Established in the aftermath of the 2024 riots triggered by the Southport murders, the Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion set itself the task of bridging divides. Set up on a cross‑party basis with Labour and Tory co-chairs (Jon Cruddas and Sir Sajid Javid), the project leans on a “more in common” philosophy of looking for what connects people, particularly in the places where they live. While it takes on board a range of activities and attitudes, the overarching theme is that heightened conflict and reduced contact between social groups are problems that are not taken seriously enough.

A new online survey billed as the National Conversation, which launched this week, is an attempt to build up a picture of how people across the UK feel about these issues. It will harvest information about, for example, whether respondents feel a greater sense of belonging to their local area or to the UK, and whether they are friendly with neighbours.

The results will build on the commission’s first report last year. This drew on a range of evidence to argue that a combination of “declining political trust and economic pessimism” lay behind rising tensions including the alarming level of hostility towards migrants in some places.

The effort to reach out and make this a participatory process should be welcomed. But the commission’s success will depend on whether it is able to move beyond diagnosis. Last year’s report pointed to the need for a long-term strategy backed by funding, and highlighted the hollowing out of local government during a decade of austerity as a key reason for declining trust in places where health and other services are under pressure, and the public realm is felt to be in decline. As in related initiatives such as the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods, the distinctive geography of inequality is recognised as important.

The role of technology also continues to raise questions. One striking finding in the commission’s first report was that younger adults were more likely to be daunted by the prospect of meeting new people than older ones – which seems likely to be connected to smartphones. Housing tenure is another factor shaping the way that people feel about where they live. People in privately rented accommodation were less likely to talk to neighbours and to enjoy a sense of belonging. Rates of volunteering fell dramatically in the decade to 2024, undermining the capacity of charities to contribute to social change.

Several of these themes already feature strongly in the government’s agenda. Housing insecurity has rightly been recognised as a fundamental injustice, with stronger protections for tenants in the process of being introduced. The Pride in Place scheme should boost town centres. But the commission is right that policies to strengthen communities have never gained the traction that their biggest supporters would like – in part because such hard-to-quantify aspects of social life do not fit neatly within the remit of a single government department. The National Conversation is a worthwhile listening exercise, and the voluntary sector itself may be able to act on some of its findings. But whether any significant policies emerge from it will depend on whether it can grab, and hold, the interest of ministers.