Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to a) protect and b) promote community cohesion in a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and b) Staffordshire.

MHCLG’s Community Cohesion Unit supports and promotes cohesion across England by working closely with local authorities, voluntary and community sector and faith organisations, and other government departments.

Following the disorder in summer 2024, several areas in Staffordshire have received sustained support. In Stoke-on-Trent, MHCLG has supported a multi-agency partnership approach to strengthen cohesion and resilience, aligned with the development of the city’s cohesion strategy. This brings together statutory and community partners to address integration, cohesion and tensions monitoring.

Five areas across Staffordshire, Bentilee and Ubberley, Bradley and Chell Heath, Meir North, Cannock Chase, and Glascote Heath have each been awarded Pride in Place Programme funding, with £20 million invested over ten years to deliver long-term, preventative improvements to community cohesion.

In Tamworth, MHCLG supported the Borough Council following unrest in summer 2024, addressing immediate challenges and strengthening longer-term cohesion capability through initiatives such as the ‘We Are Tamworth’ programme.

Nationally, MHCLG is coordinating cross-government work on a longer-term approach to social cohesion. Protecting What Matters, published on 9 March 2026, set out HMG’s vision to build stronger, more cohesive communities through sustained investment, improved integration, strengthened English language provision, and robust action against hate and extremism.