From Awareness to Action: Launching Horizons London for Lasting Racial Equity

Nearly 70% of Bangladeshi and Pakistani children and over half of Black children in London are growing up in poverty after housing costs—compared to just 26% of White children. These stark inequalities are not isolated; they reflect deep-rooted structural barriers across health, housing, education, and the environment. Voice4Change England’s launch of the Horizons London Programme on September 18th marks an ambitious step in tackling racial inequalities across London’s health, housing, education, and environmental systems. Held at the Osmani Trust, “Equity on the Horizon: Driving Systemic Change” united advocates, academics and VCSE leaders determined to transform structures that shape everyday life for Black and Minoritised Ethnic communities. This is a 10-year programme funded by the Citybridge Foundation.

Why Horizons London? 

The Horizons London Programme is a community-centred movement focused on removing the entrenched barriers that prevent Black and Minoritised Ethnic Londoners from accessing equitable opportunities in health, housing, education, and the environment. It isn’t just about identifying injustice; it’s about co-designing solutions for lasting impact. The aim is to build a united race equality network, foster strategic collaborations, and ensure that Black and Minoritised Ethnic voices and organisations help drive systemic change rather than remain passive recipients. 

Event Highlights and Themes 

The launch event showcased presentations from four workstreams—Health, Housing, Education, and Environment—followed by engaging table discussions where attendees jointly explored real-world challenges and strengths through lived experience.

Kunle Olulode, Director at Voice4Change England, called on all participants to become “active participators in changing civil society,” underlining that the programme demands truth-telling, redistributing power, and centring the leadership of those most affected by injustice. 

Driving Systemic Change 

Speakers across health, housing, education, and environmental sectors highlighted a shared message: tackling structural barriers requires meaningful, collective action. Neena Samota, Chair of Voice4Change England and Associate Head of Criminology and Sociology at St Mary’s University, gave the opening speech and highlighted the critical need to decolonise educational spaces, diversify teaching staff, and tackle the visible and unseen imbalances shaping opportunity: “Inequalities in outcomes in one generation means inequalities in opportunities for the next,” she reminded the audience. 

In the health stream led by Dr. Sharmin Shajahan, Deputy Director at Voice4Change England, the event spotlighted ongoing health inequalities affecting Black and Minoritised Ethnic communities in London. Dr. Shajahan emphasised that these disparities stem from the social conditions people are born and live in; such as poor housing, income inequality, and institutional racism, and are reinforced by policies and systems. Addressing them requires co-designed solutions, investment in inclusive, community-led models, and stronger accountability across sectors. She also highlighted barriers to accessing healthcare, including long referral waits, lack of culturally competent care, and limited mental health support. 

Christabelle Quaynor, Policy and Influence Officer, gave a presentation about housing stressed housing as more than shelter; it’s a foundation for health, wellbeing, and dignity. She underlined systemic issues: overcrowded homes, discriminatory practices, lack of social housing, and how poor living conditions contribute to cycles of disadvantage.  She emphasised that the housing crisis is not just about the number of houses, even though London needs 88,000 homes a year to address the city’s housing crisis, but it is about the quality of life – access to essential services like GPs, green spaces, affordable supermarkets, etc. - and the infrastructure that supports them. Christabelle encouraged harnessing personal and community stories as powerful tools for policy change, referencing the impact of campaigns like Awaab’s Law after the tragic death of two-year-old Awaab due to poor housing. 

Jennifer Wat, Environmental Strategy Officer, introduced the environmental strategy, addressing climate justice from an anti-racism perspective. She argued that effective climate action must centre the voices and wisdom of Black and marginalised communities, as these groups are often most vulnerable to environmental harm due to systemic neglect. The strategy focuses on bridging the gap between mainstream environmental movements and the Black and Minoritised Ethnic voluntary sector, building capacity, and fostering innovative community-led solutions. 

Building on Community Strengths 

Attendees shared the strengths already present in London’s diverse communities: resilience, adaptability, strong voluntary sector efforts, willingness to collaborate and challenge the status quo, and the power of lived experience storytelling. These assets are critical for driving change. 

Table discussions revealed the real-life impacts of unfair systems: lengthy housing waitlists, poor living standards, exclusion from healthcare and education, cultural biases in public services, and persistent underrepresentation in decision-making. Attendees agreed that meaningful change must start at the granular level—by understanding the root causes and the “root causes of root causes.” Tables were encouraged to discuss 4 questions, and interesting insights came out of the conversations initiated by them.

1: What is a common unfair problem Black and Minoritised Ethnic people face in health, housing, education, or the environment?  A: Black and Minoritised Ethnic Londoners often face high housing costs, long waiting lists, poor housing conditions, and limited access to social housing. In health, they encounter unequal access and representation. In education, there are barriers such as low expectations, language obstacles, and funding gaps. Environmental issues include neglected local areas, while broader challenges span cultural bias, under-representation in leadership, and digital exclusion. 

Q2: What does fairness and racial equity look like in practice?  A: Fairness means equal opportunities—in healthcare, education, and work—regularly reviewed systems, clean and green environments, more diverse representation in leadership, co-designed advocacy, and valuing lived experience in every sector.

Q3: What strengths do our communities have to build change?  A: Communities are resilient, diverse, and proactive, with access to quality education, strong voluntary sector efforts, links to decision-makers, and a willingness to collaborate, share experiences, and challenge inequity. 

Q4: How can individuals help build a fairer future and increase Black and Minoritised Ethnic participation?  A: By educating others, harnessing social media, showing up, sharing power, supporting grassroots groups, and ensuring resources get distributed according to need—while actively involving more Black and Minoritised Ethnic voices in decision-making and monitoring progress.

Next Steps: Inclusive Participation 

The event concluded with a call to action—everyone has a role in building a fairer future. Community members were encouraged to harness social media, educate the next generation, show up in decision-making spaces, share power, and uplift grassroots organisations. Increasing Black and Minoritised Ethnic participation is key to making systemic injustice visible and designing policies that deliver genuine equity. 

The Horizons London Programme positions Voice4Change England and its partners at the forefront of London’s racial equity movement—transforming awareness into action and ensuring every Black and Minoritised Ethnic Londoner is not just invited to the table but included in shaping the systems that affect their lives.