community cohesion strategy dec 2007

7/27/2019 Community Cohesion Strategy Dec 2007

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ONE NOTTINGHAM

COMMUNITY COHESIONSTRATEGY

October 2007


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Foreword:

Community Cohesion, in its simplest form, is about how people get along together.

It lies at the heart of safe and strong communities.

The Government has highlighted the need to forge cohesive, self-confident andprosperous communities that are at ease with themselves and emphasises theimportance of promoting community cohesion through the Local StrategicPartnership and the Sustainable Community Strategy. (1) This also formed arecommendation of the Commission on Integration and Cohesions final report. (2)

A One Nottingham Community Cohesion Strategy means that leaders in the city atthe highest level are signed up to it, not only from Nottingham City Council but fromother organisations and bodies joining together to promote community cohesionthrough a co-ordinated partnership approach.

This Community Cohesion Strategy and Action Plan is the result of extensiveconsultation with a wide range of organisations over the last two years. So it

includes issues that matter to Nottingham. Community cohesion is about andincludes everyone and is much broader than issues of ethnicity and faith.At the heart of the Strategy is the aim to reduce inequalities, discrimination andlevels of deprivation.

This Strategy draws on the wealth and expertise and experience that Nottinghamhas built up over the years in improving community cohesion and the Citys pride inthe diversity of its population which is continually changing.

Nottingham does not show the same signs of community instability as has occurredin some towns and cities in northern England back in 2001, but there are significantissues to address including the disaffection of some young people in our outerestates, inter-generational tensions, territoralism, low ambition and under-achievement, inter-cultural disputes, newly arrived communities and hate crimeand racial incidents.

Schools, employers, leisure and culture, faith communities, the voluntary andcommunity sectors, public bodies and the media all have a vital role to play inencouraging interaction.

In summary, this Strategy sets out what more can be done to bring people


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What is community cohesion?

Put simply, community cohesion is about how people get along together. But

behind that simple concept is a very complex subject matter, for which there is noone solution.

Its a relatively new term, which first came into use widely after disturbances inBradford, Oldham and Burnley in 2001.1 The concept of community cohesion hashelped to focus attention on and thinking about the importance of relationships inand between different communities.

At the time of writing this strategy, The Commission on Integration and Cohesion2has published its final report, Our Shared Future, which is based on a year ofnational research and consultation. One Nottinghams Community CohesionStrategy has been informed by the findings of the final report, as well as by localconsultation.

Within the Our Shared Future report is a new definition which outlines the core

elements of community cohesion.

An integrated and cohesive community is one where:

There is a clearly defined and widely shared sense of the contribution ofdifferent individuals and different communities to a future vision for aneighbourhood, city, region or country

There is a strong sense of an individuals rights and responsibilities when livingin a particular place people know what everyone expects of them, and whatthey can expect in turn

Those from different backgrounds have similar life opportunities, access toservices and treatment

There is a strong sense of trust in institutions locally to act fairly in arbitratingbetween different interests and for their role and justifications to be subject topublic scrutiny

There is a strong recognition of the contribution of both those who have newlyarrived and those who already have deep attachments to a particular place,with a focus on what they have in common


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Who is community cohesion about?

Community cohesion is about and includes everyone. In Nottingham, people are

very clear that they see community cohesion as much broader than issues ofethnicity or faith. Good community relations are important wherever people live andwhoever they are. So, for example, community cohesion is as relevant in outerestates as it is in neighbourhoods close to the city centre; it is as relevant to olderpeople in a neighbourhood as it is to young students.

One of the many lessons learned from Bradford, Oldham and Burnley4 was theneed to engage positively with all communities. If people are ignored or missed out,

then there is a risk that myths and perceptions about some groups being treatedmore favourably will develop and that can make communities more divided. So, byits very nature, a cohesive community is one which is inclusive.

Nationally we are getting better at understanding community relations and whathelps to maintain and build up community cohesion. But everywhere is differentand a one size fits all approach to improving community cohesion could not take

into account the differences between our towns, cities and regions. This strategyaims to reflect the unique circumstances of the city and draws on the wealth ofexpertise and experience that Nottingham has developed over many years inimproving community cohesion.

Locally, there is lots of work already going on which directly helps to improvecommunity cohesion. There is a rich variety of work going on in the voluntary andcommunity sectors; in and between different faith groups and organisations;

through schools and in the many different aspects of work the local authority andNottinghamshire Police lead and work on. Some examples of local work arehighlighted through this document.

So community cohesion is not a new concept or work area for Nottingham thereis a strong, historical and current base of activity, expertise, understanding andcommitment to continue to build on.

This strategy aims to support the work already going on and build on the range ofexpertise and good practice in the City. We want to improve the level communitycohesion in Nottingham, using a positive, preventative approach.


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Our vision for community cohesion in Nottingham

Improving community cohesion is integral to realising the One Nottingham vision

for the City. The elements which make up the vision statement below are allcentral factors which contribute to community cohesion.

