Report of the Strategic Director (Neighbourhoods)

This report provides an update on the outcome of the youth and play commissioning process.  It also provides an update on the highlights from the HAF Programme, an overview of the Department of Culture, Media & Sport’s (DCMS) YIF Programme andan update on Manchester’s YIF capital programme.

The Committee considered the report of the Strategic Director (Neighbourhoods) which provided an update on the outcome of the youth and play commissioning process. It also provided an update on the highlights from the HAF Programme, an overview of the Department of Culture, Media & Sport’s (DCMS) YIF Programme and an update on Manchester’s YIF capital programme.

Key points and themes in the report included:

• Policy context;
• Decision-making processes for youth and play commissioning;
• Applications, funding awards and development;
• Quality assurance;
• Holiday Activities Fund (HAF); and
• Youth Investment Fund (Capital) Programme.

The Head of Libraries, Galleries, Culture and Youth, Play and Participation Services thanked officers for all their hard work in relation to these areas of work.

Some of the key points and themes that arose from the Committee’s discussions were:

• The challenges in deciding who would be awarded funding because of the volume of applications and the limited funding available;
• Support for organisations which had not been successful in obtaining funding or had not been awarded the full amount of funding that they had asked for; and
• Issues with territory and young people not wanting to travel to different areas.

The Commissioning and Engagement Manager reported that positive meetings had taken place with organisations who had not been successful in obtaining funding and that these organisations had been offered support, including training opportunities, feedback on their application and, in some cases, smaller amounts of funding.  He reported that the Council had offered help with finding alternative sources of funding and help with writing their applications, if needed.  He acknowledged that there had been difficult decisions on awarding funding and that the vast majority of organisations had not received what they had asked for; however, he reported that there was a robust process in place for making the decisions, with decisions made based on the merit of the application and assessed against the agreed criteria, considering whether they were meeting the needs of local communities and in line with national and local strategies.  In response to a further question, he advised Members that the additional £500,000 referred to in the report was to support groups and build their capacity, including training and development for their staff, such as youth work qualifications.

In response to a question from the Chair about coverage across different wards, the Executive Member for Early Years, Children and Young People reported that the Council always wanted to improve in terms of having more provision and a more equitable coverage across the city; however, having brought the commissioning programme back in-house, the Council now had better knowledge of current provision, was monitoring it and would ensure that organisations were delivering to the areas they had said they would.  In response to a Member’s question about grassroots organisations, he reported that the Council could provide help and support to these groups and suggested that they could apply to the HAF Fund.  He thanked those in the youth and play sector for their work.

The Commissioning and Engagement Manager reported that, while territory was still an issue, more young people were now willing to travel, and providers were being asked to work with young people to address this issue.  He informed Members that the successful applicants had indicated that they would be working with young people across different wards and that monitoring would take place to ensure that this was happening.  He informed the Committee about the quality assurance and monitoring processes, including the use of Young Ambassadors and Peer Reviewers.  In response to a question from the Chair, he reported that most of the organisations which had been funded were providing both youth and play activities.  In response to a question about outreach work, he confirmed that some organisations had been funded to provide outreach work, including work to address territorial issues and issues within specific areas.  

The Chair emphasised the importance of monitoring that work was taking place, including at a ward level.  She highlighted that some wards in north Manchester had a high number of homeless families placed in them and the need to address any gaps in provision.

Decision

To note the report.

[Councillor Lovecy declared a personal interest as a trustee of Trinity House Community Resource Centre.]

[Councillor Alijah declared a personal interest as the Chair of the Hideaway Youth Project.]