# Emeka Forbes

> Emeka Forbes is a UK strategic adviser, campaigner and writer. He works on social cohesion and community, and advises charities, companies and public bodies on social and political change. He is Director of Secretariat at the Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion and chair of the anti-poverty charity Z2K.

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## About

Emeka is Director of Secretariat for the Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion, co-chaired by Sir Sajid Javid and Jon Cruddas. He leads cross-sector efforts to predict, track and respond to social tensions.

He writes regularly about what he is learning, and he is a keynote speaker at events across the UK.

He also advises leaders navigating complex political and social change. He takes on a handful of consulting projects each year, on problems that only get solved by mobilising people and politicians in tandem.

He chairs the anti-poverty charity Z2K, advises the inequality think tank the Fairness Foundation, and writes a regular column for Civil Society Media’s Governance & Leadership.

## Areas of expertise

- Social cohesion and community relations in the UK
- Preparing for and responding to community tension
- Public affairs and political strategy (Westminster, Whitehall, local government)
- Campaigns, mass mobilisation and strategic communications
- Cross-sector partnerships between civil society, business, government and faith groups
- Charity governance, poverty and inequality

## Advice

Emeka works with a small number of charities and foundations, companies, councils and public bodies each year. Typical work: a board briefing before a policy change, a stakeholder engagement plan for a new project, or a partnership design for a place-based fund. Formats: short strategy projects, embedded projects, and regular counsel for leadership teams.

## Roles

- Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion (https://www.livingwelltogether.org.uk/): Director of Secretariat, since 2025.
- Together Coalition (https://together.org.uk/): Head of Cohesion, previously Campaign Strategist.
- Z2K (https://z2k.org/): Chair of Trustees, since 2023.
- Fairness Foundation (https://fairnessfoundation.com/): Senior Adviser, since 2023.
- Public affairs: Teneo and WA Communications, then Barnardo’s in-house, 2018–2023.
- Associate Member, Nuffield College, University of Oxford.
- Columnist, Civil Society Media’s Governance & Leadership.

## Selected writing

- [Treat impact measurement as a norm](https://www.civilsociety.co.uk/governance/emeka-forbes-treat-impact-measurement-as-a-norm.html) (Civil Society, 15 Sep 2026): What a community hub in Leeds teaches charities about measuring impact.
- [Councils’ role in the cohesion crisis](https://www.lgcplus.com/services/community-cohesion/emeka-forbes-councils-role-in-cohesion-crisis-05-08-2026/) (LGC, 5 Aug 2026): Why local government stands on the front line when places come under strain.
- [A good ending can be evidence of discipline rather than failure](https://www.civilsociety.co.uk/governance/emeka-forbes-a-good-ending-can-be-evidence-of-discipline-rather-than-failure.html) (Civil Society, 16 Mar 2026): Closures are rising. Some of them show good governance at work.
- [Too often, people experience systems as something imposed on them](https://www.civilsociety.co.uk/governance/too-often-people-experience-systems-as-something-imposed-on-them.html) (Civil Society, 16 Jan 2026): Charities already know how to fix Britain’s delivery problem.
- [Fairness is key to a more cohesive Britain](https://www.faircomment.co.uk/p/fairness-is-key-to-a-more-cohesive) (Fair Comment, 7 Jan 2026): Why fairness is the civic value that can hold a plural Britain together.
- [Disagreement is inevitable, division isn’t](https://www.civilsociety.co.uk/governance/disagreement-is-inevitable-division-isnt.html) (Civil Society, 17 Nov 2025): Charities must show how to disagree without contempt.
- [After the riots: building the foundations for social cohesion](https://www.britishfuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/After_the_riots_report.Final_.pdf) (British Future, Belong and Together, Sep 2024): Policy priorities for cohesion and resilience after the summer disorder. Contributor.
- [stronger.community](https://stronger.community): Emeka’s publication of field notes and essays on why communities come apart and what holds them together.

## Speaking

Emeka speaks to charities, businesses, councils and universities. Topics:

- Reading a changing Britain: What shifts in politics and public mood mean for organisations. Keynote or panel.
- Why communities come apart: And what holds them together. Keynote or panel.
- Building with communities: Partnerships that last. Workshop or board session.

Recent platforms:

- 2026: Universities UK annual conference · keynote
- 2026: Local Government Association annual conference · plenary
- 2026: Welsh Local Government Association, Cardiff · panel
- 2024: After the Riots social cohesion summit, London · speaker

## Contact

- Email: hello@emekaforbes.co.uk (for press, put “Urgent Media” in the subject line)
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emekaforbes/
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q141674373
- Writing: https://stronger.community
- Website: https://emekaforbes.co.uk/

## Education

- MSc Social Anthropology, Birkbeck, University of London
- BA Government and Politics, Birkbeck, University of London