THIS REPORT RELATES COUNCIL TO ITEM ON THE AGENDA

COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC COMMUNITY – YOUTH DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE SUPPORT

31/05/2001 NOT EXEMPT

ESF COMPASS FOR LIFE PROJECT

1 PURPOSE

1.1 The purpose of this report is to update the Committee on the work undertaken as part of the Objective 3 European Social Funded (ESF) Compass for Life Project.

2 SUMMARY

2.1 The ESF Compass for Life Project aims to address social exclusion amongst young people in Stirling. It will assist young people deal with their barriers to participation and enable them to make a successful transition into employment and active citizenship.

2.2 The Project is led by Youth Support and involves an operating partnership of agencies including a number of Council Services, Careers Central Ltd, Youth Project, Off the Record, Scottish Enterprise Forth Valley, ACE, Triage Central Ltd, Employment Services, Central Police, Barnardo’s Freagarroch Project.

2.3 The full project will provide funding for 14 additional posts. It will include the setting up of a specialist support team for disadvantaged young people and the delivery of a range of community based employment, personal and social development initiatives designed to improve access to the labour market.

2.4 The project began in January 2001 and has had 67 participants receiving a range of support between January and March 2001. 27 of these young people have received their support through youth facilities in Cultenhove, Callander, Cornton, and Cowie.

2.5 Plans are in place to develop the project over the next three years.

3 RECOMMENDATION(S)

3.1 Members are asked to note the contents of the report.

3.2 Members are asked to note that a further bid for European funding will be submitted in June 2001.

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4 CONSIDERATIONS

4.1 A bid was submitted in September 2000 to the Scottish Objective 3 European Social Fund for three years’ funding of a project to provide support for disadvantaged young people. This bid was approved for three-year funding but due to the cash limit on the funds available only one year was approved. Notification of approval was issued on 19 December 2000.

4.2 This is an additionally project. The European Social Fund provides funding to deliver additional support alongside that which mainstreams government programmes such as Skillseekers and New Deal provide.

4.3 The additional funds have allowed the following services to be developed :

4.3.1 A specialist support team of staff has been put in place. This includes specialist practitioners in Mental Health, Housing, Careers, Learning Support, Substance Abuse, and Criminal Justice. Rather than set up a separate team, the project has supplemented existing partner agency teams by funding staff who will work on it. It is expected that this will improve inter-agency working as well as promoting a multi-disciplinary approach. It will also contribute to Best Value.

4.3.2 Community based support teams have been set up. These are working from the One Step Centres in Cowie, Cornton and and the Callander Youth Project. Interim teams have been running a pilot 13-week training programme in these areas, which began in February 2001. These pilots are aimed at making contact with those young people who would not normally engage in training activities. These teams will in the future be organising for the Centres :

• a range of drop-in services • one-to-one support for a number of clients • an on-going Compass Pre-Vocational Personal and Social Development programme • developing a ‘Youth Management Group’

4.3.3 Those young people already receiving assistance from Youth Support will be able to access the additional services listed above and a range of extra personal and social development programmes that are being developed for all Compass Young People.

4.4 To launch the project Youth Support Staff were given extra hours or seconded in from other areas of work while recruitment was taking place. Four of the sixteen new posts remain to be filled.

4.5 In February, 27 young people were recruited to the four pilot projects. Compass staff teams, in conjunction with participating young people, created programmes offering opportunities for vocational and personal skills development.

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4.6 All of the locally devised programmes include sessions in skill awareness, job seeking skills, entrepreneurship and I.T. In addition there have also been additional opportunities to achieve certificated learning (eg First Aid, I.T. and Sports Leadership). Examples of locally based work include :

4.6.1 In Cowie, Cowie Community Enterprises provided funding for personal safety training for the young people in their centre. They also provided access to ICT equipment for training. The young people from Cowie are also involved in an environmental project to improve the Primary School Grounds.

4.6.2 In Cultenhove, the young people have created a garden for the Local Nursery School. This group has teamed up with the Cultenhove for Change initiative and have accessed ICT through their facilities.

4.6.3 In Callander, the young people are investigating starting a Community Business through the Callander Youth Project through which they also access ICT and other facilities. (The Foot and Mouth Crisis has recently hampered work in Callander.)

4.6.4 In Cornton, the young people raised funds and gave a donation to the Local Hospice. They also organised a Fun Day for children in Cornton during the Easter holidays. Through partnership with ACE (Adult Careers Education) the young people have accessed ICT and other training.

4.7 Forty young people who were eligible for Compass support were identified as currently receiving support through Youth Support training programmes in January. These young people were transferred into the Compass Project from the 1 February. A leaflet advising these young people of the extra support now available to them is being prepared.

4.8 An analysis of the needs reported by the young people on starting has been prepared. It is anticipated that as staff gain the trust of these young people, more information about their needs will become available.

4.9 A formal project launch is currently being planned to coincide with the completion of the pilot.

4.10 Priorities for the next three months include preparing a bid for ESF funding for 2002 to 2004, putting into place the full staffing complement, organising a range of staff development opportunities to ensure that all relevant staff are fully briefed on project operations and arranging independent project evaluation.

5 POLICY IMPLICATIONS

5.1 This project will contribute to the strategic aims of the Council by providing enhanced opportunities to disadvantaged young people currently excluded from economic and social activities in the Stirling area enabling them to address their barriers to Social Inclusion.

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6 CONSULTATIONS

6.1 This project was developed through consultation with various agencies all of whom are now involved in either advising the project or in the delivery of the project.

7 RESOURCE IMPLICATIONS

7.1 This Project is funded using £198,924 from Youth Support Core budget, £221,400 Skillseekers funding from Scottish Enterprise Forth Valley and £51,660 New Deal funding from Triage Central Ltd/ Employment Services. This funding was used as match funding to draw down £386,169 of additional funding from ESF Objective 3.

8 BACKGROUND PAPERS

8.1 Copies of the project plan and the detailed January to March Project Progress report are available from Youth Support.

8.2 Committee Report to Community and Economic Development Committee (31 August 2000) on European Funding Submissions.

Author(s) Name Designation Tel No/Extension

Des Friel Head of Sport, Leisure and 443419 Youth

Joyce Petrie 432111 Service Manager (Youth Learning)

Approved by Name Designation Signature

Helen Munro Director of Community Services

Date 4 May 2001 Reference csrep204

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