Mismatched government policies undermine efforts to bring local communities together, 
bassac research finds 

Release date: Wednesday 27 February 2008

A mismatch of government policies and absence of funding is undermining the ability of community groups to speak out about the needs of ordinary people, according to new research published by bassac.

The findings are backed by the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) and the NCVO’s Campaigning Effectiveness programme. The report, Calling for change, found that aspects of government legislation are preventing people from being part of the democratic renewal of their neighbourhoods.

The Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR) carried out the research for the report, which includes interviews with senior staff and trustees from community anchor organisations and local authority staff who work with the voluntary and community sector. The full findings of the research will be launched at bassac’s annual conference in London on February 29.

Ben Hughes from bassac, a national network of community organisations, said: “Our members have a unique ability to work with excluded communities. This work often focuses on deprived communities, to include them in mainstream civil society through giving them a voice.

“This research shows that ‘community advocacy’ work can bring huge benefits for local communities but is not properly funded. Government funding must help stimulate advocacy and campaigning at the community level and empower our diverse communities across the country.”

Chris Stalker, Head of the Campaigning Effectiveness Programme, said: “The research identifies two things. Firstly, the particular campaigning and advocacy capacity building needs at local and community levels, particularly organisations which operate in complex statutory partnerships. Secondly, the significant potential for harnessing the energy, inspiration and idealism in citizens as part of an active civil society organising and agitating to bring about progressive and transformational social change.”

Helen Hughes, national adviser for third sector and communities at the IDeA commented: “Councils are being given power to shape areas and develop services that meet local needs. But if they are to use this power effectively, it requires an ability to listen to the voices of groups and individuals, involving them in developing services and policies.

“There is good work underway, but the tendency is that only the ‘loudest voices’ are heard. There is a clear gap between Government aspirations and reality – the IDeA is taking its programme of work forward to help narrow the gap.”

Ben Hughes continued: “bassac wants to be part of the solution in resolving these problems, and we’ll be listening to our members and other organisations at our annual conference this month. Together with IDeA and NCVO, we will act on this feedback to ensure practical action is taken.”

NOTES TO EDITORS: bassac’s annual conference, Speak Out! strengthening community voices, is on 28-29 February in London. A briefing on the research and a case study follow below. 

For media enquiries and case study interviews, contact Liz Nightingale, Communications Manager, bassac: tel 0207 336 9417, Email liz@bassac.org.uk, or call 07825 175 866 for out-of-hours enquiries.

Media Briefing: Calling for change
The evidence for supporting community voices to speak out

Case study: Clare Gillhooly, Cambridge House

“We’ve had some notable successes at changing things locally, such as being able to set up a community forum and working with statutory authorities to make their services more accessible to local people. We would like to develop our voice and advocacy function further, within a more formal structure. We will need funding to support this work.”

Our local communities are plagued by poverty and fragmentation. The number of people living in poverty rose last year by three quarters of a million to almost 13 million people (Monitoring poverty and social exclusion, 2007). But our neighbourhoods are not only suffering from economic poverty. People are suffering from poverty of spirit and aspiration and feel disenfranchised from taking part in any sort of democratic process.

We know that this is a fertile breeding ground for many of the priority problems the government is trying to address, such as high crime rates, anti-social behaviour, poor health outcomes, poor attendance at school and a lack of community cohesion.

New government policy imperatives are calling for greater devolution of power so that local people can have more of a say in:

• public services
• governing their neighbourhoods
• spending local budgets
• controlling public buildings.

The findings
This study confirmed what we suspected. Aspects of government legislation are preventing people from being part of the democratic renewal of their neighbourhoods. These findings are supported by two other research studies commissioned by IDeA and the NCVO.

All studies concluded that there has been a seismic, paradigm change in how local organisations and local authorities are required to work together since Labour has been elected. Never before has so much legislation required statutory organisations to work with and listen to local organisations and, through them, local people.

However, our studies found that despite, and in some cases because of, this ever increasing pressure for the state to work with community organisations, local voices are largely falling on deaf ears.

What needs to change?
The Office of the Third Sector identified that advocacy and campaigning was one of five areas in need of development and has made £1.5 million pounds available. This must be used to stimulate advocacy and campaigning at the local community level and focus on empowering our very diverse communities across the country to influence change in their communities.

The studies carried out by bassac, the IDeA and the NCVO identify models that can help this to happen by changing:

• Partnerships between statutory and local organisations
• Representation of local communities and people
• Investment in skills
• Investment in funding. 

For media enquiries and case study interviews, contact Liz Nightingale, Communications Manager, bassac: tel 0207 336 9417, Email liz@bassac.org.uk, or call 07825 175 866 for out-of-hours enquiries.