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Good practice examples forBirmingham’s CommunityCohesion Strategy

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2 To read the full case studies go to www.bvsc.org

bvsc - making connections

Introduction 3

Community engagement 4

Encouraging active citizenship 6

Building relationships 7

Managing neighbourhoods and services 10

Developing leadership and capacity building 11

Tackling crime and disorder 12

Removing structural disadvantage 14

Good practice examples from individual residents and workshop participants 19

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Good practice examples for Birmingham’s Community Cohesion Strategy

introduction Around Birmingham there aremany examples of groups andorganisations working to bringpeople together and create strongerand more cohesive communities.

Over the next few pages you can read a littleabout some of these to whet your appetite andgive you some ideas about things you coulddo to build more cohesive communities. Youcan find out more about each example byvisiting the bvsc website at www.bvsc.org

BVSC is one of the largest voluntary sectorsupport organisations in the UK.

We work to:

� Provide people with opportunities to make apositive difference to their communities

� Provide voluntary and communityorganisations with the resources to helpthem achieve their goals

� Champion the voluntary sector as aninfluential force for positive change.

From our building in the heart of centralBirmingham, we provide the followingservices:

� Resource Centre

� Sector Development

� Policy and Communications

� Volunteer Centre Birmingham

� Corporate services

� Conferences

� Arts for Change

Be Birmingham is the local strategic partnershipthat brings together partners from the business,community, voluntary, faith and public sectorsto deliver a better quality of life in Birmingham.

Be Birmingham, was established in 2001. It wasfirst known as the City Strategic Partnershipuntil it became the Birmingham StrategicPartnership (BSP) in October 2004. The BSPfinally evolved into Be Birmingham in November2007. The new-look LSP reflected a new era atthe partnership which saw it stronger, unitedand more determined than ever before to putthe city at the heart of all it did.

Be Birmingham is committed to:

� Uniting Birmingham's family of partnershipsto provide a collective response toimproving the social, economic andwellbeing of the city

� Engaging Birmingham citizens to inform theBirmingham 2026: Our vision for the future,the city's sustainable community strategy

� Delivering Birmingham 2026

� Developing and implementing the vision'sdelivery mechanism, the Local AreaAgreement (LAA)

About bvsc

About Be Birmingham

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Birmingham South West Group has involved the Crescent Theatre in training both young andolder people in drama as a means of bringing the community together on the Waterworks estate.

Friction Arts provides a good example of how art and music can successfully be used to engageresidents on an estate.

The Friends of Cotteridge Park provides a good practice example of community consultationin connection with the development of a community building.

Games4all provides an example of the importance of communication at a grassroots level ifengagement of young people is to be successful.

The Ladywood Project provides an example of how provision of cheap lunches during schoolholidays was provided in response to needs voiced by the community.

The Ladywood Project illustrates the importance of ensuring staff do not make value judgementsabout potential service users.

The Malachi Community Trust provides an example of the importance of a convincing mechanism for engagement in working with children that are affected by difficult and challenging family circumstances.

Summerfield Residents Association has been involved in the development of a communitywebsite as a forum for local people to help increase dialogue between residents.

CSV Environment provides an example of successful engagement with the first generationBangladeshi community through a community gardening project called 'Concrete to Coriander'.

Birmingham Play Care Network illustrates that providing opportunities for children to play in thegreen spaces around their homes engages the local community, promotes the ethos ofcommunity cohesion and reduces anti-social behaviour.

South Birmingham Community Radio (SBCR) provides an example of how this media can besuccessfully used to reach out to the community, particularly communities at risk of exclusionor disadvantage.

St Margaret’s Community Trust provides an example of how well organised events can be usedto bring all stakeholders and communities together and create better community cohesion.

Radio Rep highlights how acting can be used to engage members of the community.

Castle Vale Community Environmental Trust successfully targets unemployed 18-26 year oldsto develop ‘confidence through conservation’ and develops a range of practical skills whilstimproving the estate for the benefit of the community.


community engagement

To read the full case studies go to www.bvsc.org

Craftspace has been involving 16-19 year olds by working in Pigeon Park and the Cathedralgrounds (where a lot of young people hang out). The project highlights how craft activities can besuccessfully used to engage young people.

