COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL
GOVERNMENT News Release (024) issued by The Government News Network
on 4 February 2008
Communities
Secretary Hazel Blears today called for fresh efforts to promote
cohesion and tackle community tensions and set out a range of new
policies and actions to be driven forward by national and central
government to create strong, united communities.
This is in response to the 10-month review by the Commission on
Integration and Cohesion which looked at the major challenges
Britain faces in responding to increasing change in local communities.
The actions she set out include greater support from central
government to help local authorities responding to changes in
their area including the creation of specialist cohesion teams who
will be on hand to advise local authorities in need of help in
managing migration. New guidance calls for a fundamental
rebalancing in the way that funding is allocated to different
community groups in order to get a much greater focus on
integration and the publication of introduction packs that will be
used to support people coming from abroad to integrate into
British life, contribute to the economy and help avoid community tensions.
Hazel Blears said:
"As a government we have a role in ensuring that the
diversity which is a real strength of this country is successfully
managed and doesn't lead to problems in the way that people
live and get along together.
"The overwhelming majority of people in this country live
successfully side by side but we cannot take this for granted. We
have to keep our eye on the ball and continue taking the steps to
address issues head on in order that we will be well placed to
respond to the issues associated with population change and globalisation.
"That means ensuring that the people who are coming to the
UK to work or study are the people that the country needs, that is
why we have introduced the new points based system; being clear
about what we expect from those people in return -including an
emphasis on shared values like respect for the law and new
measures on earned citizenship; injecting greater transparency and
fairness into our system so that no one feels cheated or
disadvantaged; and, ensuring that those people who are best placed
to deal with change at the local level have the support and
resources they need."
The government has made £50 million investment available over the
next three years to promote community cohesion and support local
authorities in preventing and managing community tensions. Local
councils will be able to use the money to respond to their own
particular cohesion challenges - some focusing on managing new
migration, others looking more at how they promote interaction
between people from different backgrounds.
The response to the Commission's report set outs actions
that the government will take over the coming months and years to
support strong cohesive communities. These include:
* Specialist cohesion teams will be established by central
government to provide advice and support to local authorities
facing cohesion challenges - particularly those areas facing rapid
change or experiencing migration for the first time. The teams
will provide advice on conflict resolution, mediation, leadership
and on the steps that local leaders might take when new people
arrival in their area. Over the coming months we will work with
local government to determine how these teams can best provide
that support.
* Local authority twinning - different areas experience different
cohesion challenges. It is therefore practical actions and
solutions taken by local areas themselves that will have the
biggest impact. The Commission talked about the importance of
local authorities mapping their areas in order to understand their
communities and who makes them up as part of ensuring they are
well placed to anticipate possible tensions. Extensive research by
the commission identified five family groups or areas experiencing
comparable cohesion challenges. In the future we want to work in
partnership to use this data to facilitate "twinning"
between areas of the country experiencing similar issues in order
to share ideas and solutions to inspire innovation to respond to
these challenges. Burnley and Leicester are already working
together on common issues that they have identified.
* New guidance for local authorities on developing Information
Packs for migrants. Misunderstandings and conflict can arise when
people coming from abroad behave in a way that is out of step with
the normal way of doing things or in extreme cases, against the
law. Information packs can be an effective way of providing new
arrivals with information that will help them to integrate
successfully and understand what is expected of them. The guidance
is intended to illustrate the information local authorities could
include such as details on how to access local provision like
English language classes, waste and recycling services and
employment services; practical information on rights and
responsibilities including national laws and rules around paying
taxes alongside background on social norms such not littering, not
spitting and queuing in shops.
* Consultation on cohesion guidance for funders - analysis of
data from the Citizenship Survey shows that cohesion is strongest
when people from different backgrounds interact with each other.
The Commission highlighted that that where funding is used to
support a single group only it can create barriers to cohesion
e.g. instead of having a youth club, areas might set up several
different youth clubs catering for different ethnic groups. The
new guidance published today encourages local authorities to
consider how funding can better be used to support greater
interaction and suggests that single groups should only be funded
where there is a demonstrable case for doing so.
* All local authorities will have access to cohesion impact tests
- a tool to assess whether the activities they are planning will
have a positive impact on Cohesion in their neighbourhoods. This
tool will enable local authorities to input information around the
activities and events they are planning in order to test whether
they are going to have a positive impact on cohesion.
The actions being set out today are in response to the report
from the Commission on Integration and Cohesion which looked at
the local and practical steps that are needed to overcome the
barriers to integration and cohesion. The Commission put forward
wide-ranging recommendations on how individuals, organisations,
local and national government can all contribute to addressing the
challenges related to cohesion and integration.
Hazel Blears said:
"The time is right to look again at what we need to do to
freshen our approach to integration and cohesion. That means being
honest about the challenges we face and being prepared to meet
those challenges head on with a renewed energy and impetus.
"Our response to the work of the Commission emphasises the
importance of local actions - it is at the local level that
changes are felt most keenly. But we are also clear that strong
direction from Government is needed if we are going to make
managing those changes easier.
"We are providing the resources and support that will help
local authorities promote integration between new and settled
communities and manage the impact of population change. We have
made £50m available over the next three years to support local
authorities in responding to local need.
"I look forward to seeing the findings of Lord
Goldsmith's citizenship review which is looking at the
practical ways we can build a shared sense of belonging in
Britain. It is this sense of shared belonging that must be at the
centre of all our work on this key issue."
Earlier this year Hazel Blears published guidance on how we can
better balance translation of public materials and support more
people in gaining the language skills they need to live and work.
New guidance on 'Citizen Days' is encouraging local
authorities to think about the opportunities available in their
community for people from different backgrounds come together and
to share experiences.
Later in the year we will publish a Cohesion Delivery Framework
to provide further advice for local authorities in delivering
cohesion - local authorities will be able to use this document to
analyse the issues of cohesion in their areas and draw up cohesion
action plans
Cohesion is a priority issue for this Government. Of the 198 new
National Indicator Sets (NIS) which underpin the new Local
Authority Agreements (LAAs) two are cohesion measures: the
percentage of people who think their local areas is one in which
people from different backgrounds get on well with one another,
and the percentage of people who feel that they belong to their
local area. LAAs are about setting the direction and focus on the
priorities that will make your town, city or community a better
place to be. Cohesion is fundamental to achieving this.
Notes to editors
This Press Notice applies to England
1. The Government's Response to the Commission on
Integration and Cohesion http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/governmentresponsecoic
2. Other links
Cohesion Guidance for Funders: Consultation http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/cohesionfundersconsultation
Community cohesion impact assessment and community conflict
prevention tool http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/communitycohesiontool
Communicating important information to new local residents http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/newmigrantsinformation
Predictors of community cohesion: multi-level modelling of the
2005 Citizenship Survey http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/predictorscohesion
Predictors of community cohesion: multi-level modelling of the
2005 Citizenship Survey - Summary http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/predictorscohesionsummary
3. The Commission on Integration and Cohesion was an independent
body chaired by Darra Singh, Chief Executive of Ealing Council.
4. The Commission was established by Ruth Kelly the Secretary of
State for Communities and Local Government in August 2006. The
final report from the commission was published in June 2007 and
can be found at http://www.integrationandcohesion.org.uk
News Releases: http://www.communities.gov.uk/newsroom