Commission on
Integration & Cohesion
Report by Darra Singh,
Chairman of the Commission, 14 June 2007
Introduction:
A past built on difference, a future which is shared.
As a
Commission our vision of society is one where
people are committed to what we have in common rather than obsessing with
those things that make us different. [It’s
the politicians & tabloids that focus on difference. How to curb them?]
We recognise that experiences differ
substantially amongst individuals, between communities and across
different localities. However what we all have in common is a desire to
build a strong society where civility
and courtesy are the norm, where people are at ease with change, and are
committed to being good neighbours and active citizens.
A society where opportunities for advancement are there for the taking and
prosperity is more evenly distributed.
[High idealism]
It has been a real privilege to be the Chair
of the Commission on Integration and Cohesion. I have valued the
contribution and commitment of my fellow Commissioners. As a group, we
have been inspired by the people we have seen in all parts of the country
and the projects, which have been brought to our attention. It is clear
that whilst there are significant challenges, the mood of pessimism that
some hold is not justified. Excessive
coverage about residential segregation
for example serves to spread a view that the whole of England is spatially
segregated. It overstates and oversimplifies the problem and
leaves us “sleepwalking into simplicity”.
[Dig at Trevor Philips, former Chair of the
CRE]
We live in contradictory times! We have never
been more global in outlook and our day to day experiences are influenced,
often in subtle ways, by the world economy, politics and cultural imports
in terms of music and food for example. Our economy embraces globalisation
and our wealth of recent years in part stems from this. We are able to
communicate through the internet with people around the other side of the
world. In key respects , our report addresses the social consequences of
this as global flows of money, people and information are translated
locally. Because one of the strongest influences on our outlook is what is
happening in our neighbourhoods. The changes in people, their backgrounds
and our experiences are what have come.
The changes in
people, their backgrounds and our experiences are what have come
across as the strongest influences on our
views about integration and cohesion.
So this report reflects the need for
communities to become increasingly comfortable with these social processes
of thinking locally and acting globally. A strong theme running through
this report is that place matters and that all localities have unique
qualities. This does mean that a one
size fits all range of solutions cannot be prescribed from a national
level. It also means that a new social
contract between citizen and government needs to be developed at local,
regional and national levels. The challenges facing different areas and
therefore the solutions will be influenced by a range of factors
including: history of migration and settlement, levels of poverty
and wealth, de-industrialisation and the current population profile. We
strongly believe in tailored and bespoke local activity to build
integration and cohesion.
That is why
integration and cohesion are crucial at a local level.
It is at a local level that leaders can understand in detail the profile
of the population, the changes that are taking place, the impact of these
changes on the local economy and services. And most importantly it is only
at this level where specific initiatives can be crafted and delivered to
build better integration and cohesion.
As a Commission we have been struck by the
remarkable level of commitment that is focused on building stronger and
better communities. From a spectrum of individual actions to those
organised by the voluntary sector, faith organisations and Local
Authorities the range of activity is impressive. The local focus of work
moves forward in the context of a
national government commitment to integration and cohesion.
This is a welcome mosaic of activity and one that needs to be built upon
and supported to make an even greater impact.
The most valuable contribution though comes
from us all as local citizens. Yes it is true that government – local and
central – is essential to the mix of activity. It is also the case that
the third sector is critical. However, it is through millions of small,
everyday actions that we can all either improve or harm our local
communities. Whilst the state and the third sector can assist, they cannot
replace or second guess what we do as individuals. All too often we look
to institutions to make up for deficits in personal behaviour. We are a
country of many backgrounds and many talents, and to create tomorrow’s
future today we all need to commit to integration and cohesion being
everyone’s business.
This is about everyone. Those of us from
settled communities are as much a part of the solution as new arrivals.
The commitment to social justice and tackling poverty
and inequality is as much about addressing the low levels of
achievement amongst some white working class boys or white adults without
qualifications as it is about dealing with lack of advancement of some
members of Black and minority ethnic communities.
Integration and cohesion is no longer a
special programme or project. It is also not about race, faith or other
forms of group status or identity. It is simply about how we all get on
and secure benefits that are mutually desirable for our communities and
ourselves. It is both broad and deep, and influences all levels of
activity in every part of England. As a Commission,
we call for a new national campaign that
promotes our shared future based on a number of key principles – those of
rights and responsibilities, visible social justice, and the somewhat old
fashioned sounding ethics of hospitality.
Local areas however do not operate in a
vacuum. They need the right level of support from national government.
They need to be supported by national agencies and institutions. We make
suggestions for the range of local and national responses in our report
which we believe will make a difference and improve the consistency and
quality of interventions.
As a Commission we have reviewed a huge amount
of material and received helpful responses across a wide range of issues.
