Issue - meetings

Following consideration of a report of the Head of Planning, Economy and Regeneration, the Community Policy Development Group has made the following recommendation:

1)    A one year grant award be made for 2021-2022, with a review in the autumn of 2021;

2)    Grants to be made on a 1 year settlement basis, to be reviewed annually each autumn;

3)    The £9650 previously offered to Age UK Mid Devon be identified as a saving;

4)    The grant payments for 2021 – 2022 to the Council’s other strategic partners should remain at the same levels as 2020-2021;

5)    The levels recommended were:

·         If the Cabinet were minded to reduce the grant payment awards in 2021-2022 the Community Policy Development Group would recommend that the organisations which directly supported vulnerable residents should have their grant payments protected, namely:

·         Churches Housing Action Team (CHAT)

·         Citizens Advice

·         Involve – Voluntary Action in Mid Devon

·         Mid Devon Mobility

Following consideration of a report of the Head of Planning, Economy and Regeneration, the Community Policy Development Group had made the following recommendation:

1)    A one year grant award be made for 2021-2022, with a review in the autumn of 2021;

2)    Grants to be made on a 1 year settlement basis, to be reviewed annually each autumn;

3)    The £9650 previously offered to Age UK Mid Devon be identified as a saving;

4)    The grant payments for 2021 – 2022 to the Council’s other strategic partners should remain at the same levels as 2020-2021;

5)    The levels recommended were:

·         If the Cabinet were minded to reduce the grant payment awards in 2021-2022 the Community Policy Development Group would recommend that the organisations which directly supported vulnerable residents should have their grant payments protected, namely:

·         Churches Housing Action Team (CHAT)

·         Citizens Advice

·         Involve – Voluntary Action in Mid Devon

·         Mid Devon Mobility

The Cabinet Member for Community Well-Being outlined the contents of the report stating that many of the strategic partners had found new funding streams which could be used in addition to the grants available from the authority.  He highlighted the closure of Age UK (Mid Devon) and that this money could be used as a potential saving.  He explained the impact of the pandemic on many of the grant recipients and how they would be important in the future.

Consideration was given to:

·         The need to consider a longer term settlement for grant recipients in the future, rather than a one year settlement

·         A typographical error with regard to the 2019/20 funding for the Citizens Advice Bureau

·         How vital the recipients were to the community and the role they were playing during the pandemic

RESOLVED that the recommendation of the Policy Development Group be approved.

(Proposed by Cllr D J Knowles and seconded by Cllr C R Slade)

Reason for the Decision – So that the allocation of grants could continue to support external agencies delivering services to enhance the Council’s Homes, Community and Economy priorities

Notes:

i)             Cllr D J Knowles declared a personal Interest as he was a Life Member of the Tiverton Museum and a Trustee of INVOLVE;

ii)            Cllr B A Moore declared a personal interest as he was the Mid Devon Representative for INVOLVE;

iii)           Cllr C R Slade declared a personal interest as he was the Devon County Council representative for INVOLVE, the Chairman of the Grand Western Canal Joint Advisory Committee and a Trustee of the Tiverton Museum;

iv)           *Report previously circulated and attached to the minutes

To receive the report of the Working Group and make recommendations to the Cabinet. Please note, report to follow.

The Economic Development Team Leader provided Members with an update of the work of the Grants Working Group and explained that following the last Community PDG in July, the Grants Working Group had met twice to look at the process of setting grant levels for the Strategic Grants Programme 2021 onwards.

Throughout its discussions, members of the working group recognised the extraordinary nature of the times we had been living through, and the effect of the pandemic on the stability and finances of our strategic partners in the voluntary and community sector. The working group also recognised the important role that community organisations have had in responding to the Covid 19 pandemic, and in supporting the work of the Council particularly with the most vulnerable.

In recognition that this has been an extraordinary year, the working group recommended that the current funding settlement should:

•           Run for a 12 month period from 2021-2022, after which a further review would commence

•           That the scheme should be closed to new applicants for 2021-2022

Members of the working group had been asked to prioritise a number of outcomes for the grants programme, embracing the range of benefits that voluntary and community organisations provided for the District and its residents. It was noted that members found this a particularly difficult exercise, particularly in comparing and contrasting economic outcomes with social and wellbeing outcomes. It was also difficult to make decisions on prioritisation until the total funding budget had been decided.

The Working Group therefore AGREED that no decisions on funding for individual organisations would be made until they had received a budget steer from the Cabinet. The Group would meet again after the 29th October Cabinet Meeting and present its recommendations to the Community PDG in January 2021.