Engaging with marginalised groups

There’s no such thing as hard to reach groups, just more expensive to reach.

Who might be under-represented?

Some groups of people, such as working single parents, have less spare time than others, such as retired people
Some people do not understand written or spoken English
Some people cannot hear or see
Some buildings are very unfriendly to those with impaired mobility
Some groups feel culturally isolated from the mainstream of society’s activity
Some groups feel alienated from, or even suspicious of, the organisation that is consulting them
Some communities are geographically isolated
Some people have no permanent address
Some people are living with a long-term illness
Some people are out at work all day
Some people may just not be interested in being consulted by public bodies

Why try to make your consultation more inclusive?

Consultation exercises often need to find out the views of an accurate cross-section of the population as a whole.
Your service may already know that it is not reaching a certain section of the population and you want to know why.
Different sections of the community, particularly minorities, may have needs or views that are different from those of the majority and, if they are not consulted effectively, these needs or views may remain invisible.
There are legislative reasons why public organisations must make sure that their activities consider the needs of all of Salford's diverse communities.

There are many documents and booklets designed to help you consult with hard to reach groups including Salford Council’s own website

Contacting Marginalised Groups

Do your research before making contact, there is a lot of information around, make use of it.
Make use of Salford's communities of identity the Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Forum; Disability Forum; Faith Forum; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Forum and the Refuee and Asylum Seeker Forum. These groups provide a voice for these sections of the community across Salford and might be able to provide some guidance about consulting with these communities.
Try to make contact with groups of people either directly or through link workers
Take advice from experts (users, workers etc) about the best way to approach the consultation exercise
Be sensitive and act in a responsible manner at all times
Be respectful
Be patient
Be creative to get better results

The following pages contain more detailed information on engaging with Black and Minority Ethnic groups, children and young people, disabled people and older people.