One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 1/56 - One pandemic, many responses:

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 2/56 - Acknowledgements This research was carri…

Acknowledgements This research was carried out by the authors and the wider research team: Asif Afridi (brap), Sarah Boiling (Sarah Boiling Associates), Helen Harris (TSRC), Eleanor Langdale (Renaisi), Rabiyah K. Latif (brap), Lekey Leidecker (WSA Community Consultants), Emma Morgan (WSA Community Consultants), Paul Morgans (independent filmmaker), Lily OFlynn (Renaisi), Lizzie Oxborrow (Renaisi), Siobhan Sadlier (brap), Amanda Smethurst (Amanda Smethurst Consultancy), Wendy Sugarman (WSA Community Consultants), Richard Usher (Just Ideas Sustainable Solutions) and Phil Ware (TSRC). The research team would like to thank everyone who has contributed their experiences, perspectives and ideas through learning conversations and workshop participation. We would also like to acknowledge the funding and support from Local Trust which has made this research possible. About this report One pandemic, many responses is the third research report from a major study commissioned by Local Trust, exploring how 26 communities across England have responded to the COVID-19 crisis. It follows Stronger than anyone thought, published in September 2020, which looked at the initial lockdown period and Now they see us, published in August 2021, which saw the communities adapting to an evolving crisis. This final report explores how, within the variety of responses to the pandemic, some communities were able to respond in a more comprehensive, strategic and inclusive way than others, and the multiple and complex factors underpinning this. Local Trust is registered in England and Wales, charity number 1147511, company number 07833396. localtrust.org.uk Published July 2022. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit Creative Commons -- Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International -- CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 3/56 - Contents

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 4/56 - Executive summary

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 5/56 - What is focusing peoples minds is the lo…

What is focusing peoples minds is the long term impact of the pandemic and the prospect of a `COVID decade ahead, alongside concerns about deepening poverty in the midst of a cost of living crisis, while many public services struggle to get back on track.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 6/56 - 2

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 7/56 - Introduction

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 8/56 - Figure one: Summary of research approach…

Figure one: Summary of research approach and case study areas

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 9/56 - Wehavereportedonourfindingsasthey have e…

Wehavereportedonourfindingsasthey have emerged, see Appendix 1. As the firstfullreportinourseriesStronger than anyone thought noted, there has been "one crisis, many responses" (McCabe et al, 2020c, p.9). Our subsequent report, Now they see us, and 16 accompanying rapidresearchCOVID-19briefingshave addressed a series of cross-cutting themes (McCabe et al, 2021).

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 10/56 - 4. Final synthesis and verification of f…

4. Final synthesis and verification of findings.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 11/56 - How did community responses develop and …

How did community responses develop and vary?

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 12/56 - The importance of being physically prese…

The importance of being physically present within communities was recognised, particularly as so many wider services and activities either closed or moved online. Some communities responded in ways which encouraged, facilitated, and celebrated the different ways in which people were able to step up and help, withthedualbenefitsofdeliveringsupport whilst also allowing everyone to feel that they had a contribution to make. It was not just what communities did, but how they did it that mattered.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 13/56 - Vignette one: developing a comprehensive…

Vignette one: developing a comprehensive response

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 14/56 - While some communities were able to work…

While some communities were able to work together in these ways relatively early in the pandemic, it was clear that some communities found it harder to work in these more strategic ways, or took longer to develop a more strategic approach:

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 15/56 - How inclusive were community responses?

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 16/56 - Vignette three: towards an inclusive res…

Vignette three: towards an inclusive response

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 17/56 - While this suggests that the responses o…

While this suggests that the responses of some communities could be considered as more comprehensive, or more strategic, or more inclusive than others, the focus of our research was on how communities responded to COVID-19, rather than on how well they responded or what difference their responses made to either individual residents or whole communities.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 18/56 - Why have communities responded different…

Why have communities responded differently?