We are very grateful for all those who have participated in our work. We
have been overwhelmed by the quality and range of contributions. We have
carefully reviewed all the material brought to our attention. However,
given the breadth of material, we have had to prioritise those areas where
we think recommendations would be most productive in moving our work
forward. We have set out how we intend to monitor progress. We have also
published on our website an analysis of responses to the consultation, and
examples of case studies from across the country.
Our work as a Commission is now complete. We
hand over the baton to others.
To achieve an integrated and cohesive society
involves a journey. It is a long term endeavour. Most of all, in our view,
it requires a pioneering new approach – where we all commit ourselves to
developing our shared future.
Darra Singh, OBE
Chair of the Commission
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The report mentions the word
Poverty 5
times ; racism 13);
Multiculturism 0; Britishness 2;
CEHR several times.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In this report, we set out our practical
proposals for building integration and cohesion at a local level. These
are based both on a combination of new evidence, and on our analysis of
the excellent response to our consultation process.
We feel that four key principles
underpin a new understanding of integration and cohesion:
_
Firstly, the sense of shared
futures which we believe is at the heart of our model and our
recommendations – an emphasis on articulating what binds communities
together rather than what differences divide them, and prioritising a
shared future over divided legacies
_
Secondly, an emphasis on a new
model of rights and responsibilities that we believe will be fit for
purpose in the 21st century – one that makes clear both a sense of
citizenship at national and local level, and the obligations that go along
with membership of a community, both for individuals or groups
_
Thirdly, an ethics of hospitality –
a new emphasis on mutual respect and civility that recognises that
alongside the need to strengthen the social bonds within groups, the pace
of change across the country reconfigures local communities rapidly,
meaning that mutual respect is fundamental to issues of integration and
cohesion
_ A
commitment to equality that sits alongside the need to deliver visible
social justice, to prioritise transparency and fairness, and build
trust in the institutions that arbitrate between groups.
In Chapter 1, we set out the context
in which we were set up, and begin to set
out the key themes for our report:
_
Firstly, that when we face
challenges to integration and cohesion as a nation, they are often very
local in their characteristics – so the solutions are often also local.
_
Secondly, that this report is aimed
at everyone in England, regardless of their background. We do not
underplay the importance of tensions linked to ethnicity and faith in some
areas; but tensions can arise anywhere, for example between generations or
income groups. Integration and cohesion must therefore be about more than
tackling inequalities and discrimination.
In Chapter 2, we set out our
analysis of the current state of integration and cohesion in England,
and the factors which influence this. We have taken twelve key messages
from our analysis:
_ The
national picture is a positive one – perceptions of cohesion are good in
most areas – on average 79% of people agreed that people of different
backgrounds got on well in their local area and the level of agreement
fell below 60% in only ten out of 387 local areas
_ How
cohesive an area is will depend upon a series of interacting factors about
that area (including its geography and history) and the people who live
there (both in terms of their personal characteristics and their
attitudes). So the story of cohesion in each local area will be different
_ The
complexity of influences on cohesion means that improving cohesion is
about addressing multiple issues at the same time, as taking action on a
single issue will only make a small difference. Integration and cohesion
therefore needs to be about both mainstreaming (for instance ensuring that
physical regeneration schemes take account of the need to build social
integration and cohesion) and targeted interventions (for instance,
conflict resolution work with young men from different backgrounds)
_ Multiple
local actions should include work to improve individuals’ personal
circumstances, to change individuals’ perceptions and to address area wide
issues
_
Complexity means that no simple statements can be made about integration
and cohesion – and the following five key points reflect this
_
Deprivation remains a key influencer of cohesion, but the fact that some
areas have high deprivation and high cohesion shows that local action can
build resilience to its effects. Equally, some affluent areas have poor
cohesion, so wealth is no protection
_ We don’t
yet know enough about how crime and anti-social behaviour are key
influencers of cohesion, but there is a relationship
_ If the
discrimination experienced by some groups within our society continues, we
will not be able to achieve the goals we set out in this report for
building integration and cohesion
_ Diversity
can have a negative impact on cohesion, but only in particular local
circumstances. We suggest three types of local areas where this is true:
urban areas that are just starting to experience diversity, such as some
of the outer London Boroughs and Southern commuter towns; rural areas that
are just starting to experience diversity, such as the areas around the
Wash; and ethnically diverse urban areas experiencing new migration, such
as inner cities in the major metropolitan areas
_ Although
as a nation we can see the benefits of immigration, some people are
concerned about its impacts in their local area – we need to address this
_ A new
issue that we need to address is that settled communities are worried
about the fair allocation of public services – with some thinking
immigrants and minorities are getting special treatment
_ Another
new issue, that we need to recognise, is that Globalisation adds another
layer of complexity to the picture – UK residents now come from all parts
of the globe, people’s identities are becoming more multi-layered and
global events now have local ramifications.
