Community Empowerment and Cohesion Working Group
Minutes 24th March 2009
Attendees
Amy Bladen
Nottingham City Council: Principle Policy Officer (Community
Cohesion)
Catherine Conchar
Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust: Head of Equalities and
Diversity
Gary Cawthorne
Bestwood Partnership Forum – Development Manager
Heidi May [Chair]
Nottingham City Council: Area 2 Neighbourhood Manager
Jonathan Gore
Nottingham City Council Team Leader: Community Cohesion
Justine Darke
Nottingham City Council: Service Manager (Youth)
Kevin Bartlett
One Nottingham: Strategic Policy Officer
Laura Patterson [Minutes]
One Nottingham: Regeneration Officer
Lynne North
Nottingham City Council: Customer Liaison Officer
Maggie Grimshaw
One Nottingham: Strategic Policy Officer
Michael Henry
Human Relations Network: Director of Development
Mike Crooke
Human Relations Network
Ruth Greenberg
Partnership Council: Chief Officer
Tony Dennis
Nottinghamshire Police: Equality and Diversity Manager
Apologies
Hannah Wharton
Nottingham Community Network – Involving Communities Co-
ordinator
1. Cohesion DVD
MH & MC are collating images, both moving and still, which show the history of cohesion
in Nottingham into a slideshow DVD for the Forum. They requested additional images from
the group for inclusion on the DVD. The DVD could also be used at other future events.
Action: Any photos or moving images for inclusion in the slideshow to be forwarded to MH
by Fri 3rd April at latest. These can be dropped off at NCVS or e-mailed to:
xxxxxxx.xxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx 2. Community Cohesion and Empowerment Forum Planning
MG has sent out invitation letter to relevant organisations, together with a form to see if
they are the right person from their organisation to attend. Aimed at middle-management
level. Contacts are still needed for some organisations. Jean Garbett at One Nottingham is
doing the administration for the Forum.
Action – AB to circulate copy of invitation letter to group members.
AB confirmed the Empowerment and Cohesion presentations are done and that Mark
Bowyer is doing the MORI presentation on the results of focus groups examining what had
an impact on perceptions of empowerment and cohesion.
The information from The Place survey has been delayed. If it is not ready in time for the
Forum, the LAA Stretch Survey can be used as a fallback.
Venue is the Deaf Society, which can hold about 80 people. Some concern was raised
over the size of the venue but it was agreed to continue with this venue for this Forum then
reconsider venues for the next Forum Meeting.
List of contact people in local areas will be included in pack of information distributed at
Forum.
AB has circulated the toolkit which needs to be signed off.
HM highlighted that residents are receiving lots of requests for feedback on empowerment
issues and that agencies need to talk to each other and not work in silos. JG suggested
this issue is raised at a future meeting and the November Forum.
There is going to be an Area Management review of Area Committee
membership/participation.
The Shared Intelligence Group, which runs Nomad Plus, is trying to pull together
information on all the consultation from across the City.
Action: AB to link into Shared Intelligence Group.
Focus of Forum will be on adults and JD will be the link between this Forum and the work
to empower young people. Youth could be a subject of a future Forum.
Action: JD to find out about possible use of Quizdom for the Forum.
Democracy week will take place from 12th – 18th October.
Agreed the Forum should take place every 6 months and the date of the second Forum
was set as
Wed 11th November, venue TBC.
3. NI 1 & 4 Delivery Plan
JG explained that it is one of the roles of this group to hold the City Council Community
Cohesion Team to account for this action plan. 8 of the 14 cohesion actions have been
achieved so far.
MG suggested plan should be expanded to include Neighbourhood Management activity
and also impact from recession on cohesion. CC highlighted lack of links with NHS Trust.
Agreed that the plan needs to be updated to show progress to date and should use a rag
rating system, using colours and symbols.
Action: Comments on the plan and contributions for the plan from April 09 – March 11 to
be sent by group members to JG/AB.
Action: JG/AB to update delivery plan to show additional contributions and also what has
been achieved to date.
NCC Equality and Diversity team likely to have structural change which may have an
impact on cohesion and the work of this group.
