How can housing associations respond to the risk of racist violence and disorder in their communities?

How can housing associations respond to the risk of racist violence and disorder in their communities?

 

The riots that broke out in August 2024 represented the most extreme and widespread racist violence and disorder in the UK for decades. Across the UK, rioters clashed with police, targeted hotels housing asylum seekers, mosques and Muslim cemeteries, looted shops and attacked people of colour. Since then, more communities have suffered the horror of racist rioting and disorder, most recently in Belfast.

With global majority communities living in fear of the next outbreak of violence, social housing providers throughout the UK are coming to terms with a new responsibility: to be ready to protect the safety of their residents and employees in times of racist violence and social unrest, and to work to build communities resilient enough to withstand division.

In Spring 2025, I carried out a small research project asking what actions social housing providers (in particular housing associations) can take to prepare for the threat of future racist violence and social unrest. The study combined:

• a review of post-riot reports, guidance and practice shared between social housing providers;
• thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with housing professionals from four UK housing associations in Bradford, Burnley, Manchester and London.

The results document good practise and expertise in the sector in both crisis response and long-term activities in creating resilient communities, informing recommendations which identify first steps that housing providers can take.

Crisis response

The crisis responses that I analysed followed a similar pattern:

1. establish the facts
2. evaluate risks
3. take mitigating actions.

To establish the facts of events, providers relied on regular sharing of information that was both bottom-up and top-down, inside the organisation and with local authorities, police, community groups and partners.

They evaluated risks to the safety of employees, residents, properties and offices, as well as risks associated with their organisational response (could it make them a target and put communities under further threat?) and the spread of rumours and misinformation.

Mitigating actions were largely preparatory, procedural, supportive and communications based, with reliance on police involvement and tenancy action where necessary.  Consistent internal communications aimed to provide reassurance to employees and residents and to counter rumours and misinformation.

Creating cohesive and resilient communities

To contextualise the crisis responses, I asked also about the long-term work that providers did to support cohesion and inclusion within their communities. Activities fell into three broad themes: knowing your customers, not avoiding divisive issues, and creating positive opportunities for contact between different groups. Representation, consistency and balance were highlighted as essential to effective work in this area.

Notably, all four providers involved in the project were from areas with histories of inter-community violence. Staff were confident engaging in and facilitating dialogue between groups on difficult and divisive subjects, including race. They benefited from strong networks and longstanding relationships with community leaders and local partners, often developed when responding to previous incidents. For these providers, creating cohesive and inclusive communities is a natural and necessary part of good housing work.

Recommendations

These recommendations are intended as first steps housing associations can take to mitigate immediate risks and begin long-term work to create resilient communities:

1. Prepare a crisis response plan informed by good practice in the sector and identifying key roles and responsibilities.
2. Include the threat of racist violence, disorder and division in risk management frameworks, detailing key concerns and mitigating actions.
3. Connect with existing voluntary and civil society networks in operational areas to collaborate on projects supporting inclusion, mutual understanding and belonging, and to share information.

I hope these recommendations can be a useful starting point, particularly for housing professionals working in regions with little experience of racist violence, where the role of social housing providers in responding to these issues may at times seem unclear. Recent events leave no doubt that building cohesive and resilient communities must now be understood as an integral part of good housing practise in the UK, rather than the specialism of a few.

It’s important to note that these recommendations are not directly informed by the lived experience of the communities impacted. Their experiences and voices will be essential to developing the detailed and evidence-based guidance needed by the sector.

Thank you to everyone who gave their time to advise and participate in this project. To read the full report with examples of key considerations and mitigating actions for social housing providers, please contact Ursula.aitchison@deltahousing.org.uk.

Written by Ursula Aitchison is Policy, Strategy, and Research Specialist at Delta Housing.