One Nottingham Vision

Nottingham is a City to be proud of. We are ambitious for Nottingham. We want ourCity to be a place of opportunity for all who live, work, learn and visit here. We want

to:

attract ambitious, creative people to live, work and do business inNottingham and encourage people to stay and value being part of our City.Choose Nottingham

make Nottingham a safe and clean place to live, work and visit.Respect for Nottingham

create a safe, supporting and stimulating environment for children andyoung people to raise their aspirations, enjoy good health and achieve theirambitions. Young Nottingham

tackle health inequalities and promote active lifestyles and ensure thatNottingham people are able to live their lives independently.

Active and Healthy Not tingham

create sustainable communities and neighbourhoods and encourageindependence and self sufficiency, making us all proud members of ourcommunities, respecting and valuing each other and our environment.

Transforming Nottinghams Neighbourhoods

achieve excellence through One Nottingham in partnership working acrossall agencies and communities.Excellence through Partnerships


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Why does Nottingham need a community cohesionstrategy?

One Nottingham recognised that there was no partnership framework that broughttogether different stakeholders that are working on community cohesion. Becausecommunity cohesion cuts across so many different aspects of life in Nottingham, italso cuts across a wide range of the strategies. For example, just some of theaspects of life that cross cut with different community cohesion issues areemployment; children and young people; housing; health; faith; leisure; crime anddisorder.

In its community leadership role, the City Council continues to play a major role insupporting communities and leading on community cohesion. But no oneorganisation can work on community cohesion alone. That is why this strategy isbeing developed through One Nottingham. Partnership working is the only way toreally improve community cohesion in the City.

A One Nottingham Community Cohesion Strategy also means that at the highest

level, leaders in the City will be signed up to the strategy. Committed leadership,not only from the local authority, but from other organisations and bodies, is anecessary ingredient for improving community cohesion. The sharing of resourcesto build community cohesion is also easier if there is a partnership approach.

Supporting refugee and asylum children to settle into schools and integratewith their peers is the aim ofCreative Journeys. This is a project run in primaryschools with 3 11 year olds.

It involves children having therapeutic art sessions after school and helps them toexpress some of the effects of the trauma and stress they have experienced.

Another benefit of the work has been to build better understanding between the

school and parents, as well as improve English language skills.

Children have fun and increase in confidence, helping them to integrate more intothe life of the school and their new community.

What is already happening and what do we need to do?


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Nottingham City Council is currently leading some work on developing a tensionreporting system for the City, which will identify potential or actual tensions inneighbourhoods and develop approaches to resolve tensions where they do exist.

Neighbourhood Transformation Plans are being developed, which will focus onphysical regeneration but also take into account the social regeneration andcommunity cohesion aspects of each neighbourhood.

Other work is happening in a wide range of places, such as schools, places ofworship, in community centres, with youth groups, refugee and asylumorganisations, libraries, on the streets. It is very positive that many services and

organisations are already contributing to the cohesion of the City, even if this workis not recognised explicitly as such.

The Interfaith Council works in Nottingham to promote understanding andrespect for different religions. Bringing people together who might notalways meet is a large part of the work. Examples of their work include:

holding a residential event, using photography as a way ofbringing young people of different faiths together

advice and support to a major employer about providing prayerfacilities for staff

providing schools with advice, resources and help with religiouseducation

hosting a conference Engaging Faith for people of faith tomeet with the public, voluntary and community sectors

But there is still more to do and like every City, Nottingham has particularchallenges. These are some of the current concerns, some of which are already

being addressed through the plans and schemes outlined above:

discrimination and deprivation are still a reality for many people in Nottingham;5this includes disabled people and people with mental health problems

a lack of understanding and respect between older and younger people living inneighbourhoods


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We also need to find out more about the people living in Nottingham and theirparticular needs. The last national census was in 2001. The next census is in 2011.Our profile as a City, in terms of age structure, faith, employment and ethnicity hasaltered considerably since 2001. Finding out more about those changes and theimpact changes have on peoples lives, will help us to understand what we can doto promote community cohesion.

Making it happen: how well improve communitycohesion

Because community cohesion is so cross cutting, a range of issues need to beaddressed at the same time. The action plan attached to this strategy isdeliberately not detailed, but it captures the top level activity needed for the first 2years of a partnership based strategy.

Over the next 2 years One Nottingham will focus on four main strategic aims, whichtogether will improve community cohesion:

1) To reduce inequalities, discrimination and levels of deprivation.One of the underlying causes of poor community relations are inequalities insociety, which mean that some groups of people have poorer life opportunities andoutcomes because of, for example, their ethnicity, disability, age, faith, gender,sexual orientation or where they live. Addressing inequality and discrimination interms of, for example, employment, education, housing and health are a central

part of improving community relations. One Nottingham partners are alreadyworking on this area through, for example, the 6 Neighbourhood Renewal FloorTarget Action Plans, Local Area Agreement and individual agency equality actionplans.