Craftspace highlights the successful use of City Council Arts on the Move buses to engageresidents in creative craft work.

The Birmingham LGBT Community Trust provides an example of how an event can be used toquestion preconceptions about LGBT people.

Birmingham Talking Newspapers provides a good example of how the VCS is providingpractical support to enable the blind and visually impaired to play a more active role in thecommunity.

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The Birmingham South West Group ‘Community Grow Zone’ project is an example of how youngpeople have been successfully engaged planting bulbs and other activities throughout the project.

The Friends of Balaam’s Wood provides an example of the benefits of adopting a wide range ofmethods used to try and engage people in the conservation work that they carry out.

The Friends of Cotteridge Park illustrates what can be achieved through voluntary effort toprovide a range of community facilities in response to local community needs.

Summerfield Residents Association highlights how a well co-ordinated residents association cansuccessfully lever in funds to make significant neighbourhood improvements.

Syconium is involved in taking on volunteers that are looking to help the local community and inreturn offer the opportunity to gain qualifications.

Westfield Area Residents Association has established a ‘green and tidy’ project whichdemonstrates how a project can be used to get a community doing things together and theadvantages of good publicity in helping to achieve this.

The Compact Timebank is an innovative volunteering project that provides local community benefitand which has been particularly useful in terms of tackling prejudices people may have of youngAsian residents.

The Muslim Education Consultative Committee demonstrates how a 50+ wellbeing projecthighlights how volunteering can help break down barriers between different age groups.

The Second Thoughts Project runs a community project, ‘2nds out’. The project highlights howthe co-ordinated efforts of a group of volunteers over a very short time have a significant impact interms of improving the quality of life of those residents supported.

Balsall Heath Neighbourhood Forum provides an example of what can be achieved in bringing acommunity together through the formation of smaller residents groups combined with the work of acapacity builder.

Advocacy Matters works at an individual and community-wide basis to provide a voice fordisabled people, looking at problems including access to services, and accessible information andcommunication. The project highlights how this is achieved through support to disabled people toattend community activities, conferences, partnership boards and events where disabled peoplecan have their say.

SIFA Fireside highlights how those socially excluded or disadvantaged can be successfullyengaged in volunteering.


encouraging active citizenship


Aiming 2 Achieve is involved in the organisation of Gospel Wave and Gosfes, which provides anexample of how different faith-led communities can be brought together through major events.

All-4U Network is a women’s only project that will be up and running in January 2011 from aWomen’s only Centre. The project highlights the advantages of different VCS organisationsworking together to tackle a community cohesion issue.

The Al-Mahdi Institute undertakes Islamic awareness courses from a cultural and communitycohesion perspective. The example highlights how awareness of Islam has been successfullyraised amongst staff within key statutory organisations within Birmingham.

Friction Arts has undertaken a Heritage project in the Digbeth, Highgate and St Andrews areaswhich highlights good practice in establishing a reciprocal relationship with a local community aspart of an art project by providing opportunities for people to come together.

Friction Arts held an exhibition for three months over the summer at the Birmingham Museumand Art Gallery called ‘heard and not seen’. The project highlights how art can be used to createdialogue between Islamic and non Islamic people.

Games4all holds regular sporting activities such as ‘community cohesion’ football tournaments in orderto create better cohesion between young people belonging to different ethnic groups in Birmingham.

The Ladywood Project demonstrates how community cohesion can be improved by providing aplace where people can come together and get mutual support from each other as well as the project.

The Uplands Allotment Association was founded in 1948 in the aftermath of World War Two andprovides an example of how allotment gardening and the growing of fresh produce has broughttogether all sections of a local community.

CSV Environment worked with 'hard to reach' communities within deprived areas of inner-cityBirmingham to open access to green space and the countryside through the use of fun and variedactivities.

Bournville Village Festival highlights the importance of publicity and continuity in relation to thesuccessful organisation of community events.

