Community Organisations (including Darnall Forum) across Sheffield have relied on funding from Sheffield Council for the last 15 Years to underpin Community Support for local people.
Whether you want to update a CV, learn a new skill, gain basic English, Maths, IT or Digital Skills - we've been here for you; if you have done this in a friendly local venue, helped by staff from your own community, you have been helped by this funding and by local community organisations.
The Council have proposed changes to this funding that will result in the loss of jobs, lack of local classes designed in conjunction with and to support local people and a potential loss of community organisations that are able to give information, advice and guidance. Other services such as childcare, food bank referrals, drop-in sessions are all at risk if this goes ahead.
Proposed cuts to Community Organisations:
Sheffield City Council released the invitation to tender last Tuesday (20th July). With no prior notice that the tender would be extremely different this time around. The original deadline was given as 6th August. Thanks to the support so far SCC did extend this and offered a briefing on curriculum development on August 10th.
Essentially, there is no longer core funding for a learning champion. The learning champion is the person out and about, talking to people where they are, finding out what they need. They then arrange the courses, enrol people on, support them during and after the class, workshop or course. But to get some people to that point takes work - the learning champion might help someone sort childcare, talk to them about getting a bus pass - help them help themselves to overcome whatever barriers they may be facing.
The loss of this and the way the process has happened is completely at odds with the messages coming from the council recently – collaboration, co-designing services, building a new relationship and equitable partnership with the voluntary and community sector.
The key issues:
- No prior communication of the nature of the changes being made to the funding model - which puts community organisations and their services at risk.
- Across Sheffield there are at least 19 staff now at risk of redundancy - these redundancies remove the key figures in Community Adult Learning.
- We are concerned it will impact on many of the most vulnerable members of our community - those that depend on local community organisations for education, socialisation and access to vital services that support them to achieve their personal goals.
The Ask:
We seek an urgent meeting with Terry, Paul, and Kate to discuss the following with providers:
- Pause the process or change the timescale to give providers more time - This was achieved and we did get a short extension to the deadline however this was not funded and the contracts still ended on July 31st
- or extend our current contracts for 12 months to enable us to transition to the new model
- If the issues lie with Sheffield City Region (SCR), Sheffield City Council (SCC) to organise a meeting with providers, SCR and SCC leadership to understand the issues and to co-produce the solutions. We did get a meeting with SCC who listened to our concerns - but if SCC maintain the issue is with SCR then we need to be supported to have a meeting with both about the process.
