This brief overview reflects some significant developments in the United Kingdom since the first project meeting of the LEMOR project in January 2013 in Smethwick.

LEMOR is the acronym for Learning Managers, Learning Organisations, a partnership consisting of 5 European organisations representing the U.K., Turkey, Italy, Malta and Germany reflecting a wide variety of community based activities and, in the case of Italy, exciting aspirations for future developments.

At the very base of these activities is the training and understanding for staff of the issues around the combatting of poverty and social exclusion and the UK case studies appended show two examples of how this is being achieved within one of the most deprived areas within the UK.

We interpret deprivation in a number of ways. Not only does it reflect low levels of income but also relates to opportunities for employment and social interaction through the provision of amenities and services offering support for vulnerable children and adults including shelter and housing.

The past 2 years have seen significant changes in the way in which families and individuals are supported financially and socially.

This has been happening with a backcloth of stringent financial cutbacks particularly in public service and an increasing reliance on private and NGOs to cover the areas of support previously provided by public authorities.

It is also happening against a backcloth of an ever increasing number of people aged over 70 many with health and social dependency issues to contend with this placing pressure on to already hard pressed services such as Doctors and Social Workers.

At the time of writing this report the coalition Government which has dictated these changes would point to significant improvements in the prosperity of the country as one of the most dynamic economies in Europe. Unemployment has fallen across the UK with large numbers of unfilled vacancies in many industries . Wages have also increased ahead of an inflation rate of around 1.5%, this rate being heavily influenced by the static price of fuel and energy.

However there are a number of counter arguments and statistics put forward not only by political opponents of the Government but also NGOs without political allegiance.

For example the streets of mainland Britain have become heavily populated by Money lenders with increasing numbers of people reliant on Pay Day loans for survival. The level of household debt has risen steadily over the past two years and there are now Food Banks in most towns outside London with the Trussle Foundation, the largest provider of this service announcing the delivery of its millionth Food Parcel this week.

The cynics of decreasing unemployment also point to the rapidly growing numbers of ‘zero contract’ and part time employment offering little more than a minimum wage. The levels of youth unemployment still remains high despite major investment in Apprenticeships – Government and Employers contribute jointly to their costs.

The coalition Government has placed major emphasis on getting people back into work, particularly those previously dependent on Health and disability related benefits and have also placed limits on the amounts families can receive in Benefits which include Housing and have also removed a Community Grants system for those severe financial hardship.

There is a widely held view that social policy is being driven by a London centric administration and that many of the real issues at community level in other parts of the UK are not being properly represented.

This view is arguably most prevalent in the Housing Market where property prices and Rents in Greater London can be as much as 10x the price of similar properties in the Midlands and Northern regions i.e a terraced house in Fulham might cost £400k whereas a similar property in Stoke on Trent in the west Midlands might cost £40,000. This disparity is reflected in wages and job opportunities with unemployment in some regions still rising.

This disparity has lead to pressures being placed on authorities outside London to accommodate families who can no longer afford to cost of housing and there is statistical evidence to show that increasing numbers of families and individuals are falling into arrears not only for rent but also for heating and energy bills.

For many people they hold a view that there has never before been such a divided society between those who are dependent on state aid and support and those in secure employment and higher levels of income.

It is impossible to provide an overview without a reflection of the Political dynamic of the country with inward migration at its heart. With European elections imminent the rise in popularity of the anti EC United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP), one of whose major platforms has been the restriction of inward migration form European partner countries, cannot be ignored.

Many parts of our economy, particularly Agriculture , Health and Social care and Hospitality are hugely reliant on the services of people from European and other countries with some Towns in eastern England having around 30% of their residents origination from countries in eastern Europe.

This rich diversity of cultures is celebrated by many, feared by some and opposed by an increasing number of xenophobic residents who use this, without rational evidence, to suggest that jobs for local people are being taken by people newly arriving in this country.

It is expected that UKIP will gain a significant number of seats within the EU Parliament at the next election with a sole objective of getting the UK out of Europe.

There are a number of indicators suggesting improvements in personal and family well being with life expectancy overall increasing rapidly due to improved Health care services and technology. The numbers of people using cigarettes has fallen thanks to increased publicity, awareness plus physical restriction at point of sale removing publicity and marketing.

There is also a country wide decline on reported criminal activity including robberies and house breaking but these figures are questionable because of perceived levels of unreported crime.

However obesity at all age levels remains a major concern with its knock on effect on health care dependence including Diabetes, Heart problems and Blood Pressure leading to Strokes.

In many communities around Birmingham and the West Midlands there are in excess of 50 cultures and languages represented from countries across the world. Many of these residents have sought refuge from violence and terrorism and some have arrived illegally and seeking asylum.

As well as providing many reasons for celebration this also bring with it many issues which cause concern and debate. It is, for example, alleged that 2 children per class in some schools in Birmingham ‘disappear’ or take unauthorized absences from school.

There has also been a number of incidents of people Trafficking, many involving young women forced into illegal activities. there have also been a number of reported incidents of child exploitation and grooming particularly attracting young people already in positions of vulnerability i.e in Care.

Personal abuse, whether physical, financial or emotional still remains a growing problem for all public authorities including the state managed Social services and the Police working on an interagency partnership level. Increasing emphasis has been placed on the protection of abuse of vulnerable adults including older people living in care Homes but child abuse also ranks highly on the agendas of most public agencies following a series of high profile cases of death and injury , many in the west Midlands.

This raise the importance of such services provided by West Smethwick Enterprise and Safe Haven as described in the Case Studies But all of this must be viewed against the backcloth of stringency as decribed earlier in this overview.