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Identifiable communities and groups

The COHDMAP report identifies those key groups which appear to be of most importance to policy makers and service providers in the process of monitoring the demographic components of population in the UK.  They are as follows:

  • Asylum seekers and refugees - The report discusses the different categories of status and the issues about collecting accurate data for each category. Key data sources are Home Office statistics and a range of ad hoc studies and surveys.
  • Migrant workers - This is perhaps the most difficult group to define, but apparently presents the fastest growing sector of the economy and the sub-group of population most problematic for service providers and community cohesion. The report summarises the information known about these groups. Key data sources are the Labour Force Survey, the International Passenger Survey and many ad hoc surveys and specific enquiries into the issue(e.g. "Beyond black and white: mapping immigrant communities", a report by S. Kyambi for the Institute for Public Policy research in 2005). In some local areas data has been obtained from local employers, from gangmasters and informal labour recruiters and from the Department of Work and Pensions for those who choose to register.  Work on the Audit Commission report Crossing borders was underway at same time as the COHDMAP review and this has now been published.
  • Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groups - The report summarises the sources of data on ethnic groups and the story of how categorisation has changed.  There are references to a series of academic and official reports on issues around the collection and use of such data. Reference is made to the consultation process that ONS is undertaking on questions to be used in the 2011 census.

The categories listed above are discussed in some detail in the report. The report also identifies the following groups. Some information is given about sources of information but they are covered in rather less detail than for the preceding categories:

  • Faith/religious groups
  • EU citizens
  • EU accession states
  • other (including Old Commonwealth)
  • disadvantaged and stigmatised groups such as lone parents, youth, unemployed, illegal aliens, older people, travellers (Gypsies, Roma, Irish travellers, New Age travellers) students, people with chronic conditions, people with disabilities, people in poverty and on low incomes.

This part of the report also discusses the impact of internal movement within the UK, issues for Community cohesion and Public Health concerns.