Key Areas for Urgent and Coordinated Action

Over the last month civil society has shown its ability to coordinate and enact pressure on government through the #EveryDayCounts campaign and call for urgent funding. We know that many of the challenges that BAME communities face will not be solved solely through civil society funding, and we call for solidarity in holding policy makers accountable on these issues. We need every person to act in the spirit of the social impact sector and support those who are marginalised by government policy. 

Based on our current understanding we have outlined the following key areas for investment and action. We recognise that this is an evolving crisis and will update these areas as needed. We also acknowledge that we do not hold deep expertise across all these areas and will continue to work with our allies and peers to develop them. We will continue to work to elevate the voices of those closest to tackling these issues and provide updates on issues as they arise.  

AREA 1: HEALTH INEQUALITIES

  • Invest in developing culturally sensitive, accessible, and translated advice and information about the services you are providing to support BAME people affected by the crisis

  • Invest and increase access to phonebank translation services to mediate conversations. As COVID testing expands, campaign to prioritise testing family members and those who can provide translation services and lift restrictions of no visitor policies for those who have recovered to provide this support. 

  • Work alongside BAME grassroot organisations to design campaigns and implement recruitment of key people in communities. Where possible, share staff, resources and funds to enable them to reach their communities

  • Campaign and develop support services to ensure access to palliative care, advice and autonomy over decision-making for the end of life care for BAME communities.

  • Campaign for the provision of alternative accommodation for key workers to prevent higher risk to their family’s health, prioritising those living in multi-generational households or with people at higher risk.

AREA 2: EMERGENCY MEASURES AND LEGISLATION

  • Campaign for the introduction of a national monitoring process to track the use and impact of Covid-19 emergency measures on BAME communities. 

  • Prioritise funding and building capacity of groups tackling racial disparities in application of emergency police powers.

  • Develop guidance around the implication of the emergency measures on BAME communities. 

  • Support the recommendation called for by the Runnymede Trust and other key experts that an Equality Impact Assessment should be undertaken on the final GCSE and A-Level grade predictions.

  • Gather evidence of where emergency measures will cause educational disadvantage and share with the education select committee as part of their parliamentary inquiry into the impact of COVID-19 on education and children’s services.

  • Coordinate work with government, parents and community leaders to develop and disseminate appropriate resources to support home education requirements, considering issues such as language requirements, parental literacy rates and internet accessibility.

AREA 3: RISK OF DESTITUTION

  • Prioritise providing advocacy and legal advice for individuals facing redundancy, furlough or unlawful action from employers, not just to the employers

  • Develop a pooled fund to directly support individuals falling through the gaps of government support for self employed

  • Coordinate action to develop targeted guidance and support for those living in overcrowded housing

  • Coordinate pressure on the government to provide better support for renters including rent holidays and a ban on all evictions in rented properties and traveller camps

  • Ensure adequate consideration and funding for culturally appropriate food poverty strategies

AREA 4: HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT

  • Support #PatientNotPassports campaign to put pressure on government to develop a firewall between NHS and Home Office to ensure undocumented migrants that need healthcare and welfare support can access without risk of arrest, detention or deportation. 

  • Campaign for the immediate suspension of no recourse to public funds condition, Portugal announced they will migrants as residents during the virus crisis.

AREA 5: PROTECTION AND ENFORCEMENT

  • Increase investment in local and BAME-led domestic violence services.

  • Take the lead in rooting out racism in our society by tackling hate crime and prejudice within their organisations and support beneficiaries who may be impacted by it, for example, reporting hate crime incidents to the police and providing or signposting to hate crime support services.

  • Uphold the rights of all prisoners and detainees during the Covid-19 response, including granting early release to those whose sentences are nearing an end. Coordinate with and invest in local community organisations and probation services to support the transition.

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