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 19/56 - Here we work through each of the individ…

Here we work through each of the individual explanations that we tested against our data, before considering how theyinfluencewhatwasandwasnot possible by way of a community response.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 20/56 - There was not, then, a straightforward, …

There was not, then, a straightforward, linear relationship between levels of deprivation and strength of community response. It was clear that there were other factors at play which could, to a certain extent at least, override the effects of deprivation on a communitys ability to respond. Summary finding: Levels of deprivation were important, but they did not explain why community responses differed.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 21/56 - Levels of community cohesion

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 22/56 - Summary finding: Feelings of community c…

Summary finding: Feelings of community cohesion and identity helped to explain why responses to COVID-19 differed: those communities which struggled most to develop a comprehensive, strategic and inclusive response all had low levels of cohesion.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 23/56 - Two were not currently in receipt of any…

Two were not currently in receipt of any such programme investment. Some of the communities had also been part of previous regeneration and investment programmes or were located within local authorities that hadinvestedsignificantlyinsupporting voluntary and community action.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 24/56 - It was apparent from a small number of t…

It was apparent from a small number of the 26 areas that a lack of investment not only affected the availability of resources needed for responses within communities, but also the attitudes of residents towards developing responses. Some respondents, for example, talked about a lack of investment being suggestive of a lack of care and being a neglected and stigmatised community. There was also anger amongst some about how this affected their ability to respond to the pandemic:

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 25/56 - In this way, levels of investment are li…

In this way, levels of investment are likely to be related to two other prevailing explanations for different community responses: levels of existing community activities and a network of individual community leaders (section below).

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 26/56 - Summary finding: Current and previous le…

Summary finding: Current and previous levels of investment in communities helped enable more comprehensive, strategic and inclusive community responses, but did not fully explain the difference between communities in the strength of their responses. There was no clear difference in the strength of responses between areas that were identified as `left behind and those that were not.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 27/56 - Strength of existing community activitie…

Strength of existing community activities

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 28/56 - Summary finding: The strength of existin…

Summary finding: The strength of existing community activities was an important factor in shaping community responses. Communities with stronger existing activities were generally able to mount a stronger response, whereas those with weaker existing activities were less likely to do so.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 29/56 - to mount the strongest responses tended …

to mount the strongest responses tended to have more limited access to community buildings and spaces, again this was not always the case. While the presence of community buildings and spaces was an important enabler of community responses to COVID-19, it did not neatly account for the differences between communities in how they responded.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 30/56 - In one area, partnership working between…

In one area, partnership working between the community and the local authority led to regular markets and weekly outside dining when restrictions allowed, while another organised a takeaway service fromaparkticketoffice.Inaddition,afew areas took to outreach work such as door knocking to reach as many residents as possible.This enabled communities to reach people they would not have connected to from within a building and produced a more inclusive response as a result.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 31/56 - Strength of network of community leaders

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 32/56 - There was not always a strong group or n…

There was not always a strong group or network of individual leaders across the case study areas. Areas without a core group tended to be the ones that found it harder to develop a fuller response. Some seemed to lack a network of people who had lived and/or worked in the community for long enough to develop the required relationships, and/or who had the necessary social skills. In some areas there was an element of competition or rivalry between key individuals for status, kudos and funding during the pandemic, rather than collaboration, which exacerbated already poor relationships within the community and with external agencies such as the local authority.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 33/56 - Summary finding: Those communities that …

Summary finding: Those communities that struggled to develop the strongest responses tended to have a more limited group of individual leaders. In contrast, almost all of those areas that demonstrated the strongest responses had a strong network of leaders.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 34/56 - We found that generally, but not always,…

We found that generally, but not always, the communities that demonstrated the strongest responses to the pandemic had strong existing relationships with their local authorities, as evidenced through formal partnerships or more informal relationships with relevant council departmentsandindividualofficers. In such situations, councils forwarded referrals to community groups, helped coordinate volunteers on the ground and passed on (often unsolicited) funding. As one respondent explained:

