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Consulting ethnic minority communities: an introduction
for public services
We would welcome feedback on this document. Please
send comments to: Neeta Raval, Modernising Public Services Group, Cabinet
Office, Admiralty Arch, The Mall, London SW1A 2WH, Tel: 020 7276 1726.
email: neeta.raval@cabinet-office.gov.uk
Contents
Why?
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To find out about the needs and priorities of black
and minority ethnic communities in delivering public services to them. |
Who?
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Consult a wide range of communities you serve.
Individual black and minority ethnic groups will have different needs
and shouldn’t be treated as a single group. |
How?
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Get top management commitment. |
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Identify local ethnic minority communities and groups
that represent them. |
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Work out resources available. |
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Have a credible time-scale. |
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Use a variety of methods and approaches –
translation/ interpretation is likely to be necessary. |
What?
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Decide how to consult hard to reach groups. |
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Structure consultation carefully – give everyone a
chance to contribute. |
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Monitor and evaluate effectiveness of consultation. |
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Feed back to people you consult. |
Where?
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Go to communities rather than expecting them to come to
you. |
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Choose places that people find comfortable and are easy
to get to. |
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Ask local community organisations for advice on venue
and for any help they can offer (eg they might be able to facilitate
discussions). |
When?
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Avoid any festival or holy days in the communities’
calendar [see attached calendar of religious festivals www.namss.org.uk/fests.htm]. |
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Find out about any fixed dates for other community
events to avoid. |
1.1 With any consultation there are a number of key
questions to ask yourself before you start, like what do you want to find
out, and are you, and others in your organisation prepared to act on the
results you get.
1.2 After all, why bother to try to consult minority
groups when they are, by definition, only a small proportion of your
overall customer base? Because consultation is the only way of
focusing your services on the needs of all your users: and you are
accountable to them all. In particular, consulting minority groups will:
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alert you to particular problems; |
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help build good relations with these communities - but
only if something changes as a result of the consultation – if you
consult and then do nothing, better if you hadn’t consulted at all; |
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symbolise your commitment to equality in the delivery
of services; and |
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may well impact positively on service delivery to
other groups. |
1.3 When consulting particular groups of users or
potential users there can be added complications in actually accessing
those people you want to consult, and in making sure that those you do
reach are representative. This checklist gives some pointers to help when
consulting ethnic minority communities. We have included links to relevant
information, for example, to a list of religious festivals/holy days (www.namss.org.uk/fests.htm).
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