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East Midlands General Assembly Listening into Action Event Report Date: Thursday 14 May 2026 Venue: The Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre, Leicester Participants: 45 delegates from Black and Racially Minoritised Voluntary and Community Sector Organisations (BRMVCSOs) across the East Midlands May 2026
Introduction SAHAUK, a Leicester-based health action charity with national reach facilitated the East Midlands General Assembly (Assembly) for Black and racially minoritised voluntary and community organisations (BRMVCOs), community leaders, grassroots groups, and infrastructure partners to explore shared challenges, opportunities, and priorities for the future of the sector.Held on Thursday 14 May 2026 at a community centre in Leicester and using an interactive and participative approach based loosely on the World Café methodology, delegates engaged in facilitated discussions across four key thematic areas: The report outlines the main themes, recurring needs, sector priorities, recommendations, and proposed next steps that emerged from the meeting to support collective action for and by the BRMVCS in the East Midlands.1 Infrastructure01 Funding Voice and Collaboration Community Wealth Building020303
Executive Summary The Assembly demonstrated a strong collective commitment to building a more connected, collaborative, sustainable, and influential BRMVCS sector across the East Midlands.Delegates consistently highlighted that while BRMVCS organisations possess significant lived experience, trusted community relationships, cultural knowledge, and leadership potential, many organisations continue to face structural barriers that limit sustainability, growth, and influence.The discussions also revealed a strong appetite for collective advocacy, regional coordination, shared learning, practical collaboration, and new approaches to community wealth building. Participants repeatedly emphasised that the East Midlands BRMVCS sector already contains the expertise, knowledge, and solutions needed to address inequalities and support communities effectively. The challenge now is creating stronger systems, partnerships, infrastructure, investment, and community assets that enable those strengths to flourish collectively.2 Across all workshop discussions, several consistent messages emerged: Collaboration must move beyond networking and become long-term partnership working.01 Grassroots organisations remain under-resourced despite holding deep community trust.02 Short-term funding cycles are damaging organisational stability and limiting long-term planning.03 Trust, transparency, and shared accountability are essential to effective collaboration.04 Infrastructure support is urgently needed to strengthen governance, staffing, compliance, digital systems, and leadership. Communication across the sector remains fragmented. Consultation exercises must lead to visible action and measurable outcomes. BRMVCS organisations require greater influence within public sector decision-making and funding structures. Community asset ownership is increasingly viewed as a critical pathway to long-term sustainability, wealth generation, and community empowerment.0506070809
2Open dialogue and shared learning Relationship and trust building Identifying shared barriers and opportunities Developing collective priorities Exploring future collaboration structures Strengthening sector influence and visibility Exploring approaches to community wealth building and asset ownership The event created space for: The East Midlands General Assembly 2026 was convened to strengthen collective voice, build regional relationships, and identify practical actions to support Black and racially minoritised communities and organisations. The World Café methodology enabled delegates to rotate between discussion tables and contribute experiences, ideas, and recommendations through facilitated conversations and written reflections. The Assembly discussions reflected both urgency and optimism. Delegates acknowledged the significant pressures currently affecting BRMVCS organisations while also recognising the considerable strengths, resilience, and leadership that already exist within communities. Event Context and Purpose
2Key Cross-Cutting Themes Participants highlighted the need for: 4.1 Building a Stronger Collective Voice One of the strongest themes emerging across all discussions was the need for a more unified and coordinated BRMVCS sector voice. Delegates reflected that many organisations continue to work in isolation despite experiencing similar challenges around funding, infrastructure, representation, sustainability, and access to assets.
Completed 56% No Return 44%Key Findings 25 completed forms from 45 attendees: 57% return rate. Evidence indicates strong engagement and willingness to collaborate after the event. A mixed paper/digital method would improve future data quality.2EVALUATION FORM RETURN RATE
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 Excellent Good AverageNUMBER OF TICKS3EVALUATION FORM RETURN RATEOverall experience ratings in the sample: 34 Excellent, 27 Good, 4 Average across item-level ratings. Evidence indicates strong engagement and willingness to collaborate after the event. A mixed paper/digital method would improve future data quality.
We would like to extend our sincere thanks to all delegates for their enthusiastic participation and valuable contributions throughout the event. We are especially grateful to Yvonne Field, OBE and Karl Murray for their insight and support.Our appreciation also goes to the dedicated staff team at The Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre, as well as SAHA volunteers Bhanu Patel, Bhakti Metha, and Hema Patel for their hard work and commitment in helping to make the event a success.A special thank you to DJ Shay for providing the music and creating such a warm and vibrant atmosphere, and to Sayu Foods for the delicious traditional Indian cuisine enjoyed by all.Finally, this event would not have been possible without the generous support of our funder, The Phoenix Community Trust.Acknowledgements4
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