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 35/56 - Summary finding: Communities that demons…

Summary finding: Communities that demonstrated the strongest responses tended to have more solid relationships with their local authorities, while those who found it harder to develop comprehensive, strategic and inclusive responses tended to have a weaker relationship with their local authorities. However, there were exceptions, and these relationships could change over time.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 36/56 - Interaction between different explanatio…

Interaction between different explanations

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 37/56 - Strength of a network of community leade…

Strength of a network of community leaders: there was a clear relationship across the case study areas between having enough skilled, embedded, networked community leaders and the strength of a communitys response. It was apparent that key individuals (workers, activists, faith-leaders, residents) can act as lynchpins who bring experience, knowledge,confidence,time,relationships and energy. They were able to mobilise others, link people together and get things done. For this to happen, they needed to be socially skilled, able to understand and work well with diverse groups of people and, generally, to have deep relationships within and beyond their community.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 38/56 - Levels of current and previous

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 39/56 - � and had relatively poor relationships …

� and had relatively poor relationships with local authorities

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 40/56 - 4. Neither the ways in which communities…

4. Neither the ways in which communities responded to the pandemic, nor the contexts through which those responses played out, were static but developed as time went on, sometimes in mutually reinforcing ways: for example, while existing relationships with a local authority could affect how a community initially responded to the pandemic, the nature of those responses could in turn affect the strength and quality of relationships. In a few of the communities in the study it was clear that relationships with the local authority had improved over time due to the ways in which both the community and the council had responded.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 41/56 - Conclusions

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 42/56 - Our analysis leads us to unpack the idea

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 43/56 - It was clear that organisations and indi…

It was clear that organisations and individuals demonstrated their resourcefulness, albeit in challenging, uncertain and highly constrained circumstances.They demonstrated agency through the choices and efforts they made to lift their heads above the parapet, to bring people together, to be creative and to take risks. It was not just the actions of those within communities that mattered, but also those around them � for example,theinfluenceofdecisionstaken by local authorities on how to respond to the crisis had clear implications for how communities themselves responded.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 44/56 - The resourcefulness that communities hav…

The resourcefulness that communities have demonstrated over the last two years is unlikely to be sustainable in the longer term without additional resources. Residents stepped up to respond to a quickly emerging crisis and communityledorganisationswereabletoflextheir spending plans and priorities in the short term. But some communities saw the number of volunteers drop off as the pandemic continued and as people on furlough returned to work and volunteers grew tired, or could no longer afford the costs of volunteering, while community organisations now need to return to their core purpose.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 45/56 - References

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 46/56 - Local Trust and Oxford Consultants for S…

Local Trust and Oxford Consultants for Social Inclusion (OCSI) (2019). Left behind: Understanding communities on the edge. London, Local Trust.

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 47/56 - Appendix 1

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 48/56 - Appendix 2

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 49/56 - 16/04/2021 17/04/2021 24/04/2021 26/04/2…

16/04/2021 17/04/2021 24/04/2021 26/04/2021 01/05/2021 03/05/2021 05/05/2021 05/05/2021 08/05/2021 17/05/2021 21/05/2021 24/05/2021 28/05/2021 01/06/2021 09/06/2021 10/06/2021 14/06/2021

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 50/56 - 07/07/2021 16/07/2021 17/08/2021

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 51/56 - 08/12/2021 10/12/2021 12/12/2021 14/12/2…

08/12/2021 10/12/2021 12/12/2021 14/12/2021 24/12/2021 28/12/2021 08/01/2022 19/01/2022 27/01/2022

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 52/56 - Appendix 3

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 53/56 - `Left behind areas

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 54/56 - 52

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 55/56 - One pandemic, many responses 53

One-Pandemic-Many-Responses-Report-July-2022.pdf - page 56/56 - About Local Trust