Broxburn, Uphall & Winchburgh LOCAL AREA COMMITTEE LEADER Report REPORT by LEADER CO-ORDINATOR A. PURPOSE of REPORT to Provi
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Broxburn, Uphall & Winchburgh LOCAL AREA COMMITTEE LEADER Report REPORT BY LEADER CO-ORDINATOR A. PURPOSE OF REPORT To provide an update to local members on LEADER Applications in the Broxburn, Uphall and Winchburgh Ward B. RECOMMENDATION To note the content of this report C. SUMMARY OF IMPLICATIONS I Council Values Focusing on our customers’ needs; being honest, open and accountable; providing equality of opportunities; developing employees; making best use of our resources; and working in partnership. II Policy and Legal (including Programme complies with all relevant policies. Strategic Environmental Assessment, Equality Issues, Health or Risk Assessment) III Resources - (Financial, £1.05m has been awarded to the LEADER Staffing and Property) programme. IV Consultations Community events were held in August 2008 in the Community centers of West Calder, Armadale and Philipstoun to determine the needs of the rural communities of West Lothian. D. TERMS OF REPORT Introduction LEADER is a specialist rural development fund to support innovative project activity in- line with the provisions of the Scottish Rural Development Programme LEADER is a partnership fund to support regeneration work within rural areas. These areas are specifically defined in a West Lothian context – excluding towns with a population of more than 10,000. LEADER funding is made-up of a combination of EU and Scottish government monies and has a raft of conditions and restrictions on what it can and cannot be used for. For example – LEADER funding cannot be used to “match” other EU funding streams and cannot be deployed to undertake work outside the scope and competences of the EU (eg building houses), particularly the RDP. The West Lothian LEADER programme has been developed in response to the original invite from Scottish Government to establish such a programme in West Lothian. A Development Strategy and Business Plan has been produced which identifies the general themes and some specific actions with the aim : “To enhance the quality of life in rural West Lothian and make a positive contribution towards the creation of a more vibrant and sustainable local economy” Themes Developing community capacity Revitalising rural communities Target Groups consist Young people Women Micro-enterprises Young unemployed, MCMC group Community Development Trusts Social Economy Organisations Activities (indicative) include 1. Developing flexible local transport solutions 2. Creating employment and social opportunities for young people 3. Support to help people make the best use of existing community facilities and services 4. Making better use of the countryside and heritage assets within rural West Lothian LEADER will operate as a local grant scheme. Essentially organisations will apply to the West Lothian LAG through a 2-stage application process. All project applications must also have secured match funding as LEADER can only provide a maximum of 50% of the total funding package. It is expected that the maximum level of award will be £50,000 £1.05M LEADER money has been awarded to West Lothian Council for the period 2008 - 2013 Not all of West Lothian is eligible for LEADER funding, however Winchburgh is the only settlement eligible within the Broxburn, Uphall and Winchburgh ward. LEADER Applications One application has been received and agreed by the LAG for the area. This is a project called Winchburgh Connected. Project Total Costs £38,534, West Lothian LEADER award £18,512 and started on 1 April 2009. A range of services and agencies working in the Winchburgh area have been working together thorough the locality planning process to address need. Through this process and through a number of community engagement and involvement exercises, we have been able to identify a range of issues, which need to be addressed. Main findings have included lack of opportunities for young people and young parents, and barriers such as poor transport to access services in other towns in West Lothian, therefore also limiting employment opportunities. This proposal has been developed as an interlinked package of pilot interventions to target young people and young people who are parents in the village. The project also aims to increase community capacity – the activities proposed will be used as a catalyst to develop community involvement. The development of additional opportunities for young people will be undertaken through the good practice youth work model of fully involving young people in devising the content of activities. It will involve a variety of partners from the Community Planning Partnership. They will assist in delivering activities and training, a drop-in service, an after-school meeting place, sessions for young parents and some training sessions. This will address many issues facing young people within the Winchburgh area. Project aims: To increase the employability skills of young people in the area To increase the confidence of young people in the area To provide easier access and more choice of activities for young people in the area To provide opportunities for increase adult volunteering in the area To increase community capacity in the area To provide additional opportunities for local employment To encourage uptake of training courses To provide increased access to services such as the police, health, housing, employment services to people in the village. An update on Winchburgh Connected is covered in the Locality Planning Report presented to this meeting by Jim Forrest, Lead Officer for the area. Community Chest Funding This is a smaller LEADER funded project that offers grants of up to £3000 to organisations. To date there have been no applications from this ward for this funding. More details and eligibility is available from David Murray, Senior Policy Officer. E. CONCLUSION Winchburgh is the only eligible area in the ward with one project well underway. Members are asked to contact Avril Wallace or David Murray for more details if they have any group or organisation who are interested in submitting an application. F. BACKGROUND REFERENCES None Appendices/Attachments: None Contact Person: Avril Wallace, LEADER Co-ordinator Ph 01506 777916 David Murray, Senior Policy Officer, Voluntary Organisations Ph 01506 777128 Date: 12 August 2009.