2) To increase community engagement, sense of belonging and pr ideA feature of cohesive communities is that there is a feeling of pride in a local areaand people have a strong sense of belonging. Some of the ways that these

perceptions develop is through local people having a voice and being able toinfluence decision making about their neighbourhood. Developing representativeand strong local leadership is crucial to this, as this helps to ensure that everyonesvoices are heard and different opinions are taken into account. Community action,whether its purpose is to improve quality of life in an area or to bring peopletogether to celebrate help to improve pride and a sense of belonging


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4) To increase safety and respect for individuals and communit iesPeople feeling safe and respected, not only in their own neighbourhoods, butanywhere they visit, is important to community relations. This means continuing toreduce levels of crime in Nottingham, challenging extremist views which can leadto hatred and violence and working with communities to resolve tensions thatdevelop within or between communities.

In order to deliver against the plan, some Task and Finish groups will beestablished, which will establish much more detailed delivery plans, to cover thefollowing broad and often cross cutting areas:

Communications Children and Young People Building leadership capacity Tension reporting Newly arrived people

We are already setting these groups up with named lead officers. We mayestablish more as we implement the strategy.

Nottingham City Council will set up a new Community Cohesion Team in ourCommunity and Culture Department to work across the Council, and with partners,to drive and mainstream cohesion work.

Weeks of Action focus on one area of the City at a time, and aim toimprove a number of quality of life areas, such as anti-social behaviour andenvironmental issues within just one week of very focussed action. Thisinvolves lots of pre planning and consultation with the local community. TheCrime and Drugs Partnership has led on this initiative and the feedback isoverwhelmingly positive, because people can see and feel a real difference

in their local area.

A t C il t d P iti I E t i lib i d th


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How will we know if community cohesion is improving?

Because community cohesion is cross cutting, there is not one single way ofmeasuring how all the different aspects of community cohesion are improving.Community cohesion activity should not be measured as if it is an add on to thework of One Nottinghams partners, because by its very nature it is integral to thepolicy, strategy and service delivery priorities of many agencies.

Therefore a range of performance indicators, most of which partners within OneNottingham are already working on through the Local Area Agreement, (LAA) have

been selected, which together, will give overall information on the progress beingmade.All of the 12 indicators in some way support the top level aims in the Action Plan.

It should be noted that in the next year we expect that the number and type ofindicators overall in the Local Area Agreement will change, as a result of greaterlocal autonomy in deciding which performance indicators are most relevant for

Nottingham and a new National Indicator Set of 200 different indicators. Acommunity cohesion indicator is likely to be part of the National Indicator Set,reflecting the importance placed on this issue nationally.

Supporting Communities works with young people mainly aged between 13 19. The overall aim of the work is to prevent young people at risk getting involvedin territorialism and violent or drug related crime and is one of the delivery agents

for the Nottingham Stands Together strategy. The young people that SupportingCommunities works with are often on the margins of communities, not going toschool and many organisations find them difficult to work with. By offering youngpeople positive opportunities in education, employment or training and workingwith their families, there has been significant success in diversion from socialexclusion and the associated risks for young people.

A recent 5 day trip to Belfast with 24 at risk young people involved lots ofplanning on conflict resolution and relationship building exercises. On arrivalyoung people linked up with young people from Belfast and took part in a range ofactivities, including visits to key Loyalist / Protestant and Nationalist / Catholicareas, outward bound activities and a civic reception. The feedback on this eventhas been very encouraging and follow up work is continuing.


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The table below sets out simply the 12 key performance indicators and targets forthe next 2 years.6

Safer Stronger Communities (SSC); Local Area Agreements (LAA); Dept for Worksand Pensions (DWP); Black & Minority Ethnic (BME); Key Stage 3 (KS3)

Description ofindicator

Type ofindicator

Baseline at2006/07

Targetfor2008/09

Responsibleofficer and reportingmechanism

% of residents who feeltheir area is a placewhere people ofdifferent backgroundsget along together

Communityharmony

72% 73% J o Dean NottinghamCommunity NetworkSSC LAA Block LeadLianne TaylorActing Director LocalCommunities

Local people who

speak positively ofNottingham (MORIsurvey)

Community

harmony

54% 75% Director of Customer

ServicesMORI Survey

Residents in 6 mostdisadvantaged wardswho are satisfied withneighbourhood as aplace to live

Communityharmony

61% 69% SSC LAA Block LeadLianne TaylorActing Director LocalCommunities

Number of racialincidents reported tothe Local Authority andsubsequently reportedper 100,000 population

Communitysafety

159 180 Ben BrowneCommon MonitoringProject

Number of overallcrimes as measured bythe British Crime

Survey

Communitysafety

38,354 31,250(-32.5%)

Alan GivenCDP

% of people who statethat there are problemsofanti-social behaviour intheir neighbourhood

Communitysafety

79% 72% Alan GivenCDP


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% of residents who feelthey can influencedecisions affecting theirlocal area

Communityengagement

23% 27% J o Dean NottinghamCommunity NetworkSSC LAA Block LeadLianne TaylorActing Director LocalCommunities

% of people carryingout voluntary work in anorganisation 3 times inthe last year

Communityengagement

18% 23% J o Dean NottinghamCommunity NetworkSSC LAA Block LeadLianne TaylorActing Director Local

Communities


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Who is going to make sure that the strategy is put intopractice and monitor progress?

