Beacon Award Presentation

Introduction

Among county districts, Gravesham has one of the largest proportions of minority ethnic people, with a legacy of industrial decline and deprivation; it is one of the Thames Gateway’s major regeneration areas, embarking on a period of dramatic change.

• Ensuring the entire community shares the full benefits of regeneration is “key” for Gravesham and its partners. The approach to promoting racial equality has grown out of determination to foster and maintain sustainable communities as the area grows and changes.
• This holistic approach to community cohesion seeks to address economic, social and environmental disadvantage affecting priority groups and neighbourhoods - with no locality or section of the community being left behind - a central aim to the Dartford and Gravesham Community Strategy.
• As a member of the Dartford and Gravesham Local Strategic Partnership, Gravesham’s contribution to realising this vision comes via service delivery and through extensive partnership work.

What has been achieved?

Consultation
A community consultation group set up in association with NWKREC (link below) comprising of all the Minority Ethnic community organisations within Gravesham which meets regularly and acts as an advisory body to the council on policy and development issues affecting their communities.

Community growth and regeneration
Through its membership of Thames Gateway Kent regeneration programme Gravesham has supported a range of community initiatives providing employment, cultural and educational opportunities with a key focus on supporting Minority Ethnic community groups.

Corporate approach and mainstreaming
The multi-agency Community Cohesion Group advises, communicates and co-ordinates community cohesion issues across the Council and is a major driver for change. Positive outcomes include the development of a proactive partnership with the NWKREC, implementation of a Comprehensive Equalities Policy and Race Equality Scheme, the availability of translation and interpretation for all services, periodic work experience weeks arranged specifically for people from minority ethnic communities.

Cross cutting approaches
Created a more integrated approach to established Community Festivals which includes an entirely new range of initiatives, with Pride of Gravesham as its theme, to celebrate cultural diversity and promote cross community understanding. This includes:

Vaisakhi Education Day – using music, dance and drama to teach children more about the multi-cultural society in which they live;

Big Day Out - David Williams

Living Memory – building on established reminiscence work, an oral history project to capture and share life experiences of senior citizens who have lived across regions, continents and cultures;

Gravesham Future Citizens – music and cultural events adding value to established and successful sports initiatives promoting good relations between young people from different background and cultures; and

Big Day Out - Uzambezi

Big Day Out – (link below) a celebration of the Community Cohesion in Gravesham. This community festival uses music food and dance to bring different communities together and provides an opportunity for residents to access information and learn more about the services the Council provides.

Service Delivery Tips

Effective Consultation
Adopt techniques that suit those being consulted. Invest time and effort into developing systems and strategies that engage and consult meaningfully with groups that are under-represented and do who not feature in traditional participation methods or forums. Build on what already exists. Engage service users with events that are attractive and accessible to them. A key message is to value involvement from the onset, with continual feedback demonstrating where consultation has influenced change and where involvement remains a core element, which in turn produces real outcomes.

Partnerships
Ensuring that promoting community cohesion is an integral part of strategy and operations, explore new ways of reaching out, involving and listening to minority communities and their representatives; and, through close partnership working with others, develop pragmatic approaches to the needs of those communities that are relevant, ensuring that the relationship is equally balanced and that there are realistic expectations on both sides.

Celebrate Diversity
Is important not only to build an understanding and produce positive support across the wider community but also to create a distinct local identity that can be the source of both social and economic strength.

Commitment and Leadership
Both political and managerial, must demonstrate a clear commitment to race equality, together with a clear definition of roles - these are necessary for things to happen and important in building understanding and support for the principles of equality, equity and social justice, both within the Council and in the wider community.

Open Day and Learning Activities

Gravesham Open Day
Thursday 20^th October 2005

Gravesham will host an open day in Gravesend focusing on practical solutions to promoting racial equality and engaging with hard to reach groups, with community representatives playing an integral role in the presentations and workshops.

A practical toolkit
Will have launched our toolkit which contains how to guides, templates and case studies which are also be available as downloads from our website as and when they become available. (See link below)

Gravesham Borough Council
Can arrange visits to provide advice, mentoring and work shadowing.

Authority contact details

Deborah Carson
Telephone: 01474 33 77 25
Email: deborah.carson@gravesham.gov.uk
Website: www.gravesham.gov.uk/beacon