In May 2002 Regeneris were commissioned to undertake a community profiling exercise which would help MLA North West to work more strategically and to help museums, libraries and archives in the North West identify the needs of their local communities.
The first phase of the project sought to establish external agencies with whom MLA North West could work in targeting communities of interest. The exercise also sought to provide a quantitative profile of various communities of interest across the region, and in particular local areas. The following four broad community interest groups were identified as a focus for the project:
ethnic minority groups
those with poor skills and low educational attainment
disabled groups
socially excluded (including exclusion in both urban areas)