A Community Cohesion sub group is being set up, with representatives from thevoluntary and community sector, the public sector and the private sector. The subgroup will oversee the strategy and make sure that progress is made on all of theactions. The Steering Group will report into the Communities and NeighbourhoodsPartnership for One Nottingham.

Nottingham City Council is establishing a Community Cohesion Team. This teamwill co- ordinate the delivery of the strategy and be accountable to the CorporateDirector for Community and Culture.

Diagram to i llustrate the accountability process

One Nottingham Board

Communities and NeighbourhoodsPartnership

Community Cohesionsub group

Children& youngpeople

Communi-cations

Newlyarrivedpeople

Tensionreporting

Leadershipcapacity


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Summary of the strategy and its reporting st ructure

Outcome

Improved community cohesion

Partnershipaspiration

A shared vision for community cohesion

4 AimsOne:Reducinginequality,

discrimination&

deprivation

Two:Increasingcommunity

engagement,belonging &pride

Three:Increasing &promoting

interactionbetweenpeople

Four:Increasing safety &respect for

individuals andcommunities

Working on arange oftargets to..

Improve communi ty harmony Reduce inequalityImprove community safety Increase communi ty

engagement

Aim One

Conduct action research into needsof migrant workers and any impactlocally

Challenge negative stereotypes ofsome groups, through myth busting

campaigns

Promote benefits of diversity inworkplace

Aim TwoDevelop and implement communicationsstrategy for community cohesion

Plan and publicise events whichcelebrate diversity and bring peopletogether

Develop leadership capacity for underrepresented groups

Include cohesion actions in LocalCommunity Plans

One Elected Member to championcohesion in each Area of the city

Objectives

Aim Three:Develop twinning projectsbetween communities andgroups

Build closer links with faithgroups

Aim Four

Develop tension reporting systemsacross partner organisations

Improve hate crime reporting systemsand prevention work


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How has this strategy been developed?

Over the last 2 years the local authority has consulted extensively with over 36

different organisations about community cohesion

7

. From this, Nottingham CityCouncil agreed on 4 key priorities for community cohesion. These were:

gun and knife crime students outer estates inter-generational work

This strategy is based on that consultation work and has taken into account thepriorities of the local authority and the achievements that have already taken placewithin the priorities. As outlined earlier, the Nottingham Stands Together Plan, whichis addressing gun and knife crime and the Students and Balanced Communities Planwere both developed as a result of the local authority consulting and settingpriorities.

Some additional consultation work has taken place in 2007, to make sure that ifthere were any new issues, these were taken into account.8

Overall messages from consultation

People wanted a strategy that:

was simple and easy to understand was not set in stone, but a starting point to build on in the future highlighted work already going on through other strategies and plans that help

community cohesion was not too ambitious but had a short and achievable action plan for the

immediate future was reviewed and refreshed in a years time

Working with children and young people should be at the heart of the strategybecause they are the future of the City. People wanted them to be recognised,listened to and given more opportunity to interact with other people, across the citybut also with older people in their own neighbourhoods. There is no separatetheme or heading about children and young people, but work with children and

l h h h i l


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Working across geographical boundaries with Greater Nottingham andNottinghamshire is vital, as many of the issues go beyond the city boundaries. Forexample, many people travel into and out of the City for work, leisure andeducation. Looking at the needs of and issues relating to migrant workers should

happen at a sub regional level as well as within the City boundaries. Tensions andcrime are not defined by political boundaries and often the solutions are notconfined to one local authority area. For example, there is more far right activity inthe towns and surrounding areas of Nottingham than within the City boundary, butthere can be no complacency about this.

Making community cohesion everyones responsibility. By slightly changing

what a lot of organisations do already, people said there could be positive benefitsfor community relations. There is not a lot more money out there so we need toadjust what we are doing now. This is called mainstreaming stoppingcommunity cohesion being just an add on to what we do, it should be at the heartof what a lot of organisations are working on now.

Taking a neighbourhood approach is important, because every neighbourhoodin the city has different issues, different particular sets of issues and causes of

tensions. However, this must be balanced with bringing people together fromdifferent neighbourhoods, as the strategy should not encourage a focus inward atthe expense of interaction between areas.

The Race Equality Council for Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire works

continually to eliminate racial discrimination, tackle inequality and promote goodcommunity relations.

Recent examples of the work around community cohesion include:

A day of community partnership dialogue on community cohesion inRadford and Hyson Green

A seminar on Working with Conflict, focussing on community relations

and ways of intervening to resolve tensions.

