1.  INTRODUCTION

  Following the May 2001 disturbances in Oldham organisations, including the Council, have undergone a period of intense scrutiny and review. This included the Oldham Independent Review and, for the Council, the Corporate Governance Inspection and Comprehensive Performance Assessment Process.

  This memorandum of evidence summarises the outcomes of this process, both in terms of what has already been done and some of the key changes which are in progress. This includes action which forms part of the Council's Improvement Plan.

2.  THE CONTINUING CHALLENGE

  Two key triggers for disturbances in May 2001 were a rise in the number of racially motivated incidents and increased activity from members of far right political organisations.

  The numbers of racist incidents in Oldham in recent years are shown below. The substantial increase in 2001-02 reflects both improved reported arrangements, and the numbers of incidents associated with the disturbances in May 2001 and the rise in tension prior to them. Figures for 2002-03 are not yet available, however early indications suggest a fall in the number of racist incidents to a level similar to that in 2000-01. While the trend is encouraging, these figures remain unacceptably high, and the Council, Greater Manchester Police and other partners are working to reduce them further.

  Far right political parties have remained active in Oldham and targeted the Borough in the 2001 Parliamentary elections, and 2002 and 2003 local elections. They first stood for election in Oldham in Hollinwood ward in 2001. In 2003 the British National Party fielded ten candidates (including their national leader) and the National Front two candidates (in two of the same wards as the BNP). The BNP received 7,800 votes. This was 13% of all votes cast, but 27% of votes in the 10 wards in which they fielded candidates. Although BNP candidates were not elected in any wards, they were second in six wards receiving up to one-third of the vote. The full election results for 2002 and 2003 are attached at Appendix 1.

  The current composition of the Council following the May 2003 local elections is: Labour 33; Liberal Democrat 24; Conservative 2; Independent 1.

  Both of the main political groups on the Council strongly believe that the active stance they took in campaigning against far right parties was instrumental in ensuring that no such candidates were elected in Oldham. However, there are to be ward boundary changes during 2003, and all 60 Council seats are up for election in the June 2004 local elections. This clearly represents a major challenge.

  Amongst the factors which led to the disturbances were the very high levels of poverty and deprivation in parts of the Borough. These are particularly concentrated in parts of central Oldham, though there are pockets of deprivation in all parts of the Borough. Addressing these issues is a central concern of the Council and Local Strategic Partnership (LSP), which is discussed further in relation to our new approach to regeneration in section 5 below.

3.  LEADERSHIP

Community Cohesion Partnership

  A Community Cohesion Partnership has been established involving five key voluntary sector bodies (Oldham Race Equality Partnership, ODACA (Oldham Development Agency for Community Action), Oldham VOICE (Oldham's voluntary and community sector network), the Black and Minority Ethnic Group network and the Inter-Faith Forum), the Council, and representatives of the strategic partnerships concerned with Community Safety, Learning, Health and Social Care and Housing. Working with the LSP, this group is the strategic lead body for community cohesion.

  The Partnership organised a North West conference on "Building Common Ground" which was held on 11-12 June. It considered issues of community cohesion, social inclusion and dealing with conflict at a neighbourhood level, and provided an opportunity for participants to share good practice in dealing with these issues. Speakers included: Beverly Hughes, Minister for Citizenship, Immigration and Community Cohesion (who was unable to attend due to Parliamentary commitments so her speech was read by a civil servant); Phil Woolas MP; Councillor David Jones, Leader of Oldham Council; and David Ritchie (Chair of the Oldham Independent Review).

  The Partnership has also been developing a project with Mediation Northern Ireland to improve understanding about promoting community relations in Oldham and to inform the Community Cohesion Partnership about how it can best contribute to this. This will take the form of bimonthly workshops involving a group of 30-35 people from different sectors with a range of different perspectives. The work will take place between September 2003 and March 2004 and is being funded by the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit, with support from Government Office North West.

  The Partnership's work to build a community facilitators network is discussed further in section 7.

Council

  Following the elections in May the Council has introduced a number of changes with the aim of enhancing the Council's leadership role in building community cohesion:

—  The Leader has taken on the cabinet portfolio for Community Cohesion and will represent the Council on the Community Cohesion Partnership; the opposition group has a new leader who has similarly taken on the portfolio for Community Cohesion, and the Chief Executive takes the lead role on Community Cohesion across the Council.

—  There is to be a "Community Cohesion Hour" at the start of every meeting of full Council which will provide an opportunity for all councillors to participate in debate about how best to improve community cohesion.

—  Establishment of a new Diversity and Community Cohesion Overview and Scrutiny Committee linked to an enhanced emphasis on the overview role of the Council's Overview and Scrutiny Committees. This will encourage greater involvement by a broader range of Members in policy development.

Myth busting/tackling misinformation

  The Oldham Independent Review identified the existence of a range of myths which have adversely affected community relations in Oldham. Of particular significance was the belief in some sections of the community that Government regeneration funding is unfairly targeted to meet the needs of Oldham's Asian communities. To address this the Council, together with the LSP, has twice worked with the local press to publish a comprehensive picture of all regeneration funding demonstrating the range and diversity of the areas and groups within the Borough which are benefiting.

