​Power to the people - £600k boost for neighbourhood working

A £600,000 fund for neighbourhood working in each of the borough’s six townships has been unveiled.

The social capital fund will devolve more power to local communities, funding schemes which will improve people’s lives, health and wellbeing.

Projects will be funded over a three-year period, with £100,000 available for each neighbourhood.

Any person or community group can apply for up to £10,000 for each project, and funding may be higher for groups who work in partnership to deliver a scheme.

Applications will open on Monday 3 September and close on 5 October. Those successful at the first stage will be invited to present their ideas to a panel which will make the final decision. The council’s neighbourhood engagement team will support successful applicants to implement their projects and measure how they affect people’s lives. Details of available funding, and the decisions made, will be published online.

Councillor Tamoor Tariq, cabinet member for communities and safer neighbourhoods, said: “The social capital fund will go a long way in supporting our voluntary community and faith sector in the borough. Each township will be able to shape their own communities in meeting their individual challenges, building on the success of our participatory budgeting events over the last year.

“It is important that we devolve power from the town hall into our neighbourhoods, and this is exactly what the social capital fund aims to do. I am confident this fund will enable communities to unleash new potential and ensure local people are at the heart of local solutions.”

Cllr Rishi Shori, leader of the council, first announced that this fund would be created when the council set its budget earlier this year.

He said: “The old ‘one size fits all’ approach, delivered from the town hall, is long out of date. People know their own communities best, and know what will make a real difference in their neighbourhood. They are also keen and willing to make their projects work.

“That’s why I’ve allocated £600,000 for the social capital fund, putting local communities in charge of making decisions where they can use their hard work and expertise to bring about positive results for their fellow residents.”

For more information, contact the neighbourhood engagement team on 0161 253 7455, email: neighbourhood.engagement@bury.gov.uk or visit the Bury Directory at http://www.theburydirectory.co.uk/socialcapitalfund

ENDS

Press release issued: 11 July 2018.

Picture: Cllr Tamoor Tariq launches the new social capital fund.