Minutes:
The Committee considered the undernoted report:
“1.0 Relevant Background Information
1.1 The purpose of this paper is to provide a progress report on the transfer of Urban Regeneration and Community Development Revenue Grant Programmes from DSD to Belfast City Council for the Transition period of Local Government Reform (1 April 2015 – 31 March 2017)
1.2 As previously agreed by STC, Feb 2014, it is our intention that new revenue contracts are put in place between the new Council and groups currently funded by DSD (subject to application and assessment) in order to maintain existing arrangements for the Transition Period of 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2017. It is expected that this process will be completed within the current calendar year to enable groups and organisations to plan for the delivery of programmes from 1st April 2015.
2.0 Current status
2.1 The transfer incorporates 7 legacy revenue grant programmes, including:
· Community Support Programme (CSP)
· Neighbourhood Renewal (NR)
· Areas at Risk
· Community Investment Fund (CIF)
· Belfast City Centre Promotions
· Belfast City Centre Community Activity Grant
· Belfast City Centre Events Grant
2.2 As part of the Council’s due diligence it was identified that these programmes constitute a spend of £15.8m at 2014-15 levels. This is some £5.4m more than the revenue grant component within the DSD regional allocation model. This significant financial gap was considered at a series of pre summer joint BCC-DSD Director’s workshops. During the discussions, DSD agreed to retain responsibility for 2 projects with a total contract value of £1,048,000. Issues were identified with a small number of contracts which would require further discussion with contract parties to inform any committee consideration.
Groups responsible for all other contracts have been invited to resubmit applications for funding and assessments are underway.
3.0 BCC Community Development Grant Programme (previously Community Support Programme)
3.1 Members should note that the Council has opened its own Community Development Grants Programmes to all groups, including those in the new areas that will form part of the extended Belfast council area, for transitional funding from April 2015 to March 2017. This programme has historically been part financed through a substantial grant from the DSD’s Regional Community Support Programme.
3.2 These existing grant programmes (for capacity building, revenue support for community buildings, advice and information and small grants programmes) will not change in any substantial way during this transitional period. The Revenue Grants application call for Community Buildings and Capacity Building Grants closed in July 2014, whilst the Generalist Advice Grant application call closed on 4 August 2014. Assessment is underway and recommendations will be presented to committee in November 2014 pending confirmation of total available budget.
4.0 Neighbourhood Renewal Revenue Projects (inc Areas at Risk), Community Investment Fund.
4.1 As noted, in April 2014 the former STC agreed to extend the majority of the current DSD revenue contracts (subject to application and assessment), to enable groups and organisations to plan for the commencement of the transition period on 1st April 2015. This includes the Neighbourhood Renewal and Areas at Risk programme in the city and the Belfast commitments under the regional Community Investment Fund. Within these programmes, DSD currently provide revenue funding to over 130 projects in the Belfast council area, and it is expected that the majority of these projects will seek funding to continue their activities at similar levels from April 2015 onwards.
Council officers have been working with DSD colleagues to formulate arrangements to administer funding post 1 April 2015. DSD officials will evaluate and assess existing revenue projects and then pass the evaluations, applications and economic appraisals to the Council in October 2014, which should allow the Shadow Council to review and take decisions by December 2014. This will be allow notification of funding decisions to be given at least 3 months before existing contracts terminate.
Previous legal advice indicated that BCC would require “meaningful involvement” with the assessment of transferring grants, before these could be approved. In light of this advice, Council officers have agreed a process with DSD which covers the following steps:
· Joint agreement on grant applications to be assessed
· Initial assessment of applications by DSD against economic appraisal, with list of grants that meet the required standards being forwarded to BCC.
· BCC verification process
· Recommendations for grant awards taken to Committee for approval
· Information gathering and issuing of contacts managed by the Central Grants Unit
· Contracts verified by legal services before issue.
4.2 There are a number of existing projects within Neighbourhood Renewal Programme that have not yet been asked to submit applications for funding during the transitional period. For example, some groups are delivering projects which will be fully completed in advance of the transfer (such as a stand-alone Feasibility Study) and will not therefore require transitional funding.
In addition, there are a small number of funding agreements under the current NR programme where some technical issues need to be resolved before an application can be considered. This includes, for example, projects where payments are made by DSD to other Government Departments/Agencies to help co-ordinate the work, or where the services could be delivered as part of other existing mainstream programmes.
Officers have been working with DSD officials and project promoters to resolve these technical issues as quickly as possible and have ensured that groups are kept informed of progress in this regard. Those issues yet to be resolved can be summarised as follows:
4.3 Statutory Bodies: Under the NRP there are 6 contracts between DSD and a variety of statutory body projects with a value of £295,000. While some of these contracts are simply a mechanism to channel funds to community organisations, there is a case that some might be better funded from other funding streams such as Urban Villages or the Delivering Social Change ‘Nuture Units’ Programme. At the joint workshops it was proposed that DSD/BCC should explore whether the statutory bodies might consider a case to mainstream the funding for their current grant aided projects. This work is ongoing.
