LocalGov editor, William Eichler, sat down with Kelly Fowler, the CEO of Belong, to discuss immigration, social cohesion, and whether the UK really had become an ‘island of strangers’.

Sir Keir Starmer recently declared that the UK risked becoming an ‘island of strangers’. Speaking before the unveiling of the Government’s immigration white paper, Keir Starmer said the Government would ‘take back control of our borders’ and reduce net migration, which exceeded 720,000 in the 12 months to June 2024.

The PM’s speech follows the success of Reform UK in the local elections in part due to their focus on the issue of immigration. It also follows decades of debate over the question of social cohesion – a debate fuelled by terrorism, Brexit and sporadic riots, most recently last year in Southport, among multiple other factors.

Belong, an independent network of over 100 organizations, works with communities across the country to learn what brings people together and what drives them apart. It has also been commissioned by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and the Local Government Association (LGA) to write new guidance and develop training aimed at supporting community cohesion.

So, does Belong think immigration is turning the UK into an ‘island of strangers’? Kelly Fowler, Belong’s CEO, acknowledges it’s an issue raised by many of the people Belong comes in to contact with through its work. The question of immigration comes up ‘time and again’ among communities, she says, adding: ‘It would be wrong not to acknowledge that.’ However, she emphasises it is a much more complicated issue than the populist clamour would lead us to believe.

If we look beneath the surface of the often-overheated debate over migration, a much more nuanced picture emerges. Through their work with local communities, Belong has often found that most people recognise the ‘huge benefits’ immigration has brought to the country. When asked if they would like to see a reduction in the number of workers coming to Britain to work in social care or in the NHS, then most people say no.

‘We speak to hundreds of residents in communities across the UK on a weekly basis through our place-based work. From these conversations it is clear that many people recognise the tremendous benefits that individuals bring to those sectors and that it's critical that we've got that in our country,’ Kelly explains. ‘Once you start to really scratch the surface, then we can see there's a lot more nuance there.’

This is also supported by recent Focaldata research from think-tank British Future, which finds that most of the public would choose not to reduce migration of people coming to the UK for a wide range of jobs, from doctors (77%) and care home workers (71%) to fruit pickers (70%), catering staff (63%), lorry drivers (63%) and engineers (65%).

So, what can local authorities do to help boost community cohesion? Belong have published several recommendations in their reports After the Riots – published after the violent disorder that followed the Southport attacks – and the Beyond Us and Them research they undertook to examine the strength of community relations during the COVID pandemic. They call for place-based cohesion strategies and cross-sector partnerships aimed at strengthening community ties. They also recommend that councils foster inclusive dialogue and grassroots initiatives bringing diverse groups together.

They are however clear that this work cannot be done without resource. ‘A relatively small amount of investment can make a big difference’ explains Kelly. Belong’s Beyond us and Them research identified those areas that invested in cohesion and integration reported a stronger sense of connection with their family, friends, colleagues, and neighbours during lockdown. ‘People are connecting and bridging across communities which means they’re breaking down barriers all the time. We need to see the value in that for what it is, because those relationships are so often the ones they fall back on in times of crisis’.

Some of the best work Belong is seeing is in places where tension monitoring arrangements have been put in place at local authority level and where partnership approaches exist across agencies and organisations. ‘These groups, however formal or informal, are developing their own approaches to monitoring tensions locally, ensuring that intelligence gathered is being analysed, shared and disseminated across partners and into communities. This can be the difference between neutralising a threat or full-scale violence. Having these arrangements in place is becoming critical for local authorities. Crucially, they are protecting our communities’

‘There are certainly concerns about immigration – it would be wrong to say that isn't the case,’ Kelly concludes. ‘But our research also shows that people are concerned about a range of other issues too. If we are serious about tackling the issues that threaten to divide our communities, it requires investment in work to build resilience and challenge and counter some of the negative perceptions and even misconceptions that people might have. There is a lot that local authorities can do to strengthen relations between different groups, and plenty of reasons to be hopeful that community cohesion can be improved in the face of the most difficult of challenges.’