Policy
Voice4Change England arrives in a period of intensive public policy development on Third Sector issues generally and equalities and community cohesion in particular.
In spite of the government’s efforts to achieve equal opportunities for all, ongoing disparities remain for BME people in terms of health, housing, education, employment, wages and skills. We recognise that to address these disparities, government policy making requires a strong and informed input from the BME Third Sector - as the representative Sector of the diversity of BME interests and communities.
Voice4Change England’s Partnership of BME Third Sector regional and national organisations, aims to be a voice for the BME Third Sector to influence government policies for achieving improved outcomes for BME communities. A strategy to fulfil our aims is set in Voice4Change England’s ‘Building a Thriving BME Third Sector: Declaration of Intent’.
Voice4Change England’s policy work will inform the BME Third Sector organisations on upcoming government policies that may affect BME communities and the BME Third Sector. We will do this by our regular consultation updates and Briefings on specific policy subjects that fall within our priorities set out in the Declaration of Intent.
Voice4Change England, on behalf of its Partners, will shape government policies by responding to consultations. In so doing we will invite BME Third Sector organisations to Speak2Us for our responses to be inclusive of the BME Third Sector’s views.
Voice4Change England recognises that representation of the BME Third Sector organisations on various policy platforms is paramount to influence policy. Voice4Change England is represented on various forums. In addition, our regional and national Partners represent the BME Third Sector on various platforms. See details on representational roles.
Voice4Change England believes that better policy making will result in better outcomes for BME communities and in overall positive community relations. Our mapping research ‘Bridge the Gap: what is known about the BME Third Sector in England’ proves a lack of engagement of the BME Third Sector in local and national policy making. Voice4Change England will work towards bridging this divide between the government and BME communities by supporting the BME Third Sector to better represent the interests of BME communities at policy tables.
For more information on Voice4Change England’s policy work, contact Arjumand Kazmi, Head of Policy at arjumand@voice4change-england.co.uk.