The Common Monitoring Project, which records incidents of racialharassment, is also based at the Race Equality Council (REC)


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The values and approach that is needed to makecommunity cohesion improve:

Many people consulted had a view about what community cohesion meant and thevalues that should underpin a strategy.

People said that community cohesion is about everyone feeling comfortable wherethey live and that they belong. Several important ingredients were highlighted asnecessary for good community cohesion. These are summarised as:

committed leadership - which reflects the communities that arebeing represented, in terms of age, ethnicity, gender, faith, disabilityand sexual orientation

fairness and social justice equality of opportunity and similaroutcomes for people

positive inter-action people from different backgrounds gettingalong well together

mutual respect for the diversity that makes up the communities of

Nottingham engagement and empowerment local people having the

opportunity to influence the way their communities and the citychange and develop

a shared sense of responsibility towards the city betweendifferent organisations working well in partnership but also betweenthe citizens of Nottingham

The Home Front Recall arts projectcommemorating the end of World War 2promoted inter-generational learning and understanding and was funded througha Heritage Lottery grant. The project began with older community membersvisiting five primary schools in the Meadows area of the City to talk about theirwar-time experiences and pupils were encouraged to ask questions. Thesessions included handling 1940s objects, including gas masks, brought into theclassroom. The children also visited Brewhouse Yard Museum where theyexperienced an air-raid shelter, learnt about food and rations and made theirown gas masks.

Throughout the project, film-makers recorded the childrens experiences as they


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How will the community cohesion strategy link to otherstrategies?

There are several important partnership strategies that Nottingham is working hardto put into action at the moment. Within these there is lots of work already going onto address some of the underlying causes of tensions in and between communities,many of which relate to social and economic deprivation.

The intention is that this community cohesion strategy does not duplicateunnecessarily, or create extra work where another strategy is already dealing with

an issue. There are a number of key strategies and plans which, as mentionedearlier in this document, are contributing to improving community cohesion.Some of the strategies that link strongly to community cohesion work are:

The Community Plan 2006 - 2009Neighbourhood Renewal 6 Floor Target Action plans

The Crime and Drugs Partnership Plan 2005 2008The City Councils Corporate Plan 2006 - 2011

The Children and Young Peoples Plan 2006 2009Greater Nottingham Partnership strategy 2007 - 2010Nottingham Stands Together Strategy 2004 - 2008Students and Balanced Communities Plan

The Housing Strategy 2005-2008Voluntary Sector Compact Plus 2007

The Core Strategy (a long term spatial vision and strategy)

Reassurance and solidarity after the J uly bombings in 2005 wasimportant across Muslim communities in the UK. One example of whathappened in Nottingham was the Chief Constable of NottinghamshirePolice issuing a newsletter full of information about what was happening,but more importantly, full of messages of support for the Muslim

communities. The newsletter encouraged hate crimes to be reported andexplained the workof the Policewith communities to prevent terrorism anddeal with any backlash againstMuslims.


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Our 4 community cohesion aims and objectives

These are based on the consultation work that we have done over the last 2 years.

When reading this it is important to note that there is a lot of work alreadyunderway, which aims to address, for example, deprivation, discrimination and thepoor outcomes of individuals experience.

The objectives below are outstanding gaps or issues that can be addressed in thenext 2 years. Many of the objectives do not require any additional resources butare about mainstreaming actions which support community cohesion, throughorganisations continuing with their core business, but doing things slightly

differently, so improvements to community cohesion are developed in a sustainableway.

We want to progressively try to ensure that funding to community organisationsand groups, where possible, supports community cohesion, through reducinginequality, building local engagement, bringing people together and helping toaddress tensions.

1) Reducing inequalities, discrimination and levels of deprivation

Objectives: Undertake action research on the support needs of migrant workers and anyimpact on local services and communities Challenge negative stereotypes about groups in Nottingham through a mythbusting campaign, starting with children and young people Work with employers and trade unions on promoting the benefits of diversity inthe workplace

2) Increasing community engagement, sense of belonging and pride

Objectives: Develop and implement a communications plan for community cohesion,

involving the local media Continue to plan and publicise a series of events over the year to celebrate

diversity and the contribution made by different communities in the City Develop leadership capacity and representation opportunities to under

represented groups, including young people, relatively newly arrivedcommunities disabled people


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3) Increasing and promoting interaction between people - especially thosewho don t usually have contact

Objectives: Establish long term, sustainable twinning projects between schools, community

and youth groups, faith groups, using sport, arts and other shared interests topromote contact and understanding

Build closer working relationships between faith communities and bodies andpublic sector agencies, to ensure that they have the opportunity to play a full rolein addressing community cohesion issues

Develop a range of intergenerational work between children, young people and

older people in the City Improve access to information for newly arrived people to integrate within the City

4) Increasing safety and respect for individuals and communit ies

Objectives: Develop reporting systems and tension resolution strategies across partner

organisations to pick up and address any concerns of tensions in communitiesI h t i ti t d h t i ti k

The New Art Exchange in Hyson Green, is due to open in 2008. It will be the UK's onlygallery outside London dedicated to black and Asian artists. Housing public galleries,workshop space, rehearsal rooms and offices, as well as a cafe and shop, it is hoped the

centre will become the UK's "very best" for multicultural arts.

