About the Commission

• Aim of the Commission
• The Commissioners
• Terms of Reference
• Topics and issues
• Timescales
• Meeting minutes
• Contact

Aim of the Commission

The aim of the Commission is to develop practical recommendations on how the council - working with others - can tackle inequality and promote fairness in the borough.

Haringey is a place of great opportunity and diversity. We have amazing assets, where 100% of our schools are good and outstanding, where most children reach a good level of development in their early years, with fantastic parks and green spaces, great transport infrastructure and nationally loved cultural institutions.

However, we want to ensure everyone is able to benefit from the best Haringey has to offer. Haringey is the sixth most deprived borough in London. That there are areas with very high levels of poverty and inequality on a range of outcomes is evident. There are huge challenges in ensuring access to decent housing; sustainable, better-paid employment; tackling social care, health and mental health issues; dealing with child poverty and helping our residents to manage growing household costs.

We will be taking evidence and testimony from residents, partner agencies, businesses, professionals and experts on a wide range of themes, and aim, from this to design new policies to improve outcomes and tackle inequality for Haringey residents for years to come.

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The Commissioners

Councillor Kaushika Amin

Cllr Kaushika Amin - who represents Northumberland Park ward and is of Indian and Kenyan origin – has been a Cabinet member previously, is a former Haringey Mayor and has chaired a range of committees. She has lived in Tottenham for more than 35 years and raised her family in the borough.

Cllr Amin said:“We are committed to making Haringey a fairer and more equal borough and it is important to me that the voices of residents from all walks of life can be heard. I am looking forward to working closely with residents and my fellow commissioners and encourage residents to join us at the next event in Hornsey on 15 January.”

Professor Paul Watt

Paul is a Professor of Urban Studies in the Department of Geography at Birkbeck, University of London. His research interests span geography, sociology and social policy, with an over-arching focus on the relationship between social inequalities, space and place. His particular research specialisms include social housing, urban regeneration, homelessness, gentrification, post-industrial employment, suburbanisation, and the Olympic Games.

Paul has significant academic experience, having been a Reader at the Policy Research Institute, University of Wolverhampton, and taught at the University of East London and Buckinghamshire New University. He is on the editorial board of ‘City’. He has published four books and a large volume of academic papers and has made numerous media appearances.

Commission members

The following people are confirmed to be on the Commission:

• Lynette Charles - Chief Executive of Mind in Haringey
• Councillor Lucia das Neves - Chair of Overview and Scrutiny
• Councillor Erdal Dogan - Labour Councillor for Seven Sisters Ward
• Hesketh Benoit – Local resident and youth leader
• Paul Butler - Chief Executive of the Selby Trust
• Kellie Dorrington - Haringey Citizens Advice 
• Matt Dykes - Trade Union Congress
• Councillor Scott Emery - Liberal Democrat Councillor for Muswell Hill
• Treena Fleming – Borough Commander
• Sharon Grant OBE - Public Voice
• Rebecca Harington – Local resident and Chair of the Maya Centre
• Tony Hartney - Headteacher Gladesmore Community School and Crowland Primary School
• Ken Hinds – Youth mentor
• Tony Hoolaghan - Chief Operating Officer Haringey Clinical Commissioning Group
• Bibi Khan - LICS Wightman Road Mosque and Multi-Faith Forum
• Barbara Lisicki - Disability rights activist
• Rabbi David Mason - Muswell Hill Synagogue and Multi-Faith Forum
• Sarah Miller – Director of Markfield
• Radojka Miljevic - Local Resident and Partner at Campbell Tickell
• Dr Geoffrey Ocen - Chief Executive of the Bridge Renewal Trust
• Sean O’Donovan - Haringey Citizens Advice 
• Rob Tao - Haringey Business Alliance 

Catherine West MP will be attending the Commission meetings and events when available.

Further commissioners will be announced in due course.

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Terms of Reference

The Terms of Reference were agreed following the first meeting of the Commission in September 2018.

• Fairness Commission Terms of Reference (PDF, 54KB)

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Topics and issues

The Fairness Commission discussions in the initial engagement phase tended to focus on:

• Children, Young People and Education
• Debt and Poverty
• Jobs, Training and the Economy
• Health and Social Care
• Housing
• Communities and Neighbourhood
• Engagement with Public Services

Following completion of the initial engagement phase, the Commission’s future work will focus on a small number of topics, so that the Commission can explore them in sufficient depth to make meaningful recommendations. This prioritisation has been led by what we heard through the initial public engagement. The Commission will focus on the following issues over the next few months:

• Engagement with Public Services: communication, transparency and access
• Housing: insecure housing with a focus on temporary accommodation, homelessness and the private rental sector
• Children and Young People: spaces, support and school exclusions
• Communities and Neighbourhoods: capacity-building for community groups and organisations
• Communities and Neighbourhoods: community cohesion, integration, migration and safety

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Timescales

The Commission will make final recommendations in autumn 2019.

There will be three main phases of the Commission.

July to September 2018 - Scoping

The focus of this phase will be to review the evidence on the causes of inequality in the Haringey context.

October 2018 to March 2019 - Engagement

The focus during this time will be on engagement with residents, the voluntary sector, public sector partners, businesses and academic experts.

May 2019 to July 2019 - Deep dive

The focus in this stage is to review evidence and testimony related to the Commission’s five priority areas from a wide range of sources, including local groups and local, regional and national data and organisations.

August 2019 to November 2019 - Recommendations

The Commission explored a broad range of options to address key issues and agreeing, as a group, what recommendations to make which would most helpfully address these.

December 2019 to February 2020 - Final Report

The Commission is finalising its final report, due to be published in February 2020.

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Meeting minutes

Please note the first meeting minutes of the Fairness Commission approved as below.

• Minutes of meeting - 25 April 2019 (PDF, 95KB)
• Minutes of meeting - 1 April 2019 (PDF, 135KB)
• DRAFT - minutes of meeting 17 September 2018 (PDF, 412KB)

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Contact

You can contact the Commission at:

• Fairness Commission
  5th Floor River Park House
  225 High Road
  Wood Green
  N22 8HQ
• Email: fairness@haringey.gov.uk

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