Main heading

Stronger Communities

What do we mean by Stronger Communities?

The government has identified the components of stronger communities. In summary these are:

•  A sense of community identity and belonging
• Tolerance, respect and engagement with people from different cultures, background and beliefs. Friendly, co-operative and helpful behaviour in neighbourhoods
• Social inclusion and good life chances for all. Effective engagement with the community at neighbourhood level, developing the community's skills, knowledge and confidence
• A strong, inclusive, community and voluntary sector
• A good range of affordable public, community, voluntary and private services (e.g. retail, fresh food, commercial, utilities, information and advice) which are accessible to the whole community. 

Developing a Stronger Cheshire

Cheshire has two Government funded Neighbourhood Management programmes, both located in Chester. These programmes seek to provide a focus for the effective use of new and existing resources in tackling crime, deprivation and social exclusion in key areas of the county. Both Blacon and the Lache have delivery plans which set out how they will identify and target their communities’ needs.

The opportunity exists in Cheshire to target some work on the wards that contain the highest concentration of disadvantaged people.  Lessons from Neighbourhood Management in Blacon should be extended to key wards in order to deliver more challenging outcomes on crime, public participation in decision making and satisfaction with public services.

Volunteering in Cheshire

The Council has a long standing relationship with the voluntary and community sector.  We value the unique contribution that the sector brings to Cheshire in terms of community engagement, service provision, representation and advocacy. 

The Council has encouraged and supported individuals by establishing local networks and getting people involved to participate in community activities as volunteers, community leaders or members.  There are numerous examples of community involvement across the county in activities ranging from environmental projects, the management of community buildings, out-of-school schemes, becoming school governors, young people’s projects and work with older people.   

Social Enterprises

Social enterprises are businesses with social objectives. They are owned and controlled by local communities and are established in response to local needs. They provide local work and training opportunities, both paid and voluntary, and all profits generated are re-invested to develop further services and jobs.

The Council currently supports 48 community enterprises operating in Cheshire employing more than 170 people (full and part time) with support from nearly 1,000 volunteers. The services they provide include community childcare facilities, credit unions, furniture recycling and gardening services.

Community Cohesion 

The 2006 Communities of Cheshire Survey revealed that 73% of respondents thought that Cheshire is a place where people from different backgrounds can get on well together.  While this is a very positive finding, it seems clear that public agencies in Cheshire could take a more challenging approach to community cohesion. Cheshire has a long history of residency from gypsies and travellers and also faces challenges in delivering services such as education, information and community safety to its emerging new communities, mainly, but not exclusively, from Eastern Europe.

Migrants

Migration has always been part of life in the UK. Outward migration from the UK to other countries and inward migration are part of this country’s history, identity and economy. In 2005, the most recent year with full data, 380,000 people left the UK and 565,000 entered the country.  The impact of migration from the new EU states needs to be seen in context.

• The numbers of people arriving from the Eastern Europe accession states in Cheshire is not easily quantifiable but based on the number of workers from the A8 countries (the Eastern European Countries that joined in 2005), as measured by registrations under the worker registration scheme (2006/07), was 2,700. 
• Recent macroeconomic studies consider that migrant workers are net contributors to the economy.
• A Joseph Rowntree Foundation study reveals that 75% of employers felt that European enlargement had been good for business, with migrant workers doing jobs under employment conditions that UK nationals are not prepared to accept.
• But at a local level, migration can have more diverse impacts. The scale, pace and ‘newness’ of change are key factors that affect local authority responses. The availability of jobs has been a principal determinant of settlement.
  

Questions: Playing your part 

• What are you doing to help? 

• What would you be able to do? 

• What help would you need?

• What could be done in your community to raise awareness and make a difference?