Agenda item

Report of the Cabinet Member for Voluntary Sector, Equalities and Cohesion.

The Cabinet Member for Voluntary Sector, Equalities, and Cohesion is providing the Culture and Environment Scrutiny Committee with her annual report for discussion.

Consideration was given to the annual report of the Cabinet Member for Voluntary Sector, Equalities and Cohesion.

Members made the following comments:

·       The Council did a lot of good work in supporting and working with the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex (LGBTQI +) community and it was disappointing that the LGBTQI+ community was not specifically mentioned in the report. It would be helpful if the work the Council was doing to support this community could specifically be mentioned in future reports.

·       There was a lot of good work in the report.

In response to questions, Councillor Nadia Shah (Cabinet Member for Voluntary Sector, Equalities and Cohesion, Oliver Jones (Director of Recreation) made the following points:

·       With regards to the LGBT community recognition that, hate crime was under reported. Work was being done with the Police to see how reporting of all hate crime to the police could be made easier for all communities.

·       There was work ongoing with the Council’s Community Safety team in partnership with the Police and other partners in the borough to encourage reporting of these type of crimes so more resources could be targeted towards this.

·       The Community Safety Partnership Team in conjunction with the Police was also working on building trust and confidence among the community in Camden, so members of all Communities in the borough could have confidence in reporting crimes to the police.

·       The Council was raising awareness of issues through training of staff and members, guest speakers had been invited to speak highlighting challenges faced by members of the LGBT+ community and seeking advice from LGBT+ champions on what more could be done to provide support to the diverse groups in the community.

·       Special days, historical occasions and events such as Trans day and Pride had been celebrated in the borough. This had brought awareness to the wider Camden Community.

·       The Council was known to be a welcoming borough on diversity issues, recognising that there was still a lot more work to be done, it aimed to be a lead on diversity issues in London and eventually the country.

·       In terms of the absence of an Ice Rink in Camden, Islington’s press material illustrated that a large subsidy was required to maintain an ice rink. Any addition of service required a business model to make it work. The Council already had subsidised activities at its leisure centres with an active business model required to make it work. Adding more subsidised activity would make it a very challenging business environment.

·       There was a hierarchy of need with a multitude of sports considered that the Council was required to respond to. There was an ice rink at Alexandra Palace in Haringey.

·       Lee Valley consisted of multi rink provision which London Boroughs contributed to and was a space where all Londoners could go.

·       With regards to the rents across all the Community Centres, there was a big mix of different leases. The Council was going through a difficult and arduous process of sorting out the different rents and leases of each organisation and property was being looked at on a case-by-case basis which would take some time to sort out.

·       In terms of supporting Voluntary organisations, after Covid, organisations were granted an 18-month funding extension period to assist them with getting back on their feet. The Council was also ensuring that it had an open clear and fair process which allowed all Voluntary organisations in the borough to have fair access to funding. Camden was one of the London boroughs that invested most in its Voluntary Sector.

·       The Council’s Community Partnership team was not that big, however as Cabinet Member the intention had been to visit those organisations that were not on the radar but quietly got on with things. Other members and ward councillors also highlighted a number of organisations, these organisations were reached out to and their needs considered. The Council looked to give the best support possible wherever possible to the organisations in the sector.

·       As Co-Chair of the interfaith forum, with Councillor Flier, it had been a very challenging time particularly due to the crisis in the Middle East with people hurting in the communities. Both co-chairs had been going out into the community meeting with community leaders. Local MPs and talking within local community settings and where people were comfortable. There had also been no place for hate surgeries in communities and allowing for all voices in the community to be heard.

·       It had also been realised that reporting systems and reporting structures particularly for the Muslim community was under resourced. This was now being looked into.

·       In terms of the initial response to the crisis in the middle east, the strategy was to consult with representatives of the community who provided feedback on what was being said. A whole programme of events was carried out celebrating the diversity of both the Jewish and Muslim communities as well as recognition of special days for all faiths. There had been a lot of work put into this.

·       There had also been deep discussions around schools because this issue had come up on a number of occasions. What further support could be provided to teachers and parents was being looked at.

·       In terms of addressing the concerns of disabled members of the community, the Council had the Disability Oversight Panel, chaired by Councillor Revah. The views of the Panel were taken on board before a decision was made on a policy. The Disability Oversight Panel was specifically set up for disabled members of the community to have a voice. They choose the agenda and officers provided support.

The Cabinet Member for Voluntary Sector, Equalities and Cohesion and Officers were thanked for their work, time taken to attend the meeting and their responses.

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.