Award winning partnership with Roma community in Glasgow
March 17th, 2009 by Jim Boyle Posted in migrants
When a few thousand Roma started settling in Glasgow five years ago, there were bound to be challenges. The Roma were looking for a better life in the UK due to the persecution and poverty they faced in eastern Europe. They had little money and little English, didn’t know how to get the help they needed, were exploited by employers and faced hostility from some local people.
In 2006, Oxfam and the local health authority decided to employ two people from the Roma community in Glasgow to provide advice and help others access services. As well as supporting the Roma themselves, we wanted to help counter negative attitudes from neighbours and the local community and make sure that local public services responded to the needs of the community. Over time, more people became involved. And after various discussions, the Govanhill Neighbourhood Management Group was formed, bringing together the public sector, local charities, Oxfam and members of the community itself.
The video explains more…
So that is how I ended up at an awards ceremony at Glasgow City Council last week. The Govanhill Neighbourhood Management Group had won a Flourish award from the council for its work with the Roma community.
As one of the council officers pointed out, the best thing about this project was how it brought everyone together to improve the local area and support a new community. With everyone sitting around one table and really committed to the group, we’ve been able to make sure that Roma families can access healthcare and help schools support Roma children. We’ve raised concerns about bad employers and helped build understanding between different people. Community involvement has made a real difference for the Roma and the wider community of Govanhill.
Time and again, organisations like Oxfam call for more community involvement in decision-making. It’s no good if politicians (local or national) decide how they’re going to ‘help’ a group, without asking the group themselves. It’s even better if they don’t just ask, but develop the project together. Welfare reform is a classic example – government rarely asks people on benefits what they think about how to make the welfare system work better, certainly not in any meaningful way. So it’s great that there are examples of local government committed to working with partners, and with communities themselves. There’s still a way to go, but Govanhill is heading in the right direction.
