Depending on the location of your service and the community and neighbourhood that surround you, you may have many or few issues to consider about good community relations. Although this issue can often be seen primarily as fending off negative perceptions or avoiding a bad reputation, there are many positive benefits to having strong community relations and this is an area for opportunity.
One thing to bear in mind from the outset is that your service and your clients are part of the community, and in many cases, you may be required to advocate for your client’s rights.
Issues | Groundwork | Not In My Backyard | Managing the local area/your front doorstep | Exclusion zones | Neighbours | In the event of a complaint |
At a recent Homeless Link conference (All in a Day's work Bath 2006), service providers listed the following as issues they had to confront:
Whether or not your service is new to an area, much can be gained from preparatory groundwork. People in the community may have many misconceptions about your service, why you exist, and the situations faced by the people you exist to help. Getting people on board early can help if problems arise or when you need their help.
One hostel in Essex faced hostility from the neighbours who had read in local media that the hostel would house registered sex offenders. Although sometimes they do, this was not the main client group of the hostel. Local media can play an important part in public perception of your service – try and get them on board to ensure positive coverage, but do not be deterred, you can challenge public perception yourselves by education and information. Another service in London found that local residents resented the increase in A8 service users, thinking that they were freeloaders, but attitudes changed dramatically when the service explained the difficulties people face from benefits and employment barriers.
Groundwork can take many forms – popular ones include:
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If all this doesn't convince people in the local area that your service is a required one, straightforward education may help - why not send a leaflet with some information about the difficulties faced by your clients, and some facts about homelessness that might encourage people to see the good work you do. If there are specific concerns addressed, make sure you respond to them as soon as possible. Invite people to meetings of your organisation, or coffee mornings if you can, and volunteer yourself to meetings/boards of residents in the area. If your services meaningful occupation programme includes gardening, show off the garden when you can, or sell potted plants once a week? If it includes creative writing, you could include some in a newsletter, or make a publication. Get in touch with community groups and churches who may have great networks.
If your service is located in a residential area, or a commercial one, you can maintain and improve your reputation and community relations by being pro-active in the management of your local environment. If you have time, and sufficient staff cover, aim to ensure the area immediately around your hostel is clean of cigarette butts etc, paraphernalia, cans, or any other rubbish that may accumulate. Services will have to be particularly sensitive to litter but many services are lucky to have willing volunteers among their staff and service users to conduct regular litter picks, sometimes with incentives of a free lunch... Hanging baskets and tidying any front facing areas are a nice touch and appreciated by the local community.
The Respect Agenda has brought in legislation such as section 30 of the antisocial behaviour act whereby police have powers to exclude people and groups from specified zones, and to disperse them under a dispersal order. Some services have found the exclusion zones are increasing the numbers of people moving to a certain area, which has increased demand for their service. In such cases, you can report what you've found to the council. For more information ont this see the Respect website.
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