Compact illustrates how sport (Futsal) can be used to improve community cohesion by buildingbridges within different communities.

Compact illustrates how the organisation of community days in local parks can be an effectivemechanism in bringing people from different cultures living locally closer together.

Homestart Northfield highlights the importance of building trust between volunteers and familiesin order to build successful relationships over time.

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building relationships

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Narthex provides an example of the promotion of inter-faith working through the establishmentof a football club, which plays with other faith communities.

The Somali Youth Development Organisation highlights how targeted support to a particularcommunity can help increase integration with other communities.

Sound it Out illustrates how, through its Building Bridges programme, musical activity cansupport the needs and aspirations of young asylum seekers and refugees and help communityintegration in Birmingham.

Sound It Out's flagship inclusion project is called Musical Connections and has been runningsuccessfully for a period of 11 years through the creation of a network for isolated andhousebound adults. The project highlights how the use of music making can help developconfidence and social opportunities for vulnerable adults.

Sound It Out has implemented a project (Choral Fusion) to build relations between differentfaith groups through participation in choral music activities.

St Margaret’s Community Trust provides an example of inter-faith working by bringing theChristian and Muslim faiths together through a joint Christmas and Eid celebration.

St Margaret’s Community Trust took a number of coaches of families from the Ward End area toCleethorpes for the day, in order to try and build better local community relations. The projecthighlights the advantages of taking different communities out of their environment in order to helpbuild better relationships.

St Margaret’s Community Trust involved about 600 residents of different faiths, backgrounds,ages and cultures from the Hodge Hill constituency in a community building exercise called theHodge Hill ‘Feet Speak’. The project highlights how an innovative idea can be used as the basisfor a successful community building exercise.

St Margaret’s Community Trust illustrates how it is possible to break down barriers betweenyoung people aged 12-18 from 3 different deprived estates in Hodge Hill through a residential‘outdoor’ weekend.

Studio Select highlights how disadvantaged artists can help break down barriers betweendifferent age and cultural groups.

The Feast provides an example of a charity whose aim is to promote relationship building andcommunity cohesion between young Christians and Muslims. The project highlights how carefulorganisation of events bringing together groups of young Christians and Muslims can be used toincrease understanding of each others’ faiths.



The Feast attempts to break down barriers between young Christians and Muslims throughcamps involving about 10 young Muslims and Christians each time.

Balsall Heath Neighbourhood Forum provides an example of inter-faith working through theannual inter-faith carol singing event.

Midlands International Buddhist Association holds an annual ceremony attracting 500prominent people in order to fill the gap between different nationalities, different cultures, differentfaiths and different activities in Birmingham. The project provides a good example of how foodfrom different cultures can be used as a way of bringing people together.

Castle Vale Community Environmental Trust provides an example of a Community Garden project,which is designed to bring together groups of people who would not normally mix in a social sense.

Craftspace has been working with refugees for a number of years and has an aim to supportnewly arrived women to integrate better into the city environment. The project provides a goodexample of how craft activities can be successfully used to engage young people.

The Birmingham LGBT Community Trust recently put on an event with the West Midlands FaithForum looking at LGBT people of Faith, the first of its kind to be held in the UK. It provides anexample of how a well organised event can be used to question preconceptions about LGBT people.

The Local Leagues provides an example of how a Football Academy has tackled communitycohesion issues by bringing together young people from a variety of different communities andcultures within the area.

Sikh Nari Manch hold an Inter-Faith Event twice a year in order to enable different faiths toobtain a better understanding of other faiths and help integrate better with each other.

Ulfah Arts is a good example of how choir singing can be used to promote inter-faithunderstanding.

Ulfah Arts provides an example of a film project that is seeking to break down barriers betweendifferent faiths through a dedicated website called credible stories.

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The Friends of Balaam’s Wood outlines what they consider to be some of the key factors thatmake Frankley a cohesive community.

The development of the Shenley Court Hall Community Centre is an example of goodpartnership in the voluntary sector between local residents, Shenley Youth and Community Trustand Bournville Village Trust in order to develop a community centre.

