“Flawed Consumers”: policy responses Jenni Venn – Assistant Director Policy Coventry City Council

“It’s not quite as simple as that…” Government policy is largely delivered and experienced and at the local level Places are different – the local matters!!! Policy response changes but some things remain the same Are we all flawed consumers? How can your future research help me?

Coventry is… In the centre of England – on north/south economic divide Now growing fast – 329,800 66% of population is White British High levels of diverse international migration Natural population growth more than 1/3 births to women born overseas Two universities largest age cohort

Pride and Prejudice Regarded as a blue collar city – image problem “City of peace and reconciliation” Compact and reasonably well mixed – residential areas and schools Affluent BME communities Low level of disturbances – but not complacent we take this seriously Not a high level of far right activity Political change and local engagement

Three strands of policy thinking Key influences on national approach (or lack of it) since the 80s – Importance and role of the individual – Focus on difference and latterly… – The new collective No city is an island - inevitably this has influenced and will continue to influence local thinking

Customer or Citizen? “No such thing as society…” Basis of the relationship with the state is the individual - nationally and locally Import of management culture and customer focus – individual outcomes and counting Paternalistic service delivery with passive recipients “I pay my council tax…” “We are all middle class now” – aspiring home owners - except for the non-working underclass Image of Coventry voter and service user as white and working class

Neighbourhood Working Priority Neighbourhoods – long way of working Understanding & working with local communities Provides analysis that is proxy for class and race Key areas of activity include predominantly white working class Health inequalities

Housing and Planning BME housing strategy… More sophisticated analysis and approach Affordable housing – allocation need based Mixed tenure Growth – green belt Aspirational housing – executive not a dirty word

Equality of Opportunity & Discrimination Need to remove barriers stopping individuals achieving their potential - child poverty Seen through the prism of discrimination against minorities - particularly race Early policy responses focused on treating people the same – became more sophisticated More latterly recognition of importance of real outcomes; including to white communities Jury still out on how useful this is for policy intervention – neighbourhood level/poverty?

Current approach Equality includes “disadvantage” White British boys Health inequalities Engagement Supporting most vulnerable RichmondBlackpool Coventry 87 WM Region 72 Looked after children (rate per 10,000) Early years development City Average 55.4% Chinese 43.5% Looked After 36.8% White British 59.1% Boys 48.5% Girls 62.8% Gypsy/Roma 5% Asian Indian 61.5% Asian Pakistani 46.7% Black African 56.1% Black Caribbean 40.6%

Cohesion and Identity Focus on discrimination and difference – minority rather than multicultural; grants and centres View that problems faced by minority communities and could be solved by them Disturbances led to the recognition that white working class were “part of the problem” Suddenly became very fashionable – research; myth busting – changing goalposts Coventry continued to take neighbourhood approach ; “we are all Coventrian”; Canley PREVENT – difficult agenda locally – pro-active Whiteness/class/nationality

Policy Responses “Our city – our people” Myth-busting Cohesion awards Cross- party support Asylum seekers and refugees Research Prevent - Coventry Funding and communities

You’re just getting it wrong… White working class peripheral communities - doing the wrong things - voting the wrong way Insular and intolerant Not aspirational – lack of regard for education Teenage pregnancies; children in care Living off benefits – Shameless rather than Boys from the Blackstuff Looking backwards (Left Behinds) Coventry – myth of the car factories

But now we’re listening..? Fewer intermediate jobs; reduced public sector Cost of living; social mobility myth Where are the houses my children can afford? Jobs for graduates – kids moving to London Cost of social care for my parents Injustice – bankers and establishment EU and migration rather than race..? UKIP

Fairness and Inequality Fairness most overused word in 2010 elections – different definitions Failure of the market – Picketty et al – almost everyone is being left behind Squeezed middle – in work poverty Inequality here and now and in the future Class – dominance of the establishment Local emphasis on growth with benefits shared What does it mean for politics ?

Globally connected Promoting the growth of a sustainable Coventry economy Employment rates  76.5%  5.2% from 2012  56.9%  1.5% from % West Midlands 76.5% England 63.5% West Midlands 66.4% England Coventry 3.1% England West Midlands 2.8% 3.0% Wainbody 0.7%  0.2% from Jul ‘13 5.1% difference in July 2014 down from 6.6% in July 2013 Foleshill 5.8%  1.7% from Jul ‘13 JSA claimants Reducing impact of poverty Food shopping 6.1% Costs of running a home 10.4% Transport costs 2.4% Coventry 1.3% England 3.5% West Midlands 4.2% The cost of living has gone up by 5.3%… Wages are also up, but not by as much… Working people are worse off than before. £7.65 per hour £ 5 £ 2 50p 10p 5p 514 female 144 male Living wage Housing Arts & Culture

Class and/or ethnicity and/or age? Local growth aspirations to address inequality So what do we do to tackle inequality locally? What is most relevant for policy makers? Fears of a lost generation – year olds Experience and social attitudes: generation Y How relevant/helpful is whiteness and class to this?

Austerity 40% of budget cut – further £60m by 16/17 Impact of welfare reform Support for the most vulnerable only Savings: customer journey; city centre first; workforce strategy No money for neighbourhood based work? Co-operative principles – self reliance and social responsibility Asset based working is new response - recognises that communities have strengths to draw on rather than a deficit model – needs partners

Choices and Power Questions of national and local identity – alienation from establishment and politics Devolution: England; Midlands; Coventry? How do we ensure benefits of growth can be enjoyed by everyone in the city? What do we cut to continue to provide services to those who need them the most? What do we need to do so that the people of Coventry live in harmony together?