Following the Government’s announcement in May of an extra £500,000 over two years to support tackling antisemitism and promoting community cohesion in Barnet, the council is setting out a new programme of work.
Since 7 October 2023 the pressures of international conflict on Barnet have been immense, and in 2026 unprecedented, in terms of the challenges to community safety and cohesion with a series of attacks taking place in the borough. For the last three years, the council has been building and delivering a programme developed from community listening sessions and regular engagement on safety issues.
As well as increasing council capacity to deal with these sustained new challenges, the Government funding will be focused on addressing the key issues we have heard from communities on tackling antisemitism and hate crime, including in a recent session at Hendon Town Hall with head teachers.
Our new two-year programme will include:
Delivering an education action plan for the borough’s schools on countering hate and extremism, and challenging misinformation.
Working with expert organisations on a range of key resources for piloting community leadership on tackling key issues; building cohesion; and enhanced monitoring community tensions
Building on the success of the council’s ‘Connecting Communities’ campaign co-produced with community organisations and local residents to highlight activities across the borough that bring people together
Mapping key community organisations to make it easier for residents to access their resources and support and to build allyship.
The council will be recruiting two new officers who will be working directly with communities across the borough to support the delivery of this programme, and build resilience, connection and trust across the borough. One officer will be assigned to the Community Safety Team, while another will work directly with the Communities Team.
The council will also be holding two specific workshop sessions over the coming months to further shape the programme. There will be one session with Jewish community leaders, and another with Barnet’s Muslim community leaders. There will also be a wider engagement conversation with all residents.
Adverts for the new council roles are being released this month, at the same time as Metropolitan Police partners launch their new Community Protection Team – which will see many extra police officers assigned to the borough and a new community hub based in Golders Green.
Cllr Sara Conway, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Cohesion, said:
The last few months have been extremely difficult for many local communities in the borough, and I welcome the progress being made across the police and council teams responsible for community safety and building cohesion in Barnet. We have worked extensively to ensure residents voices are heard locally and nationally.
Barnet is fortunate to be a borough where people generally get on well with their neighbours and where hatred and division have never had the foundations to grow. In recent months we have seen external factors trying to increase community tensions and bring violence and terror to our borough. Tackling this is a key priority for this council and we recognise and are thankful for our police and fire partners and the many organisations and residents across the borough who are committed to meeting this challenge together.
We look forward to seeing further progress over the coming months, informed by ongoing and deeper relationships with all of our communities.
The council is also partnering with the Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion on its ‘National Conversation’, a UK-wide listening initiative, inviting people across the country to share what they value about community life and the kind of communities they want to build together. Barnet’s findings from the survey will also help to inform the council’s ongoing work on cohesion.