The research had been conducted in B&H, Crawley and Hastings, by a partnership of TDC, SIS and Hangleton and Knoll, together with VIE the Network of Int women and Fresh Youth Perspective. Far more people had been interviewed in B&H than in the other location.
All agreed that the partners had done an excellent job in an extremely short time.
The research was unusual in including the voice of migrants to such a degree, although those who had been in the UK for less than a year were not represented.
Main conclusions:
- Many BAMER people had got COVID because they were key workers
- Poor working conditions, Zero hours contracts, inadequate PPE.
- They had a high awareness of C-19 symptoms; least awareness among most recent arrivals.
- High level of trust in NHS, but not the government.
- Lots of negative experience of accessing NHS during COVID
- Reported poor mental health – anxiety, depression.
- Inequalities of access to NHS services.
Recommendations:
- Equality assessment frameworks for all staff. CCGs should review employment practices, especially where outsourced.
- Info and comms – should be simple and be from the NHS.
- Address barriers to NHS care.
- Build closer relationships with BAMER communities.
- Co-produce information
- The data should be further analysed – would be useful for different parts of LA.
The CCG has focussed on 4 areas –
- Communication and public involvement
- Staff recruitment, progression and retention – they want to help BAMER people understand their rights
- Unequal outcomes of service provision
- Structural inequalities and capacity building for BAMER organisations (although no budget seems to be attached)
A CCG group that meets meeting fortnightly will take the recommendations forward, although it’s not clear how that will happen in practice.
The consultant who led the research, Anusree Biswas has been appointed as the standing invitee on Brighton and Hove Council’s Policy and Resources committee.
The report was not thought to address whether NHS charges had been a barrier to accessing health.
The CCG have published an EOI with v tight deadline on inclusion engagement that refers to the report. TDC are leading a bid by partnership.
