Memorandum by Bedfordshire County Council
(SOC 61)
Bedfordshire County Council is making the most
of the opportunities offered through the Local Public Service
Agreement process to begin to address some of the most pressing
local community cohesion issues. In particular, the Council is
seeking to address a concern that people from Black and Minority
Ethnic (BME) Communities have not been sufficiently engaged in
services, their development or delivery and that existing efforts
to identify local community issues and solutions need to be strengthened.
As such the approach is aimed at improving cohesion between services
and communities.
PROFILE OF
BEDFORDSHIRE
Bedfordshire has a significant (11.2%) and growing
culturally diverse black and minority ethnic population which
includes the following communities: Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Indian,
Asian, African Caribbean, African, Italian, Eastern European,
Travellers and a growing number of Asylum Seekers and Refugees.
Clearly, the need to ensure that these communities feel part of
local life and are able to make the most of the opportunities
that are available to them has to be an essential part of the
local approach to community cohesion.
Unlike other parts of the voluntary sector which
are to a far greater degree, flourishing in Bedfordshire, organisations
representing and supporting black and minority ethnic communities
have not developed at the same pace. It is felt that this is due
to:
— A lack of awareness among BME communities
in relation to funding opportunities and processes.
— Local authority/public agency funding
criteria which has not sufficiently prioritised the needs of these
communities.
— A lack of regional/national support
networks that BME communities can tap into for support and assistance.
LOCAL PUBLIC
SERVICE AGREEMENT
The Bedfordshire LPSA target works on the premise
that the inclusion of black and minority ethnic communities can
be increased if services that are provided to them, for example
education and social services, are more tailored to their needs.
Action is required across all service areas to identify specific
needs and promote race equality. The requirement of the Race Relations
(Amendment) Act 2000 to produce a Race Equality Scheme and assess
individual functions and policies is providing a systematic process
by which this can be achieved.
This LPSA project was developed with the close
involvement of Bedford Race Equality Council (BREC). Its concerns
are to reinforce the fabric of racial harmony so that local citizens
can feel safe. BREC believes that the key to success is a commitment
from both the community and local authorities to improve that
relationship and create sustainable working partnerships to effect
change, influence policies and prove a commitment to Race Equality
and the value of diversity.
APPROACH
The Bedfordshire County Council Local Public
Service Agreement for Increasing the Inclusion of BME communities
is helping the Council provide a multi-faceted approach to tackling
this issue.
1. Capacity Building
An experienced Community Development worker,
based at the Bedford Race Equality Council, has been appointed
to:
— Develop and maintain links with local
communities/faith groups.
— Provide advice/support regarding
funding opportunities.
— Identify needs of various groups/communities.
— Organise community events with a
view to promoting racial equality and bringing local community
groups together.
— Convey to local communities the advantages
of becoming involved in service development/community participation
processes.
2. Improving Bedfordshire County Council's
Services
The Community Development Worker will also have
a key role to play in:
— Encouraging Council officers to engage
with local communities by adopting a variety of approaches aligned
to the outlooks and customs of the various communities.
— Helping the County Council identify
and address service development requirements.
— Establish mechanisms which ensure
that people from BME communities become involved formally in service
development/decision-making processes.
This work will complement and inform the Council's
implementation of the Race Equality Scheme's impact assessment
process, and will allow us to fully consider the best ways of
promoting race equality/community cohesion to the variety of local
communities.
Already, only a few weeks into the launch of
the project, there are signs that this approach will make a significant
difference. The Community Development Worker recently organised
a learning inclusion strategy meeting which brought together people
from local BME Communities to meet with the County Education Officer
(Inclusion). Speaking of the event, the County Education Officer
said that "the range of issues raised was breathtaking. Everyone
contributed with comments that were challenging for the best of
reasons. The commitment to equality and inclusion was inspiring."
3. Raising the Achievement Levels of Children
from the Pakistani Community
In addition to working with all sections of
the BME community, it has been recognised that by closer working
with the Pakistani community, substantial gains could be realised
in achieving a more inclusive society. In recent years the GCSE
attainment levels of the children from the Pakistani Community
have fallen from 38% of Pakistani pupils achieving five A-C Grades
in 2000 to 23% in 2001 and 18% in 2002. This rate is the lowest
of any BME Community. A second community development officer has
therefore been appointed to work with the local Pakistani community
to:
— Develop and maintain links between
schools and the Pakistani community.
— Convey the benefits to individuals,
families and communities of maximising attainment levels.
4. Local Research
In recognition of the fact that BME communities
can be harder to consult with effectively, Bedfordshire County
Council has set aside specific funds and is working closely with
the Bedford Race Equality Council to develop more effective consultation
mechanisms. As part of the LPSA process, a comparatively large-scale
quantitative survey will be undertaken which will supplement the
predominantly qualitative research undertaken to date by canvassing
the views of larger numbers of people from local BME communities.
This research will include consideration of community cohesion
related issues.
5. Local Grants
The County Council's has recently revised its
vision and objectives as part of its Improvement Plan, and now
includes a commitment to "foster inclusive communities".
As local grant applications are assessed on an annual basis, consideration
will be given as to the extent to which applications are aligned
to the Council's vision and objectives. As a result, it is more
likely that applications from communities which address social
inclusion/community cohesion issues will be successful. The LPSA
funded Community Development worker will help ensure that local
BME communities are made aware of and assisted in the grant application
process.
6. Building Community Networks
The County Council has recently supported and
worked with the Bedford Race Equality Council in developing two
applications in respect of the Home Office's Connecting Communities
Race Equality Grant. This is another key part of a co-ordinated
approach to maximise the funding available to support the development
of the BME sector. If the applications are successful the Bedford
Race Equality Council, together with the County Council will take
the lead in building network/partnership structures for BME communities
which will work to:
— Increase the funding base for BME
community groups and raise their effectiveness.
— Raise the knowledge of mainstream
institutions and service providers.
— Develop links with other local and
regional networks.
— Promote race equality and address
issues of racial discrimination.
Such an approach will complement and help to
expand the work being undertaken as part of the PSA process and
should help to draw other public agencies into the work that the
County Council and the Bedford Race Equality Council is leading
on.
CONCLUSION
It is hoped that the multi-faceted approach
set out in this document will help us achieve real and lasting
progress as we try to ensure that people from different backgrounds
experience similar life opportunities. In addition, efforts to
pursue this agenda will be made through Bedfordshire's Community
Strategy. It is also hoped that the recent success the County
Council and the Bedford Race Equality Council have achieved in
securing/ring fencing funding will continue so that we can widen
our approach and encourage other public agencies to become involved,
because progress needs to be made on so many fronts.
Clare Harding
Policy Adviser,
Corporate Strategy Unit,
Bedfordshire County Council
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