The Big Local Trust in conjunction with the Big Lottery fund is investing £200 million over ten years in 100-150 urban and rural neighbourhoods in England that have been overlooked for funding. The aim is that local schemes will enable people to make their communities better places to live by helping them to develop the skills and confidence they need to change the things that matter to them.
The first 50 areas have been chosen for investment and they include an area of Blackburn and Darwen.
Setting up local boards is the second phase of the process and in Shadsworth with Whitebirk. CBPartners will be working with others such as Blackburn with Darwen CVS (Council for Voluntary Services) and the Council to ensure that the board reflects the community and is set up to take things forward and make their money work hard for a better future for the area.
The emphasis is on sustainability and leaving a legacy of success for the community. Year on year the funding can go towards things like better play areas for children, coaches for football teams, improving community facilities, growing community vegetables and infrastructure to enable the lives of those living in some of the poorest communities better. The great thing about this is it is up to the community to decide where money is spent and what the priorities are for growing a more healthy vibrant area.
At the moment there is a drive in the 50 areas to recruit community stars for the boards who have Big Ideas and can resonate with the issues and challenges the community faces. Stars are often found in the unlikeliest of places so dont let this put you off applying or finding out more!
The board will decide on other things as well such as who to work with and which Key Stakeholders and partners to involve, what the arrangements are for funding, application processes and what decisions need to be taken for the project. Training will be given in areas like roles and responsibilities of boards, leadership and political awareness but for each area this will reflect the needs of the board. The skills the board will acquire will be useful not just for jobs but in order to gain confidence and experience.
This blog has tackled community engagement before and some of the fabulous things which the local community at Roman Road has taken on in the Energy Zone. There are fabulous examples of good practice such as growing fruit and vegetables, the Highercroft food co-op and gym and the brilliant work at SAMS in reducing waste and reusing rubbish all of this within striking distance of the Big Local project to be established at Shadsworth with Whitebirk.
The Big Local project will make a real difference to a local area in a challenging era which aims to be sustainable and leave a legacy for others getting long term projects off the ground; it will also be a way to create alternative business models which share benefit and value for the community alongside creating more wealth in areas which were traditionally undervalued. The future is Big and the future is Local.
No comments:
Post a Comment