Bringing people together through the arts is a way of promoting learning andunderstanding about other cultures. The New Art Exchange will play a major role inbringing people together and promoting understanding.

The project has been backed by funding from Arts Council England, Nottingham CityCouncil, The Neighbourhood Development Company, the East Midlands Development

Agency, the Greater Nottinghamshire Partnership and the European RegionalDevelopment Fund.

It is expected that the New Art Exchange will form a keystone in the regeneration of thearea.


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Appendix One

Consultation by Nottingham City Council in 2005 and 2006

StakeholdersIslamia InstituteGovernment Office East MidlandsRace Equality Council management, staff and General CouncilConnexionsLocal MPCommunity Network TeamInterfaith CouncilNottinghamshire CC Cohesion BoardPakistan Community Centre chair, staff and membersEast Midlands Community Cohesion NetworkChair: Indian Community AssociationEast Midlands Community Relations NetworkClifton Cyber Caf

Leicester City Council Social Cohesion TeamWest Midlands Racial Attacks Monitoring GroupLSP consultantsAsylum Seekers and Refugee Multi Agency ForumCommunity Cohesion Pathfinder authoritiesNottingham NCVS managementPeer Review staffHuman Relations Network

Local Authorities Inter-faith networkNotting shire Police City Division ManagersCommunity cohesion Unit at Home OfficePortland CollegeIdeA consultantsLearning and Skills Council equality meetingNottingham Black Partnership

Church of England DiocesesBoots Development Trust

Within the City CouncilMuslim Councillors Working GroupBells Lane and Aspley Partnership staff and member


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Neighbourhood wardens managementAnti Social Behaviour TeamCommunity & Culture staff and managementCorporate HR staff and management

Project Sangam staff and managementHousing Refugee and Asylum seekers staffMarketing and Communications staff and managementRespect, Students and Balanced Communities, Nottingham Stands Together,Muslim Action Plan and Outer estates co-ordinators


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Appendix Two

Consultation in 2007

Advocacy in ActionNottingham Primary Care TrustAsian Womens NetworkOne NottinghamBase 51Race Equality CouncilBroxtowe PartnershipRefugee ActionCrime and Drugs PartnershipRefugee ForumDiocese of Southwell and NottinghamSupporting CommunitiesFiannGovernment Office East Midlands

Human Relations NetworkInterfaith CouncilLearnNew Deal for CommunitiesNottingham City Council Relevant Elected Members Equality Team Childrens and Young Peoples Services Neighbourhood Services Partnership and Strategy Housing Strategy Museums

Nottingham Black PartnershipNottingham City Homes

Nottingham Community NetworkNottinghamshire Police


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Appendix Three

What we know already about our city

A starting point in understanding community cohesion is gathering together someinformation to help understand what is going on, what the challenges are and whatthe priorities might be for the future.

There is lots of information already available that gives a detailed picture ofNottingham and organisations are working hard together through One Nottingham

to keep an up to date picture of what is happening in the City. Much of theinformation available can be broken down to ward areas or neighbourhood areas.

Population

The population of the city was 278,700 in 2005 based on the Office of National

Statistics (ONS) Mid Year estimates

Age

24.8% of Nottinghams population is under the age of 20.There is a large studentpopulation - with over 30,000 full time university students estimated as living in theCity, this represents 1 in 9 of the population10. However, the number of young

children in the city is falling, as evidenced by the 9% decline in primary schoolpopulation between 2001 2005. In terms of older children, the secondary schoolpopulation rose by 11% over the same time. The prediction is of an overall declinein school age children of 5% by 201011.

Ethnicity

Nottingham is an increasingly diverse city. Some people are here temporarily. Likeother cities, accurate figures are not available about the number of migrant workersand refugees living in the city. We know that at any one time there are up to 1,000people who are seeking asylum living in the City.12

There is no current information about the numbers of people who are white, but notwhite British, but this figure would include some European migrant workers and


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In terms of ethnicity, the 2001 census found that:

81.1% of the population was white British3.6% of the population was Pakistani3.4% of the population was Black Caribbean2.3% of the population was Indian3.1 % of the population were of dual heritage

Looking at age and ethnicity, the percentage of children from a minority ethnicbackground is much higher than the population as a whole. There are around 30%of school age children from a minority ethnic background, compared to 15% of thepopulation as a whole who are not white.

