David Cameron has now officially launched the ‘Big Society’ initiative with parts of Eden identified as a ‘vanguard’ area.
Generally speaking the Government wants to see more services delivered by local charities and for local people to have more control, with a range of barriers removed to help charities get on with looking after people. This change runs alongside the knowledge that we will see massive cuts in public sector funding.
I’d like to shine a light on some projects that hopefully exemplify how a small amount of money can help a lot of people and save money at the same time.
The first project is the Village Agents project run by Age UK South Lakeland (Age Concern to you and me). The scheme placed 9 coordinators in communities throughout the District with the aim of making sure older people had access to information and services to create village action groups and recruit new volunteers.
Working ten hours a week the agents plus the volunteers that have become involved have already helped nearly 850 people. By speaking with local people new activity clubs have been set up, people put in touch with local arthritis support groups, helped people claim over £60K in additional benefits, got involved in keep fit activities and accessed free loft insulation. One grateful lady sent her Village Agent a note saying ‘It made the long, hard winter more bearable knowing you were there’.
The Northern Fells Group which operates in and around Caldbeck and Hesket Newmarket set up a handy man and good neighbours scheme a few years ago to make sure that anyone who needed help with small tasks could get it. The scheme now has 18 volunteers operating over 200 square miles and serving 3,600 residents. Simple things like changing a light bulb can be hazardous if you’re unsteady on your feet and have to climb up onto a chair.
What schemes like this do is enable people to stay in their own homes, seek support when they need them and stay fitter, longer, reducing the risk of accidents and long stays in hospital. Funded by the Lottery the project is now looking for longer term funding. I hope that local GP’s, who will soon be involved in commissioning the health services we access look at schemes like this and take the wise decision to fund them.
Two areas of the county have been identified by the Big Lottery to receive £1m each in new funding over a 10 year period. Big Local is a new lottery funded scheme which has identified 50 communities including Barrow Island and Ewanrigg. Long term funding into two of the counties most disadvantaged communities is most welcome.
Wednesday 18 August 2010
New Government New Honours
Cumbria Life
I’d like to open this blog with some good news and congratulations. Cumbria benefitted from a host of awards in the Queens Birthday Honours and three of them were to people for their contribution to the local community and charities.
One was Captain John Green. I’ve had the pleasure of working with John for many years. John to me epitomises a good citizen, he has a wide range of skills and contacts which he uses to good effect, however he is always modest, humorous and generous in his approach. The second was Norman Stoller for his philanthropic work through the Norman Stoller Charitable Trust. The third person is Juliet Westoll who has been a central figure in the Cumbria Woman of the Year Award for many years. The new Government has great expectations for charities in fixing our problems. One of the things they identify is the role of ‘community organisers’. Well the Cumbria Woman of the Year award has been shining a light on and celebrating the myriad work of wonderful women ‘community organisers’.
With a new government comes some new language. The ‘Big Society’ is one term. In many of Cumbria’s communities I think we already have a ‘big society’ with over 3,500 charities. Another new phrase to become accustomed to is ‘civil society organisation’. I think that’s charities and community and voluntary groups to you and me.
I’ve mentioned ‘community organisers’ and I think this means those fabulous people that have an idea, get off their behinds and make things happen. The Government wants to train a ‘whole new generation’ of ‘community organiser’s’. I’m not sure people can be trained to have the essential fizz that makes them want to do things, but we can encourage those people who stand up and have a go.
People are now beginning to consider the likely effect of major cuts in welfare spending. There’s a strong link between poverty and health, educational attainment and other issues. Cumbria is very diverse and many of our most disadvantaged residents are not readily seen because they either exist in small numbers in rural locations or are found in peripheral communities in Barrow, West Cumbria and Carlisle. Sadly these communities rank alongside the most deprived in the country. How our charities are able to respond to these challenges will be fundamental in the lives of the unemployed, young people, the elderly and disabled.
I’d like to make a plug for a new initiative. The Cumbria Advice Network is a new collaboration with the Citizens Advice Bureau, Carlisle Law Centre and Shelter Cumbria at its heart. The aim of the network is simple, to improve access to information for people in need. In an internet age it’s easy to assume all you need to do is log on and read whatever you need, however complex problems require the ability to sit down with someone and be taken step by step through their issues. It has taken a lot of energy, time and commitment on the part of many people to get this far. To find out more visit www.cumbriaadvicenetwork.org.uk/can/.
I’d like to open this blog with some good news and congratulations. Cumbria benefitted from a host of awards in the Queens Birthday Honours and three of them were to people for their contribution to the local community and charities.
One was Captain John Green. I’ve had the pleasure of working with John for many years. John to me epitomises a good citizen, he has a wide range of skills and contacts which he uses to good effect, however he is always modest, humorous and generous in his approach. The second was Norman Stoller for his philanthropic work through the Norman Stoller Charitable Trust. The third person is Juliet Westoll who has been a central figure in the Cumbria Woman of the Year Award for many years. The new Government has great expectations for charities in fixing our problems. One of the things they identify is the role of ‘community organisers’. Well the Cumbria Woman of the Year award has been shining a light on and celebrating the myriad work of wonderful women ‘community organisers’.
With a new government comes some new language. The ‘Big Society’ is one term. In many of Cumbria’s communities I think we already have a ‘big society’ with over 3,500 charities. Another new phrase to become accustomed to is ‘civil society organisation’. I think that’s charities and community and voluntary groups to you and me.
I’ve mentioned ‘community organisers’ and I think this means those fabulous people that have an idea, get off their behinds and make things happen. The Government wants to train a ‘whole new generation’ of ‘community organiser’s’. I’m not sure people can be trained to have the essential fizz that makes them want to do things, but we can encourage those people who stand up and have a go.
People are now beginning to consider the likely effect of major cuts in welfare spending. There’s a strong link between poverty and health, educational attainment and other issues. Cumbria is very diverse and many of our most disadvantaged residents are not readily seen because they either exist in small numbers in rural locations or are found in peripheral communities in Barrow, West Cumbria and Carlisle. Sadly these communities rank alongside the most deprived in the country. How our charities are able to respond to these challenges will be fundamental in the lives of the unemployed, young people, the elderly and disabled.
I’d like to make a plug for a new initiative. The Cumbria Advice Network is a new collaboration with the Citizens Advice Bureau, Carlisle Law Centre and Shelter Cumbria at its heart. The aim of the network is simple, to improve access to information for people in need. In an internet age it’s easy to assume all you need to do is log on and read whatever you need, however complex problems require the ability to sit down with someone and be taken step by step through their issues. It has taken a lot of energy, time and commitment on the part of many people to get this far. To find out more visit www.cumbriaadvicenetwork.org.uk/can/.
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