Ward End Asian Elders Welfare Association is a good example of the importance of acommunity facility offering affordable support services as a way of involving people who mayotherwise lead isolated lives.

East Yardley Neighbourhood Forum provides an example of how a social enterprise model canbe used to represent and undertake a wide range of activities on behalf of a local community.

PN7 (which stands for Priority Neighbourhood 7) was established in July 2009 and provides anexample of how a social enterprise model can be used to represent and undertake localneighbourhood management roles.

Narthex operates a resource centre focussed on the support needs of pregnant refugees, aparticularly disadvantaged group who have no recourse to public funding. The project providesan example of the contribution of the VCS in helping particularly disadvantaged groups accessbasic services.

The Second Thoughts Project provides an example of a how the establishment of a communityshop can provide the focus for a range of support to local residents in a relatively deprived estateand help fund other community cohesion activities.

St Margaret’s Community Trust is developing a community centre at the heart of a deprivedneighbourhood on the Overpool Estate. It provides a good example of the development of a‘community hub’ that will bring a wide range of different community groups together.


managing neighbourhoodsand services


The Malachi Community Trust provides an illustration of the importance of a visible presence inthe community for any activities that seek to build community cohesion.

The establishment of the Shenley Community Council is an example of good partnership in thethird sector between local residents, Shenley Youth and Community Trust and Bournville VillageTrust (as a housing provider) in the interests of the whole community.

Westfield Area Residents Association was established in the wake of a series of anti-socialbehaviour problems and arson attacks and this example of good practice illustrates how localleadership has brought the local community together.

The BASIS Platform Programme demonstrates how people involved in small groups, thatotherwise may not be able to access support in order to develop, can become communityresearchers and consultants.

Frankley Neighbourhood Forum provides an example of how volunteering activity within a localestate of about 3,660 tenants provides a mechanism through which issues of concern to thecommunity can be tackled.

Quinton Youth for Christ provides an example of how a new after-school club has beenestablished through volunteering activity in order to meet local community needs. It is a goodexample of how specific community cohesion issues relating to young people can be tackled bybuilding on existing provision.

Balsall Heath Neighbourhood Forum provides a good practice example of how a declining innercity neighbourhood, plagued by prostitution and other anti-social behaviours, can be transformedinto a strong and cohesive community through concerted community-led action.

Moseley Forum provides an example of successful community enterprise with the farmer’smarket that takes place in the centre of Moseley once a month, which has helped improve localcommunity cohesion.

Changemakers has introduced a Community Stream, which identifies young leaders in thecommunity and places them into community-based organisations in order to engage other youngpeople, tackle an issue and make change in their community.

The Lozells Neighbourhood Forum provides an example of how a local body can provideleadership in enabling a community to come together, reflected in the annual communityawards ceremony.


developing leadershipand capacity building

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Birmingham South West Group is an example of a community group that has been involved insuccessfully tackling problems associated with drug taking and prostitution on the WaterworksEstate. It provides a good example of how successful action to tackle these problems has beenundertaken through strong community leadership.

Birmingham South West Group has been involved with the Police in running the WaterworksSafe Haven Youth Club, which has been very successful in addressing anti-social behaviour onthe Waterworks Estate. It provides a good example of successful partnership working betweenthe police and VCS in addressing these issues.

Games4all provides an example of voluntary and community sector involvement in the YouthIndependent Advisory Group (YAG) established by the West Midlands Police ‘cohesion’ unit. It isa good example of how to successfully directly involve young people in making a difference.

Summerfield Residents Association came back to life as a result of the efforts of Summerfieldresidents in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour in their area. This case study outlines theactions that were taken and how co-ordinated community-led action has been successful intackling these issues locally.

Syconium is currently running the Youth Crime Action Plan (YCAP) programme. This example ofgood practice outlines the work of ‘street teams’ of detached youth workers that go out onvarious nights of the week to work with young people around anti-social behaviour.

Safe Haven teams have been working in conjunction with Syconium youth projects on issuesaround anti-social behaviour and keeping people safe. The example highlights how film makinghas been used to achieve this.