Action: Feedback on structural changes to NCC Equality and Diversity Team to be
provided at the next meeting of this group by AB.
4. One Nottingham Governance Review Update
The Communities and Neighbourhoods Partnership is not currently meeting but a small
“holding group” is meeting instead. The final draft proposal on the governance review will
go to the May ON Board. The proposal is that Theme Partnerships will be slightly revised
to fit more closely with the themes of the Sustainable Community Strategy. A letter was to
be sent to all C&NP members by Andrew Balchin, explaining the current situation.
Action: MG to find out from Andrew Balchin if letter has been sent to all C&NP members
and to ensure it is sent if is has not already been distributed.
5. Updates from Partners
KB updated on the Salford University research on the needs of migrant workers, which will
be completed by the end of March and will be launched on 22nd April at the Methodist
Church on Parliament Street. JG informed the group that the underspend on the research
has been used to fund the event.
AB updated on the Novas Scarman Cohesion Volunteers Project, which has £30,000 from
Barrow Cadbury Trust to run a project in Nottingham and either Leicester or Derby. The
project will involve people from different sections of the community and encourage them to
mix with each other. The pilot project will take place in April and it will be rolled out in the
summer. TD said Beata from the Polish community is looking for support for an event she
is organising, which aims to share Polish culture as widely as possible and so promote
cohesion. AB is part of the Cultural Celebrations group.
Action: AB to circulate Novas Scarman project brief to group members.
Agreed need to raise the profile of this group and map out where this group feeds into and
also what feeds into this group.
Action: Communications Group (HM, MG, MH, Jackie Walker, and Lucy Chapman) to meet
map out links as above and feed this back to the next meeting of the CE&C Working
Group. MH will join the group if it is on a date convenient for him.
TD updated on empowerment and cohesion activity within Nottinghamshire Police. Their
strategy on Equality, Diversity and Human Rights has been refreshed. An equalities
standard has been developed which will go live in the autumn. Nottinghamshire Police also
want to engage partners in a conference on equality and diversity which will take place in
November 2009.
Action: TD to e-mail Framework for a Fairer Future to AB. AB to circulate document to
whole group.
RG - the Partnership Council have submitted a joint Expression of Interest with
Nottingham Trent University for a two year project on community empowerment,
researching the decisions that people want to be involved in. The bid can still be tweaked if
anyone in this group wishes to feed into it.
Action: RG to circulate Expression of Interest to rest of group. Group to feedback to RG if
want to have an input.
JD - NCC have just been successful in obtaining £5million for a City Centre Youth Project,
which will house a range of services. It will provide a safe space for young people and will
challenge territorialism. The building needs to be right in the centre of the city. A number of
locations have been identified but no final decision has yet been made. Should be open in
18-20 months.
LN - the Engagement Calendar which is now live on the NCC website. All partners can add
details of engagement activities to it by giving the details to LN and she will update the
website.
HM – have £20,000 from Home Office through CDP which have to spend by in Bestwood
and Top Valley by the end of March 09, with diversionary activities for young people as the
main theme. Skateboard facility should be finished by the end of June. Want to
commission some work (June-Oct) to look at any cohesion issues which come out after
the facility opens. The work will be advertised, so it is an open process but ideas on people
who could be commissioned to deliver the work can be given to HM. JD would be able to
provide a link for this work as team already know lots of the young people in the area.
MG – the Local Area Partnerships have now submitted delivery proposals for local
empowerment and cohesion. These will all be considered in the next few weeks. MG is
also drawing up a service specification for the strategic project on volunteering, which,
once approved, will be run by NCVS. It will need to connect in with LAP and
Neighbourhood Management activity.
Action: MG to circulate service specification to group once finalised.
MH – launching equality and diversity interactive DVD next week, aimed at voluntary and
community organisations.
Action: MH to bring copies of DVD to next CE&C Working Group, so group members can
borrow them if they wish.
Action: AB to send copy of Terms of Reference to JD.
Date of Next Meeting:
Monday 18th May 2009, 2-4pm, Venue TBC