  In addition, the Council has been active in responding to letters in the local paper which seek to perpetuate this and other myths. There is, however, more work to be done in tackling myths and misinformation. This includes tackling myths relating to asylum seekers and refugees, an action which is identified in the recently produced Asylum Seekers and Refugees Strategy.

4.  DEVELOPING A VISION AND SENSE OF BELONGING

  Community Cohesion is a key theme within the Community Strategy, and the Council's Corporate Plan, reflecting the priority attached to building community cohesion by the Local Strategic Partnership (LSP) and the Council. Partners are seeking to build community cohesion into all their activities, and the Community Strategy Implementation Plan will reflect this, for example by including targets relating to reducing inequality or bringing groups of people together.

  The Community Cohesion Partnership commissioned research by a consultant (Jennie Lynn) to map out the wide range of current initiatives relating to community cohesion and identify priorities for further action. The findings of the report are being used by the Partnership in developing a Community Cohesion Strategy, which will be launched in the Autumn. The Partnership is currently consulting on seven key objectives, with the aim of identifying ways in which a range of organisations and partnerships can contribute to achieving them. The intention is to produce a strategy which will effectively mainstream community cohesion.

  To measure progress in delivering the strategy the Community Cohesion Partnership is developing a set of local measures of community cohesion. This work is being developed jointly with Rochdale and Bury Councils. In Oldham, the next quarterly survey of the Council's Citizens Panel in August will focus on measuring cohesion. This will be repeated in future years to provide a means of measuring progress in building community cohesion, although in interpreting change it will be important to take account of the impact of wider events on public perceptions such as those resulting from wars, terrorist activity and emerging national political issues.

5.  A NEW APPROACH TO REGENERATION

  In discussion with Government Office for the North West, the Council and LSP have developed a new approach to regeneration. This recognises that the previous approach, which focused upon comprehensive area based initiatives, has not achieved the necessary impact across the Borough, and has created resentments and tensions between people living in different areas.

  This approach has two key features:

—  More thematic approach—While continuing to target resources on the basis of need, this will involve a greater emphasis on themes rather than areas.

—  Whole Borough regeneration—Within the overall plan for the regeneration of Oldham, the Partnership are developing six area strategies covering the entire Borough.

  The intention of this approach is to ensure that, while the quality of life of everyone in the Borough is improved, the greatest impact is achieved in the areas where need is greatest. The process is encouraging people to think outside the issues in their own neighbourhood and contribute to development of their area and the Borough as a whole. Our new approach to regeneration is a cornerstone of work to build community cohesion in Oldham, and Appendix 2 therefore includes a key section from our draft Oldham Renewal Strategy which explains it in more detail.

  As part of developing our new approach the LSP, with the North West Development Agency, has commissioned consultants to undertake a Borough wide visioning and master planning study which will inform the evolution of the Community Strategy and provide a long-term framework for the physical regeneration of the Borough. Delivery of the Community Strategy will be funded through a wide range of sources including: mainstream resources, the Government's Housing Market Renewal initiative, European Objective 2 funding, LIFT (Local Improvement for Trusts) funding, private sector investment, New Deal for Communities and many others.

  The new approach to regeneration was reflected in Oldham's arrangement for allocating Neighbourhood Renewal funding (NRF) for 2003-04. This combined an area and theme based approach, with 50% of resources allocated to address a range of issues in the East Oldham Area Committee area and 50% in support of work to mainstream community cohesion into key areas of activity. This was targeted on three main themes:

—  Tackling crime and fear of crime.

—  Reducing inequalities in employment.

—  Services and facilities for young people.

  In addition smaller sums were targeted at some initiatives concerned with building community cohesion into meeting housing need, and some specific capacity building projects in relation to community cohesion (such as support for Oldham's Inter-Faith Forum). Responsibility for allocating NRF funding within each theme was given to relevant sub-partnerships within the LSP structure.

6.  PROMOTING EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY

  Promoting equality of opportunity is integral to the new approach to regeneration. However, a range of other pieces of work are in progress:

  Within the Council a comprehensive Equalities and Diversity Policy is under development. The new Policy, which goes out to consultation at the end of July, will address the Council's role as a community leader; employer; service provider; and procurer of services. To ensure implementation of the policy there will be a set of equalities targets and an annual Action Plan, on which the Council will produce an annual report. A key proposed target is for the Council to reach level three of the Equalities Standard for Local Government in 3 years and level 5 (the highest level) within five years. This will parallel the Council's target to be classed as "Good" in three years and "Excellent" in five years on the Audit Commission's Comprehensive Performance Assessment

  In progressing on the Equality Standard for Local Government the aim is to make promoting all aspects of equality and diversity integral to all services—with the establishment of monitoring systems where this is relevant, and the incorporation of equalities targets in service plans to focus effort in improving performance in relation to diversity.