Wilkes Green Residents Association provides a good example of how a local communitysought to tackle crime, drugs, prostitution and anti-social behaviour. The example shows inparticular how contact with residents through things like regular ‘walk abouts’ can often be moreproductive than public meetings where residents often feel intimidated to speak out about issues.

Wilkes Green Residents Association is currently trying to curb its on-street drinking. Theexample highlights how a Polish person is being used to act as a go-between between the Polishcommunity and residents association in order to help tackle identified problems.

Compact provides an example of how an incentive-based volunteering initiative has beensuccessfully developed within two local schools under the Preventing Violence and ExtremismProgramme as a means of securing better community integration.


tackling crimeand disorder


Sport 4 Life illustrates how a sports outreach project, providing structured sports coachingsessions, can steer participants away from lives of crime, anti-social behaviour, and low self-esteem and develop them into individuals who make a positive contribution to society.

St Margaret’s Community Trust provides an example of how a well managed youth projectinvolving local people being trained in youth work, has ‘Made A Difference’ and significantlyreduced anti-social behaviour.

The Birmingham LGBT Community Trust demonstrates how campaigning and petitions canresult in change on issues around safety and preventing crime in the Gay Village.


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removing structuraldisadvantage


Syconium trains youth workers who are 18-24 years old and who have been long-termunemployed. It is a good example of people helping this group through long-term sustainableopportunities as well as time-limited interventions.

The Muslim Education Consultative Committee delivers the ‘Route to Work’ project withinBalsall Heath and provides a range of support for a diverse ethnic community looking foremployment. The project is an example of the importance of providing a personal service whichtries to get away from the bureaucracy of some other services.

TUC Centre for the Unemployed provides a good example of how to engage service users from aparticular community by linking up with an organisation with strong links with that community.

Sikh Nari Manch highlights how provision of extra incentives for residents within areas ofBirmingham where there is a very high percentage of unemployed people can help residentswithin these areas into employment.

The South Birmingham Young Homeless Project provides an example of a one-stop shopadvice, information and resource centre for young people and families that are homeless or insome kind of housing need (the main client group is 16-25 year olds). The project is a goodexample of the importance of creating the right type of environment for young people and onethey feel comfortable accessing.

Summerfield Residents Association is developing a Residents Charter. The project is an exampleof an innovative approach to providing information to newly arrived residents of the neighbourhood.

Worklessness

Housing


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Birmingham South West Group Housing development is a good example of a community groupsuccessfully involving the private sector in supporting physical improvements within theirneighbourhood at no cost to themselves.

Bartley Green Housing Liaison Board provides a good example of how a voluntary organisationhas successfully improved the physical appearance of the area and general conditions fortenants by fully involving residents in shaping improvements and actions.

Summerfield Residents Association provides a good example of the community cohesionbenefits of the adoption of an innovative solar energy scheme for the estate.

Wilkes Green Residents Association provides an illustration of what has been achieved througha local street champion scheme, which has been established to tackle environmental issues.

CSV Environment has been running a community recycling project for three years called'Grease Lightening', which involves the collection and recycling of cooking oil for use as bio-diesel. It is a good example of how an innovative recycling scheme can be used to link togetherdifferent people and community organisations.

Balsall Heath Neighbourhood Forum is a good example of how residents have beensuccessfully involved to clear up local eyesores and make the area more attractive through theestablishment of a ‘green team’. A Social Enterprise structure is now being examined on the backof their plant sale success.

Moseley Forum was successful in obtaining energy-saving and micro generation measures forthe community (SusMO - Sustainable Moseley) because of the emphasis on community buildingand demonstrating that different faiths can work together for the benefit of the whole community.

Environment

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Aiming 2 Achieve is involved in running parenting courses designed to strengthen parentingskills and prevent and manage behaviour problems. The project is an example of how the use of aHome Office programme has provided the basis of continued delivery of the programme althoughthe original funding has run out.

Family Action in Birmingham is an example of how a focus on work with parents and childrencan have significant positive impacts on local community cohesion.

