About us

MENTER is the East of England Black and Minority Ethnic Network, which essentially is a regional network for Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) voluntary organisations and communities with 420 BME organisations on the mailing list.  It is run by a voluntary management board of 20 trustees from member groups plus advisors from Race Equality Councils, Go-East, COVER (the general voluntary sector regional network) and Cambridge Ethnic Community Forum.  (To download a quick and easy to read leaflet, please go to the Media Centre)

Aims

  • To develop the BME sector
  • To promote equalities, particularly race equality and advocacy for the BME Sector
  • To build a strong and representative regional BME network

Vision

MENTER vision is for a future where inequalities are addressed, there is no racism and all BME communities are properly valued for their contribution to the region and their participation in local democracy.

Achievements

  • A database of 500 BME organisations; improved information on the sector through three reports (a) a membership survey; (b) a compilation of relevant census data – Ethnicity in the East of England and (c) a report, funded by East of England Development Agency, on BME access to skills / employment and enterprise services including current policy and barriers facing BME communities

  • A BME infrastructure project that has helped over forty groups from set up to development as well as set up nine BME forums to improve representation and tackle issues faced by communities

  • An Ending BME Economic Inequality project setting up a forum of service providers and commissioners to see how BME access to skills, employment and enterprise services can be improved; invitation to join the national Ethnic Minority Advisory Group

  • Key successes in coordinated partnership work round race and other equalities with race equality councils and organisations, equality strand representatives and public sector; publication of a comprehensive report on Equalities in the East of England; publicising this work in Europe via membership of European forums and presentation at a conference in Vienna

  • Partnership work with national organisations such as Voice4Change England, the Black Training and Enterprise Group, the National Equalities Partnership and the English Regions Equalities Networks leading to better lobbying for BME communities

  • Building access and good service provision for refugees, asylum seekers and new migrants through support for multi agency forums in county and unitary areas

  • Support for regional Gypsy/Traveller network involving nine groups

  • A well developed youth project improving leadership and volunteering opportunities for BME young people and the establishment of two youth forums in Bedford and Peterborough in partnership with Peterborough Race Equality Council and Bedford African Community Support Group; two events for Black boys and young men reaching over 160 people

  • Regional conferences with the East of England Development Agency, the East of England Skills and Competitiveness Partnership and the Department of Work and Pensions on ending BME economic inequality

  • A regional Equalities conference with the East of England Regional Assembly, GO East and the Equalities and Human Rights Commission

  • Involvement in the East of England Regional Assembly (EERA) -  MENTER has a community stakeholder place on the assembly and representatives on EERA’s Health and Social Inclusion panel and Housing and Sustainable Communities panel

  • Involvement in the Regional VCS Infrastructure Consortium, the East Region Infrastructure Network (ERIN)  and lead on the Equalities cluster; funding from the Big Lottery Fund BASIS programme for ERIN provision of regional infrastructure services for the VCS  Recognised involvement in the development of regional strategies and consultation of MENTER members in this process 

 

 

 

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