4.3 There are a small number of self-contained studies which should reach their natural conclusion before the point of transfer with a limited saving of £58,000.
4.4 Neighbourhood Renewal Co-ordinator Posts
As part of the NR Programme, DSD currently have five contracts which specifically fund 10 NR Co-ordinator posts at an annual cost of £240,000. These posts were initially funded to assist NRPs review their Action Plans and DSD had envisaged this work to be temporary in nature.
During our on-going engagement process some stakeholders have expressed concern that the work and capacity of the NRPs would be greatly reduced without the support provided by the NR co-ordinators. Members are therefore asked to consider whether they wish to invite applications to continue to resource the NR Co-ordinator posts.
Although NRPs are not set up on statutory basis, they are governed by a Code of Practice, which sets out their governance and accountability, as well as the roles and responsibilities of all parties. It is recommended that BCC refine and adopt the Code of Practice for the period 2015-2017 in line with Council policies. After this point it is envisaged that the Community Planning strategy will set out refreshed governance arrangements to co-ordinate and deliver activity at local level. Officers will initiate this approach and table a paper for committee approval by October 2014.
4.5 ESF Match Funded Projects (due to end March 2015)
DSD currently provides around £700k to match-fund 11 employability related projects which are part financed by the European Social Fund (ESF) administered by DEL. These current ESF projects are due to end in March 2015. As the 2014 -2020 ESF programme has not yet opened there are, at this point in time, no projects which will require match funding from the monies transferring from DSD.
Members will wish to note however that the Development Department is currently exploring how the Council can best use its own resources to support employability and skills development across the city in advance of the launch of the next ESF funding programme in November 2014.
Whilst elements of the future ESF programme will be 100% funded, those groups which were previously recipients of match funding from the DSD’s NRP for ESF projects will undoubtedly make applications to the Council for future projects which require match funding.
In order to be able to resource future applications and to ensure that the Council has resources to match fund its own ESF applications to DEL it recommended that £700k of the NRP funds transferring from DSD is retained by the Council to fund future employability activities .
5.0 Belfast City Centre Revenue Grant Programmes
5.1 The BCCRD unit in DSD manages a further 3 grant support programmes which aim to promote and manage the use of the Belfast City Centre area and secure the participation of local communities in its regeneration. The current annual commitment across the 3 programmes is in the region of £750,000. The programmes are:-
City Centre Promotions in support of city centre promotion, marketing and regeneration. Belfast City Centre Events Grants to support and encourage local involvement and community participation which will help to develop the city as a destination. Events should aim to contribute to the attraction of visitors to the City Centre area and encourage people to visit and enjoy what the city of Belfast has to offer.
Belfast City Centre Community Activity Grants offer small grants of up to £1,000 to voluntary, charitable and community groups based in the Belfast electoral wards to support activities (arts, sports, educational, cultural and environmental) in the city centre area.
5.2 While these are stand alone grant schemes within DSD, the grants connect with funding programmes across council, for example, promotion of arts and cultural activities/attractions, economic development and good relations. Further work needs to be completed to inform members on the most appropriate options for future management of these funds and a further report will be brought to the Committee in due course.
5.3 Members are asked to agree in principle to the retention of the resource budget and to consider a further paper outlining the specifics of the various programmes in the Autumn.
6.0 Equality Implications
6.1 Equality and good relations in relation to this policy are still under consideration. Equality screening has been completed for NR/ Areas at Risk, CIF and Belfast City Centre Programmes. Further work will be carried out with the Equality and Diversity Officer.
7.0 Resources
7.1 The STC previously agreed that there would be no diminution of the current levels of revenue support. On that basis it is estimated that circa £15.8m will be spent in supporting neighbourhood renewal, community development and employability related activity within the new Belfast City Council boundaries during the 2015/16 and 2016/17 financial years.
7.2 Further consideration and a decision on the allocation of any Regeneration Revenue budget will be required in advance of any consideration of grant applications for revenue projects.
8.0 Call in
This report is subject to Call In.
9.0 Recommendations
Community Development Grant Programme:
· note the progress to date and the time-line for recommendations to committee for CDGP large grants 2015-17.
Neighbourhood Renewal, Areas at Risk, Community Investment Fund
· note the progress to date and the time-line for recommendation to committee for grants under the NR programme, Areas at Risk and the Belfast grants under the CIF;
· note that in order to maintain the ‘steady state’ policy at transition, BCC should tailor and adopt the Code of Practice to cover 2015-2017;
· agree to continue to fund NR Co-ordinator posts at an annual cost of £240,000 up to March 2017;
· agree to retain the current DSD allocation of £700,000 for employability and skills activity.
Belfast City Centre Revenue Grant Programmes
· agree in principle to retain the resource budget pending a further paper outlining the specifics of any aligned programme.”
The Committee adopted the recommendations.