The Malachi Community Trust provides an example of an organisation working with children thatare affected by difficult and challenging family circumstances, particularly those associated withfamily breakdown and the importance of this work in relation to community cohesion. The projecthighlights how successful interventions with children can lead to much wider social impacts.

The Muslim Education Consultative Committee highlights how important trust built up over along period of time can be in sustaining engagement of clients.

Narthex runs a Senior Citizens Lunch Club, for predominantly black African Caribbean and whiteethnic groups who are seen as an isolated community. Senior citizens volunteer with refugees andasylum seekers which is seen as a good way of breaking down barriers and prejudices.

Balsall Heath Neighbourhood Forum provides an example of support for lone elderly peoplethrough a ‘hamper project’ that involves Christian and Muslim faith groups in working together.

Social care


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Aiming 2 Achieve is a good example of an organisation working to establish more relevant andappropriate youth training programmes for all young people across Birmingham.

Ward End Asian Elders Welfare Association has previously undertaken ESOL classes and thisexample of good practice looks at how the organisation has sought to meet this need in theabsence of funding.

Quinton Youth for Christ carries out mentoring outreach work through the local school. They tryand support young people at risk of teenage pregnancy or other issues, give them support andincrease self esteem. The project highlights how successful engagement of young vulnerablepeople involves sustaining contact in a neighbourhood over a long period of time.

Sound it Out worked with exiled artists from refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds to trainthem to become workshop facilitators for schools and other community settings.

Castle Vale Community Environmental Trust successfully takes hard to reach kids out of theclassroom into the wooded areas on the estate and uses forest skills to educate and informchildren who would normally have behavioural issues.

Primrose Hill Community Project is an example of a scheme to train local parents in order toprovide good quality local childcare at a reasonable price, which has also helped to bring peopletogether on three separate estates.

Sport 4 Life provides an example of how community cohesion can be improved by encouragingmore active lives.

Martineau Gardens provides an example of how horticulture can be used as a therapy for arange of people with mental health, health and disability issues (Therapeutic Horticulture) whovolunteer to work together looking after the Gardens.

Health

Education

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The Asian Community Service provides an example of the importance of having staff with theappropriate skills to deal with clients with language problems and difficulties completing forms in English.

Homestart Northfield offers support and friendship to families with at least one child under 5who are experiencing difficulties. It is a good example of how problems with access to servicesfor families otherwise quite isolated have been alleviated through provision of free taxis.

Narthex works with people of all communities and faiths serving the most deprived people in thecommunity – the destitute, low income families, refugees and asylum seekers. The project is agood example of encouraging community cohesion through a combination of education, socialaction, children, families and young people’s work.

Narthex provides an example of a faith-based voluntary organisation providing a Food Bank,which provides for the basic needs of the most disadvantaged groups in the community. Theproject provides an example of how the VCS is helping to fill a void in provision for specific basicneeds within a neighbourhood.

Ulfah Arts provides an example of a project that seeks to raise aspirations and promote real skillsamongst disadvantaged young people including carers, visually impaired and young offendersthrough involvement in the creation of radio programmes.

Deprivation

City-wide Women’s Networks bringing together ‘ordinary women’ and bringing togetherdifferent communities to improve understanding of difference and community cohesion.

Life-coaching in Balsall Heath seeking to improve family issues and to tackle inter-generational gaps.

Women Engaged in Building Bridges (city wide) - discussion groups exploring culturally sensitive issues such as faith, relationships and marriage and training women to become facilitators.

Money advice services delivered by a shop/drop in centre in Sutton Coldfield helping to reducethe incidence of personal debt.

Development of a credit union to support financial independence for lone parents inLadywood and improving financial literacy.

Integration Solidarity Network in Northfield seeking to encourage women from differentcultures to work together on community cohesion activities via neighbourhood management structures.

A City-wide network of women using arts-based activities to focus on environmentalawareness and the production of a women’s service directory.

The development of traditional arts and crafts and cultural exchanges between Birminghamand other European countries to promote diverse talents in the city.

