Backing Community Strength: Equity, Belonging and Black History Month
Every October, Black History Month invites us to remember not only the struggles and achievements of the past, but the ongoing legacy of resilience and leadership that continues to shape our communities today. It is a time to reflect, to celebrate, and to renew our commitment to equity and justice.
Black History Month reminds us that progress has never come easily. For generations, Black communities have faced exclusion, prejudice, and inequality yet have continued to lead, organise, and create spaces of belonging. That legacy of collective strength and self-determination is not confined to the past. It continues in the community-led groups that work to ensure those previously left voiceless have the chance to live well, be heard and to belong.
Today, our communities face growing challenges. Division, economic pressures, and systemic barriers to care all risk widening inequalities. But they also reveal the remarkable resolve of local groups who adapt, organise, and continue to support one another, creating their own spaces of care, culture, and solidarity.
That’s why equity-led community groups matter more now than ever.
Often small, underfunded, and powered by volunteers, these groups are the frontline against exclusion. They are where language barriers are broken down, where cultural understanding is instinctive rather than learned, and where trust is built through lived experience. They offer belonging when mainstream services feel distant, and connection when official systems fall short.
Across Greenwich, community and equity-led groups, many rooted in Black and other marginalised communities, continue to play the lead role in tackling health inequalities. At Healthwatch Greenwich, we’ve had the privilege of working alongside some of these groups through our Be Well Support programme, drawing on our networks, insight, and trust to ensure community knowledge, experience, and priorities are not only recognised but centred within local health and care.
By offering mentoring, resources, and connections, we aim to strengthen the networks that crucially remove barriers faced by those experiencing the greatest inequality. Our support has helped deliver community-led workshops on mental health, build WhatsApp networks sharing trusted health information in multiple languages, and improve links between grassroots organisations and statutory services. These collaborations mean that insight from lived experience now informs how services are planned and delivered across the borough.
Sustaining this work takes more than words; it requires consistency and genuine commitment, especially in a time when resources are limited. In Greenwich, that commitment has been reflected through collaboration and investment from the Royal Borough of Greenwich and partners who recognise the shared value of equity-led groups. Their continued support demonstrates an understanding that creating fairer health outcomes depends on listening to, resourcing, and learning from the communities most affected by inequality. In a challenging climate, this approach shows that health equity is not an optional extra, but a shared responsibility, one that requires every part of the system to act.
At Healthwatch Greenwich, we continue to champion these groups as core partners whose voices must shape local decision-making. We work with the council, the NHS, and community partners to make health equity the standard.
Healthwatch Greenwich is an equity-led organisation, both in who we are and in what we do. The majority of our trustees and volunteers come from marginalised or racialised communities, meaning lived experience directly shapes our leadership and decision-making. More importantly, our mission and practice are rooted in tackling systemic inequality and amplifying the voices of those most often left out of decision-making in health and care.
