Community development

Bristol has a changing population. New and growing communities are settling in the inner city areas and beyond, bringing both advantages and new challenges around cohesion and integration.

Working with partners from across the Council and the voluntary sector, the Community Cohesion Team lead the Council's community development response to working with new and settled communities. The "bottom up" approach is at the heart of the work, enabling local residents and organisations to take responsibility in addressing change in their neighbourhoods.

The Shared Futures Report (June 2007) and initial Governmental response (October 2007) places cohesion and integration as fundamental aspects of creating common ground between all citizens. Bristol has taken up this challenge and cohesion and integration will be at the heart in the Council's community strategy and Local Area Agreement.

The Community Cohesion Team

The team is made up of five community workers, a Community Cohesion Manager and two admin support officers. They work to an annual departmental service delivery plan and a council community cohesion framework. The current priorities include:

• Developing projects with new communities and settled residents in areas of identified tension.
• Organisational support to groups, including action planning, advice on funding, advice on constitutions etc.
• Partnership working with the voluntary sector
• Carrying out research to identify underlying causes of conflict in a particular area, with recommendations for ways forward.
• Development work that contributes to the delivery of the Local Area Agreement.
• Outreach work bringing Muslims and non-Muslims together. (Bristol Mujtama project)
• Organising conferences, seminars and workshops on cohesion and integration
• Advising other departments on community cohesion policy and practice
• Fire fighting to help voluntary sector organisations facing problems.
• Monitoring organisations receiving council funding.
• Support to the Community Engagement team (development of local forums - Neighbourhood Partnerships)

The team are also working with other council departments to develop a strategic overview of cohesion in the City, through fortnightly tension monitoring meetings and up-dates on community cohesion actions.

See the links on the right for more information.

Community tension monitoring

Our definition of Community Tension is a state of community dynamics, which may lead to disorder or threaten the peace and stability of communities.

Council Officers and NDT Chairs can download and complete a tension monitoring report template (msword, 36 KB) to help inform the council of any emerging community tensions.

Community development courses

If you want to get more involved in your community, work as a volunteer or set up a community group, you may be interested in free community development courses. Some courses will give you the opportunity to find out about how you can be more involved in your area and get some new skills and knowledge. Others will help you to develop an idea or form a community group.

Sample courses available

• My Life In… - this course uses digital cameras and laptops to create a digital story about something that is important to you in your community, good or bad.
• Play for Action - take part in current play schemes and look for ways to improve play opportunities in your area.
• Grow your Group - develop skills for organising and running your group.
• Volunteering - find out about volunteering and develop volunteering skills.
• Community Carving - carving community noticeboards.

We always want new ideas so to set up a course in your community or find out what is running near you contact the Learning Communities Development Worker for your area.