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Recovery Guidance - Humanitarian Aspects

Community Cohesion

Background and Context

Previous emergencies, such as the London bombings in 2005, have highlighted that some emergencies have the potential to result in heightened tensions between different communities.

The definition of community cohesion established by the Local Government Association and partners in 2002, sees a cohesive community as one where:

• there is a common vision and a sense of belonging
• the diversity of people's different backgrounds and circumstances is appreciated and positively valued
• those from different backgrounds have similar life opportunities
• strong and positive relationships are being developed between people from different backgrounds and circumstances in the workplace, in schools and within neighbourhoods.

To help mitigate these risks to cohesion, the Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) has been working alongside the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) National Community Tensions Team (NCTT), Government Offices (GOs) and other organisations such as the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) to provide guidance to local authorities in developing local community tension monitoring arrangements and cohesion contingency plans.

The guidance - 'Guidance for local authorities on community cohesion contingency planning and tension monitoring' [External website] will be a web based tool.

Wales

The Welsh Assembly government has initiated a Community Cohesion Project aimed at improving cohesion across all the diverse communities of Wales. It is proposed that WAG will conduct research into the particular needs and issues faced by Wales' communities and produce a community cohesion tool kit accessible by all local authorities and local service providers from a central WAG based Web site. The web site will also have examples of good practice posted on it. Further to this, promotion of a Welsh image and identity will be promoted as a result of the “One Wales” strategy. Alongside these initiatives, WAG is developing extensive work around tackling extremism in Wales, and to this end, close collaboration is taking place between CLG and WAG.

Scotland

[TBC]

Northern Ireland

[TBC]

Roles and Responsibilities

Every Government Office (GO) has a regional cohesion lead who can offer practical advice and guidance to local authorities in relation to cohesion contingency planning and tension monitoring. They will be the first port of call for local authorities in developing plans and we recommend that tension monitoring reports are shared with them. GO cohesion leads ought to be alerted to escalating tensions and when local cohesion contingency plans are triggered.

Lead Government Department

The Department for Communities and Local Government (Cohesion and Faiths Unit) act as Lead Government Department for community cohesion incidents.

The GO cohesion leads in the relevant Government Office will normally provide the conduit for communication with CLG (see contacts below).

Links to Other Topic Sheets

• Working with the media
• Needs of people – health
• Needs of people – non-health
• Displaced communities
• Foreign nationals
• Commemoration

Case Studies (Incidents and Exercises)

Leeds post 7 July 2005 London Bombings
Pan-London stakeholder group post 7 July 2005 London bombings
Community cohesion Sunderland City Council: 13 May 2005

Other Documents

Looking after one another: The safety and security of our faith communities
The Inter Faith Network for the United Kingdom, 2005.

List of Contacts

Communities and Local Government [External website].