Making available support to very small groups to help apply for mainstream health servicefunding and developing resident capacity in East Birmingham.

Church-based youth group in Nechells trying to get young people to respect each other andaccommodate difference using informal non-traditional outreach approaches such asbefriending via recreational activities.

A women-only health project in Sparkhill taking into account cultural sensitivities and workingwith isolated parents around health and diet.

A network running a women’s participation and involvement in decision-making workshopworking in neighbourhoods such as Lozells, Winson Green and Ladywood.

A group set up to promote community safety awareness through peer training and support inareas of disadvantage and experiencing high crime rates and anti-social behaviour viainformal discussion groups.


good practice examplesfrom individual residents andworkshop participants

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Establishment of a Guide Neighbourhood Team in Perry Common which works with other communities around the country to show what can be achieved when communities pull together.

Work to support families who have children with disabilities in Small Heath signposting toservices and encouraging engagement with Children’s Centres.

Environmental improvement projects including street cleaning and gardening to helpimprove neighbourhood image and reputation in Alum Rock and linking into local schools.

Establishment of women-only swimming and self-defence groups in Ward End and makingcommunities more culturally- aware as to available activities.

Informal drop-in arts and crafts sessions held in a community hall in Alum Rock to developpersonal confidence and positive role models.

Informal activity in Alum Rock/Saltley to bring together young people from new migrantcommunities and to help reduce community tensions by promoting positive neighbourhood images.

Reaching out to disenfranchised young people in Handsworth and using sports to help breakdown barriers and celebrate difference.

City-wide network tackling inequalities amongst LGBT community and addressingdiscrimination and gaps in service delivery, lobbying health service providers.

Outreach work in Winson Green to establish a refugee support group and to facilitate links withother ethnic groups.

Establishment of a community football group in Lozells to help improve English andunderstanding of living in a different culture.

Informal interventions with young people in Handsworth by a church-based group around drugprevention and drug misuse, using peer mentors.

Work with young people in Ladywood to use their experiences of regeneration intervention to inform drama productions and getting young people involved in the design and production process.

Healthy eating and exercise project for women in Bordesley Green helping identify women whoneed support with language and family issues, using trained peer community health educators.

A Health and Heritage Project in Handsworth incorporating arts, research and archiving skillswith local residents, supporting group learning and skill and development sharing.



A Women’s Networking Hub (City Wide) to empower women and promote the benefits ofcommunity engagement making extensive use of new technologies to promote the benefitsof community engagement.

Engagement in a Youth Network to link and make relationships with other young people andpromote community engagement in the City, using Facebook to signpost young people tovolunteering opportunities.

Volunteering with the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme taking children and young people frompoor estates to the countryside and helping develop negotiation skills.

Activity within an Edgbaston church to welcome and support new arrivals and to promotecommunity integration by helping with the provision of housing or school information.

Engagement in school governance in Saltley to use community knowledge and to promotepositive role models for Asian women.

Engaging elderly residents in Nechells in physical activity, bringing together residents fromdifferent cultures.

A sewing group in Saltley for women without formal education to help develop confidence, self-esteem and literacy.

A Peer Support Group in Hodge Hill for women with post-natal depression and language andfamily support needs.

Work with service-users with alcohol dependency problems in Handsworth and skills forindependent living reducing the incidence of anti-social behaviour.

Fund-raising for a domestic violence project and using sports to highlight the incidence ofviolence in families and communities.

‘Buddy a Granny’ in Selly Oak to support elderly people with dementia whilst in hospital andhelp in compiling ‘memory boxes’.

Volunteering with Kids Adventure running adventure holidays for children from disadvantagedcommunities and engaging in one-to-one behavioural support work.

Working as a Special Constable in South Birmingham supporting the police in reducing anti-social behaviour and community disputes.

Engagement with Edgbaston Residents Association to maintain local wildlife areas andpromote community use of green spaces.

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Supporting young people excluded from school in Quinton and working to develop youngcitizens’ skills though outdoor activities.

Volunteering in a charity shop in Kings Heath by someone who had learning difficulties topromote engagement of people with health support needs.

