Equality Objectives Annual Report 2021

The focus of this objective is to develop a greater focus on promoting social inclusivity across all the Council’s services and fostering good community relations

Areas of activity

A) Supporting communities through the work of our frontline teams and in partnership with other relevant organisations

COVID-19 response

In much of 2021, as in 2020, the work of our frontline teams, and a large element of our partnership working, was partially tied to responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our response was concentrated on providing welfare support and assistance to all vulnerable residents within our communities, not just those with protected characteristics, whilst recognising that factors such as age and disability could potentially contribute to support requirements.

This work has included almost 1500 calls to provide both proactive and response support to residents, awareness raising through Community (COVID-19) Champions, and support to coordinate volunteering and assist the roll-out of the national vaccination programme. Work with public health colleagues on a COVID-19 vaccine project resulted in an area around Preston and Tattenhams moving from one of the areas of lowest uptake to being in line with the rest of the County

There also continued to be significant work in conjunction with local partners, including charities and businesses, to ensure that everyone had access to food throughout the borough, including food clubs, school holiday meals, and emergency food packs. Similarly, our money support team has offered support to over 200 residents throughout the year, helping provide advice and information on available resources to address challenges around cost of living, such as those at risk of fuel poverty – there have also been emergency fuel top-ups available to support those in greatest need. 

Community Development

The Council’s Community Development Workers (CDWs) have been active throughout the year. The team has worked from five key localities across the borough, incorporating Horley, Merstham, Preston, Redhill, Woodhatch and Whitebushes. The CDWs have worked in conjunction with local community members and organisations to build on the strengths of local areas and address challenges faced by residents, including those with protected characteristics.

Work of particular relevance to this report has included:

• Improvements to youth provision in Horley, in partnership with the YMCA, with activities operating from the Old Fire Station in Albert Road.
• Dementia network meetings, where work with local and wider partners has supported the compilation of a directory of available services and local awareness raising.
• Bereavement advice and support, supported by volunteers from St John’s Church, Brigitte Trust and Redhill Baptist Church, in conjunction with the Workers Educational Association, Voluntary Action Reigate and Banstead, and our community workers.
• Work to address social isolation, including work with Merstham football club to establish a walking football group, and a Christmas card project with Age Concern.
• The construction of a new multi-use pump track in Sandcross Lane, Woodhatch, developed with accessibility in mind, and to meet the needs of young people in the area for use by bikes, skateboards and others.  

The team also plays a vital function in maintaining our connections with local residents, and voluntary, community and faith sector organisations. The health sector has also been a key local partner, particularly in the last years, and this has been supported through measures such as the ‘Growing Health Together’ health creation programme with GPs attending neighbourhood partnership groups, funding from East Surrey Place to support community development work, and attendance at joint regional training sessions. The importance of strengthening and utilising all these channels has been highlighted by recent events, and they form an essential component of understanding and responding to local equality needs.

B) Incorporating consideration of social inclusivity in service-level strategies, service design and delivery

To meet the Council’s equality obligations, the work of the organisation must incorporate consideration of equality matters and social inclusivity throughout its work. This forms part of the day-to-day work of the Council, as well as being included in development of strategies and longer terms plans.

An example of this practice was seen in the consideration and consultation on the Council’s annual budget for the year 2022 to 2023. As part of this process, equality impact assessments and feedback from residents and community groups showed that potential reductions in spending on community support offers such as taxi vouchers would have been significantly problematic for many service users with few suitable alternatives. As a result, whilst the budget did make some savings in grant offerings, other elements, such as the Council’s taxi-voucher scheme, were maintained and continue to support the mobility needs of local residents. The outcomes of the budget consultation and the comments received have helped inform subsequent work in respect of our service planning

Other areas of work include work on Reimaging Horley with Surrey County Council, and efforts to improve accessibility in a number of areas. The work on Reimagining Horley has sought to incorporate strong elements of inclusivity into its work and to ensure that engagement work reflects feedback from all members of the local community, not just those who are most readily contacted. Social inclusivity considerations have been particularly pertinent in a number of recent areas of work, such as those below.

Community Centres

In 2021, the Executive approved plans for the transformation of borough community centres, with a vision of three vibrant multi-use community centres reaching residents of all ages. This vision aims to continue to fulfil the centres’ current role as a social hub for existing users, along with expanding the user base to include a wider range of ages and groups within the community.

The operation of our Community centres was significantly disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, although remote activities continued throughout the year to support residents in need. As restrictions have been lifted, there has been a return to in-person activity, with options including activities for under-fives and grandparents, and exercise classes for all abilities. The new community centre offers have received positive feedback from both existing and new users, and user levels have increased steadily since April 2021, from under 500 monthly visits to almost 4000 by the end of the year.

Refugee Support

The Council has been providing ongoing support for refugee resettlement for families from Syria and Afghanistan, and have more recently been coordinating assistance for those displaced from Ukraine. This work is providing assistance to 12 families from Syria and Afghanistan at the time of writing, who are being supported with finding initial accommodation, language learning, and securing employment and education.

Our work with the families is aimed towards assisting them towards securing their own independence, including in participating in local communities. As part of the programme, we hosted the Syrian Feast even in October 2021, which showcased Syrian food and recipes. With the event attended by over 150 guests, and over 200 copies of the accompanying recipe book sold (with money received reinvested into more support for the families involved), activities such as these help support the inclusion of new arrivals into local communities, and demonstrate the mutual benefits which can be gleaned.

Future Focus

The Council’s work towards supporting good community relations in 2022 will need to build on the foundations of recent years. Connections with local partners made and strengthened through the pandemic will help support ongoing work to reach and understand residents, and to provide assistance through measures such as food banks and advice services, in conjunction with those local organisations. Community development work will also need to take account of the developing national context, including challenges around cost of living, which can often particularly impact on those with protected characteristics.

The plans to transform community centres will also be coming through, as we work to achieve the goals for expanding the range of users and making the centres appealing to everyone within local communities. Work is also beginning on a new Leisure and Culture Strategy, which will incorporate the lessons of the Council’s equality objectives into shaping leisure, arts and entertainment options for all of the borough’s residents.