Activities of the Programme

The umbrella theme of the programme, conflict resolution will assist the mainstreaming of community cohesion across the education and sports & recreation departments of the City Council and the voluntary sector. This umbrella theme will reach out to young people at risk of exclusion and alienation through utilising leadership skills to welcome diversity, reduce prejudice, bust myths and resolve conflict. This model will work with young people in schools and outside the school setting in their communities. We shall build on their confidence, pride and leadership skills through the delivery of cross-cutting inter-cultural programmes that actively engage young people in activities of their choice whilst creating a bridge between work with young people in their communities and in their schools. Our approaches include:

- Extending the two city-based Resolving Differences projects to work with vulnerable White young people in deprived areas across the city.

- Creating contexts within which White and Black and Minority Ethnic young people can have increased cross-cultural exchange to foster greater understanding, improve community cohesion and reduce the risk of disorder.

- Working closely with the provider-agencies, NCBI will equip staff with the skills to understand how to build community cohesion and can take welcoming diversity, myth busting, prejudice reduction and conflict resolution skills to young people through the delivery of their projects and mainstream work.

- An NCBI programme of conflict resolution will continue to build the capacity of young people and those who work with them, to develop cohesive communities by training a corps of facilitators skilled at bringing young people together to reduce the potential for conflict; and develop the leadership capabilities of young people in consultation processes, group work and youth action projects in the community.This will involve extending the Community Facilitators team and developing the programme of Friends Against Bullying teams in schools.

The LEA is a key player in the development of community cohesion in the city through its daily contact with thousands of young people. The Pathfinder Programme will establish a networked learning community based on agreed principles to bring groups of schools together to develop stronger collaborative and federal structures. As part of the process we shall develop a twinning opportunity with Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council to facilitate national learning and collaboration.

Community Champions will make grants available direct to young people undertaking community cohesion projects of their own.