Together: A Community Cohesion Strategy for Barking and Dagenham

Report to: Community Safety Partnership Board
Meeting date: 12 th June 2012
Together: A Community Cohesion
Strategy for Barking and Dagenham
Paul Hodson, Group Manager Community Cohesion
paul.hodson@lbbd.gov.uk; 020 8227 2782
Introduction
The Cohesion Sub Group of the Community Safety Partnership has been working to develop a
community cohesion strategy. A number of consultation exercises have been undertaken to
develop a vision and agreed set of principles of what this strategy should look like, including the
extended workshops held during the CSP meeting in March 2012.
Together: A Community Cohesion Strategy for Barking and Dagenham is the result of this work.
This paper outlines why there is a need for this strategy and the consultation process that has
been undertaken.
Community Safety Partnership Board members will be asked to inform the development of this
strategy further by reviewing the draft strategy at the meeting on 12 th June, 2012.
Recommendations It is recommended that the Community Safety Partnership Board
considers the draft Together: A Community Cohesion Strategy for
Barking and Dagenham at its meeting on 12 June, 2012.
Protective marking: Unclassified
Body of report begins overleaf
Circulation: [‘Board Members’]
Consultation:

1 Introduction
1.1 A new Cohesion Strategy for Barking and Dagenham is being developed. There have
been two previous community cohesion strategies in Barking and Dagenham. The
first strategy, ‘One Community’, being adopted in 2004 and the second, ‘Building
our future together’ was developed in 2007 following research and
recommendations made by the Campaign Company.
1.2 The Campaign Company focused on getting the views and opinions of residents, key
voluntary and community sector organisations and local businesses.
1.3 This work confirmed the main concerns of local people:
(a) To live in a safe place
(b) To have fair access to services
(c) For all sections of the community to respect each other
(d) For the Barking and Dagenham Partnership to create and support opportunities
for communities to come together
(e) For there to be improvements in the local environment
(f) For there to be increased opportunities for young people
1.4 The second strategy, ‘Building our future together’ adopted the following vision in
delivering community cohesion:
Together we choose to build and support:
(a) A strong community who will get fair access to services
(b) A place where people respect one another and enjoy safe and peaceful lives
(c) Opportunities to meet together and look forward to the future Barking and
Dagenham
1.5 In “Building our future together,” there were six priorities identified by residents
to help cohesion in the Borough. These were:
(a) A safe place to live
(b) Fair access to services
(c) A place where people respect each other.
(d) Improvements to the local environment
(e) More opportunities for young people
(f) Create opportunities for the community to come together
1.6 Both strategies focused on the role of the Council rather than developing a
partnership approach to community cohesion.
Structures
1.7 Community Cohesion falls within the remit of the Community Safety Partnership.
The CSP has four sub-groups whose remit relates particularly to community
cohesion:
• The Cohesion Sub Group
• The Tension monitoring Group
• The ASB and Hate Crime Group
• The Channel, Prevent and Extremism Panel
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1.8 In addition, the Safer, Stronger Select Committee has undertaken a review of the
role of the voluntary sector in promoting community cohesion in the borough. The
SSSC are currently responsible for reviewing the implementation of the Cohesion
Review Action Plan.
Refreshed strategy
1.9 The Draft Strategy proposes to:
(a) Review the aims and objectives given above that were adopted in 2007 in light
of changes in the borough.
(b) Address the challenges to community cohesion faced by the borough.
(c) Ask partners to agree to apply a consistent set of principles and a partnership
approach in addressing cohesion
(d) Develop a new action plan through a thorough consultation process
(e) Aim to launch the new Strategy in Peace Week in September
2 Consultation Process
2.1 To review the previous strategies and to consider how
(a) A large kick off workshop with the Community Safety Partnership
(b) online consultations
(c) workshops with tenants and residents associations
(d) presentations to the equalities fora
(e) working with frontline officers
2.2 The result of these consultation processes is the draft cohesion strategy which has
been titled the “Together Strategy” (Appendix 1). This strategy explains that the
overarching outcome of the work will be to ensure that the Borough will
increasingly be a place where people get on well together and support one
another.
2.3 The vision for the Together Strategy is to make Barking and Dagenham
“A place where people respect one another and enjoy safe and peaceful lives; where
there are opportunities to meet together and look forward to the future, and to be a
united community who will get fair access to services."
2.4 The Together Strategy has four key outcomes that it is aiming to deliver by 2016;
(a) Bringing People Together
(b) Talking and Listening; and
(c) Neighbourliness.
Each of these four areas have their own action plans outlining what Partners have
said are the most important areas to focus on in the coming years.
2.5 It is the culmination of these actions plans that will enable partners to add value
by working together to improve community cohesion within the borough.
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3 LSPB Workshop
3.1 The Together Strategy was presented to the LSPB on 29 th May and workshops were
held for Partners to shape the strategy and inform the four themed action plans.
3.2 The session was split in to four parts. At the start of each part Partners received a
short presentation on one of the four action plans. This presentation explained why
the previous consultation exercises placed importance on each theme and provided
some examples of good practice already occurring within the borough.
3.3 Partners were asked to work with their tables to discuss:
• What are your views on the theme / outcome focus?
• What actions are missing that contributes to the outcomes?
• Which actions can each Partner sign up to ensuring are delivered within the
borough?
3.4 The draft Together Strategy is attached as appendix 1 to this document. It is
recommended that partners familiarise themselves with the paper to help inform
their discussions at the workshop.
4 A revised Strategy will be provided to the CSP for its meeting on 12 June 2012.
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