Promoting community arts with people with learning difficulties and working in partnershipwith local hospitals in Birmingham.

Activity with Edgbaston Community and Faith Network to address the support needs ofsocially isolated older people, including home visiting and DIY support.

Resident campaigning in Northfield seeking to reduce neighbourhood traffic levels andrevitalising the local neighbourhood association.

Combining black history and sports to engage with young men at risk of getting involved ingang culture in Lozells and developing IT skills to help address educational support needs.

Using sports and music as diversionary activities for young people from differentbackgrounds and cultures.

Engaging with young people through faith groups to respect and take care of their environmentand link with neighbourhood wardens.

Church-based anti-poverty work providing welfare and benefit advice in communities with highlevels of fuel poverty.

Faith-based LDA working to promote the benefits of inter-generational work and promotingyouth volunteering in Aston.

Engaging young people through an informal drop-in session to improve and maintainneighbourhood cleanliness and deal with litter and dog-fouling.

Local residents and the police working in partnership to deal with anti-social behaviour and topromote Neighbourhood Watch groups.

Joining a Community Association and using local knowledge to improve services and facilities inthe neighbourhood and to improve individual and community capacity.

Linking up with local schools and Children’s Centres by Community Association Boardmembers, seeking to improve family and community relationships and promoting the benefitsof resident engagement.



Providing a home-visiting service to housebound or elderly residents and doing shopping orother light household chores and facilitating contact with service providers.

Establishment of a Junior Warden’s Project to get young people involved in environmental andsocial issues on a disadvantaged estate.

Organising bingo and coffee mornings and working with regeneration partners on identifyingother low-key community activities.

Volunteers in a local church developing a ‘know your neighbours project’ and undertakingregular door-knocking and sending Christmas cards.

Volunteering in a Family Mediation Project to work with families experiencing breakdown ordomestic violence utilising a range of community languages.

Input into Conflict Resolution practice focussing on improving community and neighbourhoodreputation to reduce neighbourhood decline and stem the flow of established communitiesfollowing new arrivals.

Working informally with the police and neighbourhood watch groups to help reduce crimeand anti-social behaviour by developing informal channels of communication regardingneighbourhood tensions.

Encouraging local parents and their children to develop an interest in healthy eating by schoolsproviding access to grounds to develop vegetable allotments.

Ensuring community cohesion information is correctly interpreted by faith groups,community leaders and Mosques to help diffuse community tension.

A ‘Community Oscars’ scheme whereby VCS organisations are awarded ‘Oscars’ for goodcommunity development or community cohesion practice.

The Braveheart Programme which is an outward bound and youth leadership initiative forthose on the cusp of urban street gang’s affiliation which uses structured youth outreachsupport programmes.

A project to encourage young people (from years 4, 5 and 6) active as peer leaders withinSchool Councils in the Aston area, encouraging young people and peer group mentors to takeresponsibility for the development and vision for their immediate neighbourhood.

A Community Chest project working with grassroots groups leading the way on advice, supportand guidance on community issues, and sharing of commonalties in mediation work and problemsolving in a deprived neighbourhood.

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A Community Haven Project to link up schools with employment and training opportunities andworking in the first instance to help train young community organisers to take advantage ofopportunities under the auspices of the Big Society.

‘Young Gifted and Brum’ youth programme involving a mixed cohort of BME beneficiaries -participants enrolled on a 2-year accredited performing arts programme to help reduce youth crime.

An informal drop-in project for unaccompanied minors providing access to IT and homeworksupport and a Newcomers Conversation Group.

A women’s enterprise project using arts and dance workshops as the basis for localcitizenship training.

Discovery of Talents project in Bartley Green working with young refugees on allotments andgardening projects and employment support.

Voice of Aston providing youth activities and promoting mediation programmes betweenyoung people involved in gangs.

Bangladeshi Youth Forum working with young people on volunteering programmes andpromoting active citizenship by facilitating access to small grants.



making connections - BVSC Community... · We work to: Provide people with opportunities to make a...

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