02 June 2006
Government and local authority interaction with communities after the London bombings last July was 'well-intentioned' but 'could have been better co-ordinated', the Home Office has been warned.
An investigation into London's 'community cohesion reassurance' following the July 7 bombings has concluded that while many organisations reacted positively, improvements need to be made to the way that various police authorities, for example, deal with faith groups during periods of heightened tension.
There should also be clearer systems for the use of scarce resources across government departments, local authorities, police forces and community groups, the analysis by the Improvement and Development Agency concluded.
IDA community cohesion expert Ruby Dixon recently presented her findings to the Home Office. The department is looking at ways to tackle problems stemming from the continuing terrorist threat and from tensions in towns such as Burnley and Bradford, the scene of riots in 2001.
Dixon analysed post-7/7 reaction across 14 London authorities, including the Government Office for London, Metropolitan Police Service, New Scotland Yard and five London boroughs.
She told Public Finance that most authorities performed well in delivering information to communities, for example by setting up police and health call centres dealing with inquiries. She also praised the London-wide resilience plan, which outlines how authorities should react during crises.
But Dixon discovered tensions between local authorities, the Government Office for London and the Home Office.
'Some local authorities that had been leading on key cohesion issues were uncomfortable being told what to do… when the government wanted to be seen to be leading the reaction to the bombings,' she said.
Central government organisations, she warned, must improve their staff training and information sharing. Following incidents, they must allow local agencies to reassure their communities by using existing links.
While calling for additional resources nationally, Dixon claimed that there was some 'duplication' across authorities that could pool resources.
She urged the Home Office to 'think about getting economies of scope and scale' through merged services.
Many recommendations could be enshrined in future Local Area Agreements, she suggested.
A Home Office source said the IDA's analysis was 'largely very positive and showed that the department and local organisations in London reacted well to a difficult period'.
PFjun2006
