Harrow council has made bold and somewhat ambitious commitment to becoming an anti-racist council (council meeting 11 July) by improving how council works and cares.
Key areas of focus include learning programme for councillors and staff on race, racism and unconscious bias; the BAME (‘Black, Asian and minority ethnic’) workforce, their pay gaps, their representation at senior levels, and developmental and mentoring programmes for them.
Another key area is to review and amend council policies which particularly impact on BAME residents.
Perhaps this Labour administration stands a better chance to drive the anti-racist agenda as previous similar initiatives finished up being photo opportunities, self promotion and fizzled out, needing to start fresh in July 2020.
In a Labour administration eighteen years ago: “The London Borough of Harrow is committed to achieving equality of opportunity both as a large employer of people and as a provider of service”: Forward to London Borough of Harrow Race Equality Scheme 2002 – 2005, signed by leader of council Archie Foulds and chief executive Joyce Markham.
To implement this, the chief executive appointed two senior officers for overall responsibility for the day-to-day management of the scheme who were to report directly to the chief executive. In addition, a ‘steering group’ was set up to oversee the process and to help co-ordinate different activities.
Nothing substantial resulted from this well defined programme. All this becomes more concerning considering that there have been two Asian leaders of the council in the past fifteen years (their experience is not a pleasant story though) and the civic centre diverse population has rapidly increased.
Without a shift in the ethos of the council and criteria of its services and provisions, effectiveness of the diverse council members and officers has not been any different than others.
Big challenge for the council has remained, how to practise ‘different needs are equally important’ in policy formation and determining the criteria for the services the council provides – first step in becoming an anti-racist council.
Key areas of focus include learning programme for councillors and staff on race, racism and unconscious bias; the BAME (‘Black, Asian and minority ethnic’) workforce, their pay gaps, their representation at senior levels, and developmental and mentoring programmes for them.
Another key area is to review and amend council policies which particularly impact on BAME residents.
Perhaps this Labour administration stands a better chance to drive the anti-racist agenda as previous similar initiatives finished up being photo opportunities, self promotion and fizzled out, needing to start fresh in July 2020.
In a Labour administration eighteen years ago: “The London Borough of Harrow is committed to achieving equality of opportunity both as a large employer of people and as a provider of service”: Forward to London Borough of Harrow Race Equality Scheme 2002 – 2005, signed by leader of council Archie Foulds and chief executive Joyce Markham.
To implement this, the chief executive appointed two senior officers for overall responsibility for the day-to-day management of the scheme who were to report directly to the chief executive. In addition, a ‘steering group’ was set up to oversee the process and to help co-ordinate different activities.
Nothing substantial resulted from this well defined programme. All this becomes more concerning considering that there have been two Asian leaders of the council in the past fifteen years (their experience is not a pleasant story though) and the civic centre diverse population has rapidly increased.
Without a shift in the ethos of the council and criteria of its services and provisions, effectiveness of the diverse council members and officers has not been any different than others.
Big challenge for the council has remained, how to practise ‘different needs are equally important’ in policy formation and determining the criteria for the services the council provides – first step in becoming an anti-racist council.
Harrow Monitoring Group 