Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Housing Strategy

The Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Community in Richmond upon Thames comprises residents from diverse ethnic origins and number over 15,500 people, about 9 per cent of the borough’s total population.  However, they account for 30 per cent of those who are homeless and in priority need for local authority housing assistance – this indicates that BME households suffer more from homelessness and housing need.

Housing Services has always recognised and provided for the needs of the borough’s Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) residents.  Current practices and initiatives include:

• The provision of translation and interpretation services for service users who do not speak or understand the English language
• The existence of an Asylum Team to attend to the needs of refugees and asylum seekers provided for by the borough
• Prioritising the development of large family-size properties to meet the particular housing requirements of BME households

The BME Housing Strategy develops on these existing practices by taking a closer look at the housing issues facing the Council and its BME service users and presents a framework within which they will be addressed.  Amongst its objectives are:

• To set out the current position with regards to our services to meet the needs of the BME community
• To ensure that housing services provided by the Council and its partners are equally accessible by all communities we serve
• To develop effective partnerships with other agencies and the local community to support diversity in the borough and engage in consultation with BME Groups and representatives
• To enhance the diversity of its staff by encouraging and monitoring job applications from minority ethnic groups presently under-represented with the Housing Service.

Accompanying the BME Housing Strategy is a detailed Action Plan that outlines the steps to be taken to meet its objectives and the needs of service users.

The BME Housing Strategy and Action Plan were published in October 2005 and are available for download by following the links below.

• BME Housing Strategy(pdf, 560KB)
• BME Housing Strategy Action Plan(pdf, 268KB)

If you would like further information about the BME Strategy and the associated action plan, please contact:

Colin Waters
Principal Officer – Policy & Research
Strategy and Development Team
Housing Services
Civic Centre - Room 108
44 York Street
Twickenham
TW1 3BZ
Tel.: 020 8831 6017
Email: c.waters@richmond.gov.uk