Councils in England and Wales are being invited to bid for a slice of a £6m fund to set up pilots for community cohesion in their areas.
Successful bidders will get funding to set up community cohesion pathfinders, similar to the pathfinders for neighbourhood renewal. The community and voluntary sector will be invited to participate.

The decision follows the advice of the panel of housing specialists set up in the wake of last year's riots in Bradford, Burnley and Oldham (HT 26 September, page 10).

Pathfinders will have to meet certain criteria. The Home Office will want to see achievable targets identified in outline plans to ensure the council has the capacity to deliver.

Bids will have to assess the challenges facing community cohesion nationally and locally, and show willingness to implement strategies in the longer term. And councils must match 50% of the cost of their scheme. Successful bids will be announced in January 2003.

Home Office minister Beverley Hughes said: "We plan to invest, building the capacity that will help local authorities and voluntary groups to make a difference.

"This ensures that there are experts who understand community cohesion and over time have experience of working with communities to build trust."

Source

Housing Today