Religion

Using the 2001 census information again, the following gives a picture of religion or

faith in the city:

Christian 57.7%Muslim 4.6%Hindu 0.8%Sikh 1.2%

J ewish 0.2%

No religion 24.8%Not stated 9.8%

Economic deprivation

Although the 3rd richest City in terms of Gross Domestic Product ( GDP) per head

of population, Nottingham is still ranked the 7th

most deprived district out of 354 inEngland13.

As in all other cities, the levels of deprivation vary across the City, with the mostdeprived wards being St Anns, Aspley, Arboretum and Bulwell. 14


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Unemployment figures in Nottingham have not changed significantly in the last 5years. The 5 areas of the City with the highest rates are:

St Anns 7.6%Bestwood 7.4%Bulwell 6.8%Aspley 6.8%Bilborough 5.2%

Of the people unemployed, 13.2% had been unemployed for between 1 and 2years. 6% had been unemployed for more than 2 years.

Health

Life expectancyLife expectancy is lower than the national UK average by 3 years for men and 2years of women. But there are marked differences within the City itself. Forexample, the average life expectancy of a man in Wollaton West ward is 80 years,compared to 67 years for a man living in St Anns ward. 16

Teenage pregnancyNottingham has one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in the country. 72.8of every 1000 young women aged 15 17 became pregnant in 2004. This trendhas not changed significantly over the last 10 years.

Disability and workIn 2005 10.1% of the working age population (aged 16 24) were claimingIncapacity Benefit or Severe Disablement Allowance. This equates to 17,680people. Of these, 75% had been claiming for at least 2 years. 50% had beenclaiming for over 5 years17.

43.3% were claiming Incapacity Benefit on the grounds of mental health problems.

In 2005, the 5 areas of the city with the highest rates of working age peopleclaiming Incapacity Benefit or Severe Disablement Allowance were:


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Education

Around 40,000 children attend school. 13% of the children have a first languagewhich is not English.

In terms of GCSE results, overall they are improving. In 2006, 45% of pupils inYear 11 got 5 or more A*-C GCSEs, compared to 41.5% on 2005.

However, looking at Key Stage 3 English results, there is a marked difference inperformance, in terms of gender and ethnicity. Only 49% of boys achieved Level 5,compared to 65% of girls. Only 45% of Black boys18 achieved Level 5.

Black boys are about 3 times more likely to be permanently excluded fromNottingham City schools than all other boys.

In 2004, 37,100 people of working age had no formal qualifications.

Crime and disorder

Overall, the crime rate in the City is falling, but Nottingham still has an aboveaverage level of crime. In particular, recorded car and burglary crime is down19.Gun crime levels continue to fall, with a reduction of 74% in 200520.

Crime levels are higher in the most deprived areas of the City.

There has been an increase in reported hate crimes. It may be that there is greater

community confidence in reporting systems and that the actually number of actualincidents has not increased, but reporting of these has increased. Alternatively, itmay be that actual numbers of hate crimes has increased over the last 3 years.

Year 04/05 05/06 06/07

Reportedhatecrimes

793 809 843


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ONE NOTTINGHAM

Community Cohesion

Action Plan

October 2007


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29

Aim One: Reducing inequalities, discrimination and levels of deprivation

Ref.No. Objective Link to keystrategies & plans LeadOrganisation &

accountability

Measurements used to determineimprovement Baseline Target08/09

1.1

Undertake actionresearch to identifyhow migrant workersfit into existingcommunities; any

issues arising fromtheir presence withinthe local communityand how the public,private and voluntarysector agencies areaddressing needs

Public sectorequalities plans

Nottingham CityCouncil reportinginto theCommunityCohesion Sub

Group

NottinghamshireCounty Councilto beapproached towork together

1.2

Challenge negativestereotypes about arange of groups inNottingham througha myth bustingcampaign, startingwith children andyoung people

Links to Childrensand Young PeoplesPlan

Nottingham CityCouncil reportinginto theCommunityCohesion SubGroup andStrategicPartnership forChildren, Young

People andFamilies.

% of residents who feel their area is a placewhere people of different backgrounds getalong together

Employment figures

Number of incapacity benefit claimants in the 9DWP priority wards

Local people who speak positively ofNottingham

Residents in 6 most disadvantaged wards whoare satisfied with neighbourhood as a place tolive

% of 15 year old pupils gaining 5 A*-C GCSEs

% of BME boys compared to % of all pupilsachieving KS3 level 5 or above in English

72%

112,400

10,430

54%

61%

44.3%

58%

73%

117,503

9,907

75%

69%

51%

61%


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30

1.3

Work with employersand trade unions onpromoting thebenefits of diversity

in the workplace

Community Plan

Public sectorequalities plans

NRF EmploymentFloor Target ActionPlan

Nottingham CityCouncil reportinginto theCommunity

Cohesion SubGroup


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31

Aim Two: Increasing community engagement, sense of belonging and pride

Ref.No.