Promoting Diversity

  Within the Council a key area of work is the creation of a diverse workforce which, at all levels, is representative of the population of the Borough. Almost 5% of the Council's workforce are of minority ethnic origin, as compared with 2.6% at the time of the Oldham Independent Review. Council departments have undertaken various initiatives to increase the proportion of the workforce of minority ethnic origin, and the Council is also working with a range of public, private and voluntary sector partners on a project to increase recruitment of people from ethnic minorities—both through work with communities and potential employing organisations. Construction and health and social care are potentially major areas of employment opportunity.

  In making the Council an organisation which is responsive to the diverse needs of the communities of Oldham, there is a need to develop the skills and understanding of staff. A two-day Race and Cultural Awareness training course is being rolled out across the Authority (with a target in the Corporate Plan of reaching 50% of the workforce by the end of 2005-06). Also, a new competency based appraisal system is being developed within the Authority, and linked to this is the introduction of a competency based management development programme. The first three modules of this—Community Cohesion; Leading Change; and Managing Performance will be introduced from April 2004.

  Although this more structured programme is still under development, the Council is already working with managers to ensure community cohesion issues are being addressed throughout the organisation. A half day training session on Community Cohesion was held in January for the "Management Forum"—the 150 most senior managers in the organisation—and a follow up session on equalities and diversity is to take place in September. In addition, the Council has a one day training course for managers dealing with their role in promoting race equality. Around 60 managers have already been on this, and a further 50 will be trained during the year.

7.  DEVELOPING STRONG AND POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS

  A lot of work is going on around this area. Specific projects include the primary schools linking project (currently involving 38 schools), Unity in the Community which brings together nine and 10 year old children from different primary schools through sports and cultural activities, Open for Action a new service providing out-of-school activities 50 weeks per year for nine-13 year olds, and various voluntary sector projects such as Peacemaker and the Rainbow project. A review of the effectiveness of activity to bring together children from different schools has recently been completed.

  A range of work is also being developing around building the capacity of young people and their involvement in decision making. A new Children and Young People's Partnership is being developed, which will provide a more co-ordinated approach to meeting the needs of young people.

  There are also a number of other pieces of work concerned with tackling segregation. First Choice Homes Oldham (the arms length management organisation for the Council housing stock) contribute in a variety of ways to building community cohesion, and are submitting a separate memorandum of evidence. Oldham Housing Investment Partnership has established a Community Cohesion Agency which will pilot approaches for supporting people from ethnic minority communities moving into predominantly white estates, and so contribute to gradually breaking down this aspect of residential segregation. Tackling housing segregation will also be considered as part of the developing proposals for Housing Market Renewal and opportunities are also being sought to use the consultation process to promote community cohesion—for example through involving people from across area committee areas in consultation events.

  The Community Cohesion Partnership is also establishing a network of local community facilitators, drawn from people who are already active in their communities. They will go through a locally developed "Common Ground" training programme together, and then work within their own neighbourhoods, and with each other, in building respect and understanding and bringing communities together.

  Key organisations in developing this work, as well as organising their own activities to promote cross-cultural contact and understanding are Oldham's Black and Minority Ethnic Groups Network and the Inter-Faith Forum.

8.  TACKLING CRIME AND FEAR OF CRIME

  Tackling crime and fear of crime, and particularly crime motivated by hate and prejudice, is crucial to building community cohesion. Considerable progress has been made since 2001 in multi-agency work to promote community safety. A new multi-agency Community Safety Unit (with 22 posts) has been established, working to the Oldham Against Crime Partnership. This has strengthened work in tackling a range of crime issues and particularly racially motivated crime and incidents, which is the Partnership's top priority. New structures have been established in relation to this issue, and work done to improve reporting and the co-ordination of effective responses to these issues. A highly effective new system has been introduced for reporting racist incidents in schools and ensuring that the appropriate action is taken.

  The Community Safety Unit includes an Anti-Social Behaviour Team who are providing a resource for tackling a range of anti-social behaviour including harassment and other forms of neighbour nuisance.

  The Council is also to fund 24 new Police Community Support Officers, under the operational control of Greater Manchester Police, who will help improve the visibility of policing, and enable greater flexibility in responding to a range of local crime problems by freeing up officers for other duties and supporting a range of community safety initiatives.

9.  CONCLUSION

  While much remains to be done, a great deal has already been achieved. David Ritchie, leader of the Oldham Independent Review Team, recently returned to Oldham to speak at the "Common Ground" conference, jointly organised by Oldham's Community Cohesion Partnership and Common Ground NW. In an interview with the Manchester Evening News (13 June, 2003) he concluded that:

  "A lot has changed in the past two years. People have faced up to the issues and are trying their best to bring communities together. There is still a lot to do, but people have already achieved a lot and are still really trying. They're doing everything they can."

  "Oldham is a great town and its people have a great character. If everyone keeps working together, this town can achieve great things."