In previous news articles we have mentioned that
Communities First will be going through series of changes, to
highlight this we have added a document ( below)
from the Welsh Government outlining the high level changes
that will be in place towards the end of the 2012.
Also, the proposed regional clusters is,
( SUBJECT TO WELSH GOVERNMENT APPROVAL)
Clase & Caemawr will merge with
Morriston and Graig Felin( Clydach)
Communities First Annual Conference: 10th November 2011
Swalec Stadium, Cardiff
Opening remarks
Welcome everyone to Cardiff for this year’s Communities First Annual Conference. I hope you have found the Conference interesting and stimulating.
I would like to thank all of you for your continued commitment in driving forward the Communities First programme, delivering positive changes in your communities, despite working in testing times.
I launched our Consultation on the future of Communities First back in July. In total, we received 339 responses as well as the report from three national consultation events. All of them have been reviewed and this has given us a firm foundation to go forward. You will have heard this morning some of the decisions I have now made.
Key Messages
From April 2012 Communities First will be a Community-Focussed Anti-Poverty Programme. It will build on the achievements of Communities First and preserve the best of the current programme. However, it will be a new programme in many respects with changes to address some acknowledged weaknesses.
I have three fundamental requirements going forward: Good Governance, Community Involvement and the Delivery of Anti-Poverty Outcomes.
Governance
For Communities First to flourish in future, it is essential that everyone has full confidence that the programme is consistently well managed and public funding is always safeguarded.
Many of you welcomed our proposals for a regional framework for Communities First. However, the majority of you thought that the proposed management arrangements would add to the bureaucracy and costs of the programme. You told us the focus should be on work with people at the local level.
We’ve listened to you. In future grant funding from the Welsh Government will be awarded directly to Lead Delivery Bodies (LDBs) for a Cluster Area. However, I will only allow an organisation to become a Lead Delivery Body if they:
· pass stringent Due Diligence checks,;
· have a strong track record of managing public funding, and;
· demonstrate their commitment to community involvement.
The regional dimension is not going to be lost; in fact I expect it to develop strongly over the next few years. Communities First is an important part of my agenda for the improvement of Public Service Delivery. Communities First Regional Programme Boards will be established across Wales which will provide a framework for oversight of the programme and exchange of information and good practice, linking to the national Anti-Poverty Programme Board.
Community Involvement
Community representatives will have a strong voice in the Regional Boards, ensuring that the community-focussed nature of the programme is not lost. It remains essential that communities are engaged and empowered under the programme. I especially want to see an increased emphasis on ensuring that the most vulnerable people are engaged meaningfully with the programme.
Delivery of Anti Poverty Outcomes
The delivery of Anti Poverty Outcomes through the new Communities First Outcomes Framework will also be critical, focussing on Prosperous Communities, Learning Communities and Healthier Communities.
There is good work in the current programme which contributes to tackling poverty, which I would expect to continue. I also want to make it clear that work which does not support the new aims of the programme will not be funded by Communities First in future.
Communities First Workforce
The people who work and volunteer at the heart of the programme are our most important asset. Maintaining and building on that skills base will continue in the new programme.
I have an ambition of working towards a single public sector workforce and I see the Communities First workforce as a very important part of that.
We want to keep key staff in our most deprived communities, working closely with local people and supporting them to carry on delivering real change. It is essential that the applications for funding we receive meet the standards required and are clear about the contribution each post will make to the aims of the programme.
Further Announcements
Many of you will be considering the new eligibility criteria for the programme. You will need to consider the impact for each area and we will provide as much support as possible I recognise that there are particular implications for rural areas and my officials will meet representatives of the rural partnerships as soon as possible to discuss this.
Many respondents supported our proposals for unified national support for the programme in future. I can therefore announce that a single national support contract will be procured during 2012.
The Communities First Trust Fund will continue and I intend that there will be an important role for the new Clusters in its future management. Further consideration will be given to the focus of the Fund and how it is managed. I expect to make a decision on this early in the New Year.
Programme Bending
Our commitment is that Welsh Ministers will work closely together to support the most deprived Communities in Wales. Communities First cannot stand alone and I have held discussions with a number of Ministers about this.
This is now being jointly taken forward as a part of our Anti Poverty Action Plan. Communities First will be a key part of my approach to delivering real changes for people and communities.
We will be building on some of our successes and also introducing new opportunities for Communities First Clusters. Over the coming months I expect to be making detailed announcements about these initiatives. Today I will briefly indicate some of my priorities for this essential element of Communities First.
Existing Projects
In some cases we will be building on what is already happening with other Welsh Government Departments and external organisations.
An example of this is the “Integrated Children’s Centre Pilot”, where we have worked in Partnership with Job Centre Plus to place dedicated Personal Advisers in Children’s Centres within four Communities First areas. This has now helped over 100 workless families back into work and we are talking to Job Centre Plus about how this can be built upon.
My officials have also worked with the Department for Education and Skills to introduce a project to support 180 young people from Communities First areas into work. To build on this we will be working closely with the Jobs Growth Wales Fund to ensure Communities First Clusters benefit from this major programme.
We are working closely with key programmes such as Families First, and Flying Start to tackle poverty. I want to build on some of the excellent work that is already happening, for example, in Blaenau Gwent where volunteers are supporting families. This is the type of innovative work that is really making a difference for families.
Local Service Boards
Supporting new ways of working and ensuring communities are involved not just in planning services but delivering them, is going to be crucial going forward. I know several areas have already benefitted from the Local Service Board European Structural Funds Project funding, helping communities and key agencies to work together to design new services. I have now extended this support until 2014.
Health
Poor health is a significant challenge in many of our communities, that it why it is a key priority in the programme moving forward. Working in this area has not always been easy, much good work has happened, but often I have heard that working with key health partners has not been as straightforward as we would like. I am pleased to say we are having positive discussions with both health and social services on how we improve this in the future.
Community Safety Officers
One of the 5 key commitments from the Welsh Government is to ensure the roll out of 500 additional Community Support Officers (CSOs).
My Officials are working very closely with the Welsh Police forces and Police authorities on implementing this commitment. There is still plenty of work still to be done, but we are making good progress.
This commitment is an investment in safer communities. We will need to respect the police services’ operational independence, their policing expertise, and their knowledge of their force areas
However, I have emphasised my desire to see the closest possible engagement between the additional CSOs and Communities First, building on the existing high deployment – 25% of existing CSOs cover Communities First areas. This deployment is firmly grounded in a community engagement approach to policing.
My officials are also developing a training module for the CSO training package to focus specifically on the issues and opportunities associated with Communities First.
Regeneration
I am also working closely with Huw Lewis to join up Communities First with Regeneration Programmes. This was a manifesto commitment, and it’s also part of our wider Anti-Poverty agenda.
As we finalise our response to the consultation I intend to bring forward a number of initiatives by bringing in the resources and commitment of other Welsh Government Departments. These will give communities the means to meet their own needs and, at the same time, contribute to key national priorities.
Conclusion
Some significant changes are being made in how Communities First will operate. This is so that we can best support vulnerable people and disadvantaged communities across Wales in making positive and long-lasting changes to the areas they live in.
The staff and resources of the programme alone will not be enough to support our most deprived areas so we must collaborate, at a national and local level, in these challenging economic times to safeguard the futures of our poorest communities.
I am committed to Communities First and I know all of you are. I want us to work together to ensure that we have strong Governance and strong Community Involvement at the heart this programme with the ultimate aim of delivering positive Anti Poverty Outcomes for our poorest communities and most vulnerable people.
