The “Meeting the Challenge - Community Cohesion in Charnwood” report made a number of recommendations to the Partnership about key areas for joined up action. Those recommendations that are not covered by the other action areas in this Strategy are set out below:

• Consider establishing a Cohesion sub group to produce a strategy / framework for community cohesion in Charnwood and to take responsibility for gathering intelligence and co-ordinating cohesion action.
• The local media in Charnwood has a major impact on the perceptions created about certain groups and issues. It is essential to engage in a dialogue with the media to develop an understanding of community cohesion issues, as a basis for influencing public perception on specific issues such as young people, students, deprived communities and faith groups.
• Work towards creating common visions and a sense of belonging for both local neighbour hoods and for Charnwood. To encourage activities that promote and develop this, particularly targeting those groups that are most disaffected (as identified in this report).
• Seek to ensure that renewal programmes are transparent, well understood and widely communicated so as to avoid inter-community resentment and ignoring the concerns of the wider community. Similarly it should seek to communicate with and involve those from more affluent communities in the development of programmes targeted at relatively deprived communities.
• Develop strategic level joint working between service providers for young people, particularly targeting those not in employment, education or training.
• Seek to develop greater positive inter-action between young people and adults in ‘hot spot areas’ to address inter-generational conflict and seek to develop greater understanding, support and mutual respect.
• Encourage greater contact and joint working between young people and adults from different neighbourhoods in order to address the issues of ‘territorial isolation’ as identified in the report.
• Recognise the impact on cohesion and the need to take joint action in specific areas that experience a sudden influx of new arrivals to an area - either via new developments, or international events.
• Seek to develop exploit festivals, events, and service programmes to encourage greater understanding of the communities that live in Charnwood.
• Develop and sustain small-scale programmes that help to break down barriers and build relations between different communities of interest.
• Seek to create new routes to participation and attendance for those not currently accessing services and events.

The Board will take a lead role in continuing to address these borough wide cohesion challenges through delivery of this Strategy. This will draw upon extensive material already available through the work on community cohesion, through parish plans and village appraisals and the work of the Leicestershire Rural Partnership. This will be actioned through initiatives that bring target communities together via a variety of means (including transport, sports, arts, health and wellbeing and other initiatives and neighbourhood renewal and Parish Plan projects).

The Pathfinder report also included an action to “Recognise students as members of the Charnwood community and seek to develop better student / permanent resident relations that encourage a sense of belonging to the area and mutual respect”. A subsequent report has been produced on this important issue and work in this area is being led by the University Liaison Committee which involves a wider range of stakeholders. Charnwood Together will monitor progress on this issue.