Allocations scheme reduces segregation

In a statement on its strategy for tackling race inequalities, the department says the allocations system is creating more mixed communities.

‘Research on our choice-based lettings programme, giving people a greater say over their social housing, suggests that this is helping to reduce ethnic segregation,’ it states.

It also suggests the allocations system is fair ‘but not well understood due to its complexity and failure by authorities to communicate their allocations policies effectively’.

The inequality strategy encourages local authorities to ‘make greater use of the existing freedoms and flexibilities to prioritise needs specific to their local area’ and ‘involve and inform their communities when setting their local priorities so that local views are reflected in allocation policies’.

In the strategy the government says it recognises the importance of community cohesion and housing in tackling racism and inequality.

‘Racism is just one of the factors which undermine community stability,’ it states. ‘The 2001 riots in Bradford, Burnley and Oldham remind us of that fact.’

It talks of a broader approach to stop people from ethnic minorities not being able to fulfil their potential.

‘It means tackling social exclusion, child poverty, poor housing,’ it says. ‘This is not a job for one public service or one government department but for us all.’

The CLG produced a discussion document in February last year, Tackling race inequalities.

The tackling race inequality statement says respondents to that wanted greater consistency between local authorities in the way they addressed race equality in Local Area Agreements.

‘They wanted regeneration to benefit all sections of the community and for there to be greater representation of minority ethnic people in public life,’ the document says.

They also highlighted the importance of good quality housing and tackling overcrowding, it adds.

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