This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Funding boost for better neighbourhoods
16/01/2003
Local authorities have been allocated £30 million to help
improve deprived neighbourhoods under the Better Neighbourhood
Services Fund, it was announced today.
As part of the Executive's commitment to improving services
to deprived neighbourhoods and groups in Scotland, Social
Justice Minister Margaret Curran confirmed the allocation of
£30 million to the twelve local authorities involved in the
Better Neighbourhood Services Fund.
The councils are Argyll and Bute, Dumfries and Galloway,
Dundee, East Ayrshire, Glasgow, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire,
North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, South Lanarkshire, West
Dunbartonshire, Western Isles.
Ms Curran said:
"The Better Neighbourhood Services Fund is an important part
of the Executive's commitment to improving services in
Scotland's most disadvantaged neighbourhoods and among its most
disadvantaged groups.
"I am delighted to note that the programme is already
achieving a number of early successes and delivering real and
substantial improvements for local people throughout Scotland.
Projects including the free fruit initiative in Glasgow, the
additional police officers in North Lanarkshire and the
Environmental Hit Squad in East Ayrshire are delivering real
benefits to people in deprived communities.
"I hope that this good start will be built on in years two
and three of the Fund and the lessons learned applied
throughout Scotland.
"The Executive is determined to remove inequality at every
level and target help at those who are falling behind in our
communities."
The funding for 2002-03 is as follows:
*Argyll and Bute 1.5 million
Dumfries and Galloway 900,000
Dundee 2.6 million
East Ayrshire 1.85 million
Glasgow 9 million
Inverclyde 3 million
*North Ayrshire 3.75 million
North Lanarkshire 1.85 million
Renfrewshire 1.10 million
South Lanarkshire 1.10 million
West Dunbartonshire 2.6 million
*Western Isles 750,000
*Funding for North Ayrshire, Argyll and Bute and Western
Isles is made up of year one and two allocations.
2. A number of local authorities have already been able to
deliver tangible benefits to their communities thanks to the
BNSF funding they received for 2001-02. Details of a selection
of these projects are listed below:
Dumfries and Galloway: Services for vulnerable
children
A young person has been employed by the alcohol and drug
peer education and counselling service in Wigtonshire. This
young person will help to deliver peer education and will gain
the opportunity to develop their own skills while in
employment.
A 'Youth Matters' conference was held on 24 November which
was attended by young people from all over the region and many
representatives from voluntary and statutory organisations.
The 'Life thru a Lens' publication and photographic
exhibition was launched on 10 September. This is a book of
photos by young people that shows their perception of what it
means to be young in Dumfries and Galloway.
2 new youth clinics have started in Moffat and
Lockerbie.
6 new volunteers have been trained as befrienders and
matched with vulnerable young people to provide friendship and
support.
Dundee:
The BNSF is funding the ongoing development of a dedicated
database which enables the joining up of education, social work
and neighbourhood resources. This then provides fast track
linked information about young people. For example, if a
teacher is looking for information on a child, instead of
calling round social services and other departments they can
access immediate information through this system.
Early action projects approved totalling £375,000; projects
include street lighting renewal which has already been
completed in a number of locations.
East Ayrshire: Environmental Hit Squad
One of the priority areas identified with communities was
the need for better estate management and welcoming open
spaces, both to increase the sense of community pride and
encourage the re-letting of void houses. An Environmental Hit
Squad comprising four workers has been established to provide a
rapid response to environmental problems such as fly tipping,
litter picking, graffiti and needle removal and other
environmental hazards. The Environmental Hit Squad has greatly
reduced the time taken to remove unsightly graffiti and uplift
rubbish/fly tipping which resulted in the Council removing 183
tonnes of rubbish from the BNSF neighbourhoods since the
Environmental Hit Squad was set up in April 2002. Results from
a community consultation exercise undertaken in August 2002
indicated a 5% increase in the number of people who say they
like their area because it is well kept.
Glasgow: Free Fruit
The Free Fruit Initiative is one of a multi-strand approach
to improving health and fitness, as well as increasing
attainment and attendance in schools in Glasgow. There are
currently 385 education establishments taking part in free
fruit initiative and 182,000 pieces of fruit are delivered to
schools each week. First phase evaluation found the number of
children eating no fruit decreased from 7% to 3% and the number
of children eating 5 or more pieces of fruit per day increased
to from 20% to 36%.
Glasgow: Free Swimming
Research identified low levels of physical activity amongst
children and young people, particularly those from low-income
families. BNSF funds have been used to develop and refine
Glasgow's free swim initiative. This programme aims to improve
health and fitness in young people by removing the barriers to
accessing leisure activities and enabling all of Glasgow's 5-18
year olds to swim in one of the Council's eleven pools at no
cost. Since April 2001 there has been a 123% increase in
swimming across Glasgow. This increase has been particularly
marked in SIP areas, such as Drumchapel where there has been a
221% increase.
North Ayrshire Council: Jobs Access Action Team
One of the issues highlighted in a community survey
undertaken in March 2001 was a concern over high levels of
unemployment in the BNSF target areas of Vineburgh in Irvine
and Ardeer in Stevenston. In response to these concerns a
number of projects have been developed which focus on reducing
unemployment. As part of this process a Jobs Access Action Team
has been established, a client advisor and community education
and development officer employed and an access fund created to
enable clients to obtain resources and training to assist them
in gaining employment. To date 46 clients have been recruited
through the Project. Of those 12 have been successful in
getting employment, 2 have entered further education and 6 have
accessed intermediate labour market programmes.
North Lanarkshire: 10 Additional Police Officers
The 10 additional Police Officers funded by the BNSF have
increased police visibility and approachability by attending
local tenants meetings to listen to concerns and also to inform
residents about the extra services being delivered. They also
use community centres as their base rather than the local
police station to improve access for residents. There are early
indications that the targeted communities feel safer because of
the increased police presence.
Renfrewshire
Neighbourhood Warden Schemes operational. Four schemes
comprising three wardens and one senior warden. Wardens began
patrolling in some communities in July, and have proved a big
success in tackling anti-social behaviour, alerting police to
incidents like petty crime, abandoned cars and vandalism, and
arranging for litter and graffiti to be cleaned-up.
West Dunbartonshire
The involvement of children and young people in decision
making is regarded as a key priority by the Community Planning
Partners. A number of projects have been established under this
theme including the employment, using BNSF funding, of two
youth outreach workers. These staff will engage with young
people in areas of the greatest deprivation to encourage
greater involvement in youth services and also feedback their
views as the basis for further programme development.
Resources for the Better Neighbourhood Services Fund are
from the 2000 Spending Review. A total of £90m was allocated
for the 3 years (2001/2, 2002/3, 2003/4). Twelve councils were
selected to benefit from the Fund, on the basis of higher than
average proportions of Income Support recipients, together with
high levels of population dispersal.