Objective Link to keystrategies &plans

Lead Organisation &accountability Measurements used to determineimprovement Baseline Target08/09

2.1 Develop andimplement acommunications planfor communitycohesion, involving

the local media

New action Communications Taskand Finish Group beingset up, reporting to theCommunity CohesionSub Group

2.2

Continue to plan andpublicise over theyear a series ofevents to celebratediversity and the

contribution made bydifferent communitiesin the city.

CommunityPlan

Part of the work of theCommunications Taskand Finish Group, withNottingham CityCouncil , Community

and Culture reportingto the CommunityCohesion Sub Group

Local people who speak positively of Nottingham(MORI survey)

% of residents who feel their area is a place wherepeople of different backgrounds get along together

54%

72%

75%

73%


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32

Aim Two: Increasing community engagement, sense of belonging and pride

Ref.No.

ObjectiveLink to keystrategies &plans

Lead Organisation &accountability Measurements used to determineimprovement Baseline Target08/09

2.3 Develop leadershipcapacity andrepresentationopportunities to

under representedgroups includingyoung people andrelatively newlyarrived communities

New action, butlinks to Childrenand YoungPeoples Plan

and CommunityStrategy

Leadership Capacity Taskand Finish Group to be setup with accountability toCommunity Cohesion Sub

Group

2.4

Ensure LocalCommunity Plansinclude community

cohesion relatedactions, based onlocal consultation

CommunityPlan,Corporate Plan

Nottingham CityCouncil

Nottingham City Counciland Community Networkreporting to the

Community CohesionSteering Group and theNeighbourhoods andCommunities ThemeGroup, One Nottingham

2.5

Ask for one ElectedMember in each of

the 9 Areas of theCity to lead onchampioningcommunity cohesion

New action butlinks to the

TransformingNeighbourhoodsand Respectelements of theCommunity Planand CorporatePlanNottingham CityCouncil

Part of the work of theLeadership Task and

Finish Group, reporting tothe Community CohesionSub Group

% of residents who feel they can influencedecisions affecting their local area

% of people carrying out voluntary work in anorganisation 3 times in the yea

Residents in 6 most disadvantaged wardswho are satisfied with neighbourhood as aplace to live

% of residents who feel their area is a place

where people of different backgrounds getalong togethe

23%

18%

61%

72%

27%

23%

69%

73%


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33

Aim Three: Increase and promote interaction between people

Ref.No.


Lead Organisation &accountability


3.1

Establish long termsustainable twinning

projects betweenschools, communityand youth groups,faith groups

New action, butlinks to Children

and YoungPeoples Plan,CommunityPlan andCorporate Plan

Part of the work of theChildren and Young People

Task and Finish Group.Likely to be different leadagencies/groups for differentProjects. Accountability tothe Community CohesionSub Group

3.2

Develop a range ofintergenerational

work betweenchildren, youngpeople and olderpeople in localneighbourhoods

New action, butlinks to Children

and YoungPeoples Plan,CommunityPlan andCorporate Plan

Part of the work of theChildren and Young People

Task and Finish Group.Likely to be different leadagencies/groups for differentprojects

Accountability to theCommunity Cohesion SubGroup

3.3

Improve access ofinformation for newlyarrived people tointegrate into the city

New action, butlinks with FloorTarget ActionPlans,CommunityStrategy andCorporate Plan

Part of work of the NewlyArrived People Task andFinish groupAccountability to theCommunity Cohesion Subgroup

% of residents who feel their area is a place

where people of different backgrounds getalong together

% of residents who feel they can influencedecisions affecting their local area

% of people carrying out voluntary work inan organisation 3 times in the year

72%

23%

18%

73%

27%

23%


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Aim Three: Increase and promote interaction between people

Ref.No.




3.4 Build closer workingrelationshipsbetween faithcommunities and

bodies and publicsector agencies, toensure that theyhave the opportunityto play a full role inaddressingcommunity cohesionissues

Public sectorequality plans

Nottingham City Council % of residents who feel their area is a placewhere people of different backgrounds getalong together

72% 73%


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Aim Four: Increase safety and respect for individuals and communities

Ref.No.Objective

Link to keystrategies &plans



4.1

Develop reportingsystems and tensionresolution strategiesacross partner

organisations to pickup and address anyconcerns of tensionsin communities

Crime andDrugsPartnershipPlan

Tension reporting Task andFinish Group working withGovernment Office EastMidlands and other local

authorities,accountable to theCommunity Cohesion SubGroup

4.2

Improve hate crime

and racial incidentsreporting systemsand prevention work

Crime and

DrugsPartnershipHate CrimeStrategy andPublic sectorequality plans

Nottingham City Council

with the Crime and DrugsPartnership reporting toCommunity Cohesion SubGroup

Number of overall crimes as measured bythe British Crime Survey

% of people who state that there areproblems of anti-social behaviour in theirneighbourhood

Number of racial incidents reported to theLocal Authority and subsequently reportedper 1,000 population

38,354

79%

159

31,250

72%

180

community cohesion strategy dec 2007

Documents