In Chapter 3, based on the evidence of
increasing local complexity, and on the feedback from consultation
respondents and practitioners about the current definition of community
cohesion, we argue that we need to set out a new definition – one
of both integration and cohesion.
We do not believe integration and cohesion are
the same thing as some argue.
Cohesion is principally the process that must
happen in all communities to ensure
different groups of people get on well together.
Integration is principally the
process that ensures new residents and existing residents adapt to one
another.
Different communities will have different
relationships between existing residents; and differing levels of new
residents arriving. So our view is that the two processes go on side by
side, and that they interact with one another as local communities
experience change and develop a shared future together.
We also want to make clear that cohesion is not
just about race and faith, and that integration in particular is not about
assimilation.
In Chapter 4, we make a series of
recommendations around our first key principle of shared futures –
the first of the four key principles through which we have organised our
thinking.
We believe that this idea of ‘shared futures’
is about an emphasis on articulating what binds communities together –
rather than the differences that might divide them – and is about
prioritising a shared future over divided legacies. This is at the heart
of our model and our recommendations.
In this chapter, our recommendations are
about:
_ A shared
national vision
_ A
national shared futures campaign
_ How Local
Authorities can better understand their communities and mainstream
integration and cohesion
_ A new
performance framework
_ Strong
leadership and local democracy – including political parties acting
responsibly
_ How we
can move away from a “one size fits all” approach
Our new definition of
integration and cohesion is therefore that
An integrated and cohesive community is one
where:
_ There is a clearly defined and widely shared
sense of the contribution of different individuals and different
communities to a future vision for a neighbourhood, city, region or
country
_ There is a strong sense of an individual’s
rights and responsibilities when living in a particular place – people
know what everyone expects of them, and what they can expect in turn
_ Those from different backgrounds have similar
life opportunities, access to services and treatment
_ There is a strong sense of trust in
institutions locally to act fairly in arbitrating between different
interests and for their role and justifications to be subject to public
scrutiny
_ There is a strong recognition of the
contribution of both those who have newly arrived and those who already
have deep attachments to a particular place, with a focus on what they
have in common
_ There are strong and positive relationships
between people from different backgrounds in the workplace, in schools and
other institutions within neighbourhoods.
In Chapter 5, we make a series of
recommendations around our second key principle of strengthened rights
and responsibilities, supporting a movement towards a new model of
responsibilities and rights that makes clear both a sense of citizenship
at national and local level, and the obligations that go along with
membership of a community, both for individuals or groups.
In this chapter, our recommendations are
about:
_ How
national Government can strengthen people’s sense of citizenship
_ How
people can be brought together locally to discuss their concerns
_ A new
national body responsible for integration of new migrants
_ How new
migrants can be helped to integrate into the UK
_ The need
for a review of how ESOL is delivered
In Chapter 6, we make a series of
recommendations around an ethics of hospitality, expressed as our third
principle of mutual respect and civility. This recognises that
alongside the need to strengthen the social bonds within groups, the pace
of change across the country reconfigures local communities rapidly,
meaning that mutual respect is fundamental to issues of integration and
cohesion.
Our recommendations in this chapter are about:
_ Work with
young people
_ Work with
women
_
Intergenerational work
_ Work with
faith communities
_ Community
development
_ Work to
tackle anti social behaviour and crime
_
Monitoring and responding to community tensions
In Chapter 7, we make a series of
recommendations around a principle of visible social justice – a
commitment to equality that sits alongside the need to make social justice
visible, to prioritise transparency and fairness, and to build trust in
the institutions that arbitrate between groups.
In this chapter, our recommendations are
about:
_ The role
of the Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR)
_
Communication with existing communities to address perceptions of special
treatment
_ Engaging
the national and local media
_ Tackling
myths
_ Better
data collection
In Chapter 8, we make a series of
recommendations around the practical action in four spheres of
interaction that can be taken to make these principles a reality.
Our recommendations in this chapter are about:
_ Cross
cultural activities
_ A
national ‘Community Week’
_ A
national school twinning programme
_ The vital
role of employers to integration and cohesion
_ Shared
public spaces and community premises
_ Housing
and regeneration
_ The role
of arts and sport
In Chapter 9, we summarise our
recommendations and suggest a process for
monitoring implementation.
The annexes set out the processes we have
followed, and explore particular themes of interest:
_ A new
integration and cohesion typology
_ Our
response to the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) on the Duty to
Promote Cohesion
_ The
question of Single Group funding
_
Translations – efficiency and integration
This report is intended to build upon our
interim statement – published in February 2007 – as well as the lessons we
have learned since.
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