets on Westmoreland Street have seen some changes
Solutions Spotlight
Safe-Hub Philadelphia builds young people's social and emotional skills through soccer at Scanlon Rec Center
This story is part of our Overcoming ACEs series, a journalism project highlighting North Philly’s solutions to America’s
Health & Wellness
Philly students: McPherson Square Library created an online tool for high school choice
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on Oct. 30, 2020 and updated on Oct. 14, 2022. In 2017,
Schools & Education
This Kensington church is giving away COVID-19 relief funds
Updated on April 20, 2022 Kensington residents economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic can receive financial assistance through Visitation
Solutions Spotlight
This Latinx org provides free tax filing to people with low incomes
Even before the pandemic, tax season has always consisted of varying levels of anticipation and stress. And, for many filers,
Need internet connection or a computer? Philly’s digital navigators can help
In January 2021, LNESC Philadelphia became a part of the city’s Digital Navigator network, a group of providers created
Health & Wellness
There’s a new COVID-19 grant program for ‘historically disadvantaged’ businesses in PA
Updated: 07/20/2020 4:05 p.m. Many small-business owners need financial assistance to reopen or stay in
Public Space
This Norris Square volunteer program has delivered nearly 100,000 pounds of groceries
When COVID-19 cut off some residents’ access to healthy food, the Norris Square Community Action Network (NSCan) started the
Government & Policy
PA Primary Election 2020: Philadelphia Latinx organization creates bilingual tutorial videos for mail-in ballots
Ceiba, a coalition of Latinx community organizations located on the southwest corner of Norris Square, created a step-by-step
This organization has an 85% housing retention rate
Editor’s note: Names marked with an asterisk (*) are those of people who requested we use their first name only