The Government is announcing today an extra £3m for disabled people’s grassroots organisations to better deliver services disabled people really need.
User-led organisations (ULOs) will be able to bid for the extra money from July and Minister for Disabled People, Maria Miller, is also appealing for 'ambassadors' to share best practise across the country.
Minister for Disabled People, Maria Miller said:
"Disabled people should have choice and independence in how they live their lives. Organisations run by, and for, disabled people play a vital role in making sure they have their voices heard at every level.
"Grassroots organisations are the experts in their local communities. That is why we are investing £3million to help these organisations play an even greater role in shaping the decisions that will affect their lives.
"We are looking for ambassadors in each region to promote disabled people’s organisations and share their skills and experience to help local organisations to become even more successful."
The Minister is also appealing for talented individuals from private businesses, voluntary organisations and other charities to support the scheme by sharing their skills and expertise in areas such as HR, business planning, financial management and IT.
As part of the scheme, user-led organisations will be able to bid for a share of money for specific projects that will make a significant difference to their development and sustainability. The fund will be discretionary and ULOs will have a say in how it will be administered and what the criteria for receiving a grant will be.
Philippa Thompson, CEO from the Independent Living Association for disabled people in West Sussex who is supporting the scheme said:
"Smaller organisations like ours have less money and so we sometimes find it difficult to develop and improve services and skills. That's why a grant fund, and the skills and experience we could gain through the scheme, will help us become even more successful in delivering services. Even a small amount of extra funding could make a big difference."
Notes to Editors:
- To apply to be an Ambassador or the National Lead for the project, or to nominate someone, visit http://odi.dwp.gov.uk/odi-projects/user-led-organisations.php
- ULOs will be able to apply to the fund from July, when the National Lead and Ambassadors will be announced.
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/newsroom/press-releases/2011/may-2011/dwp045-11.shtml
PDF version The government has launched a scheme designed to support the growth of local disabled people’s organisations (DPOs).
Maria Miller, the minister for disabled people, was at West of England Centre for Inclusive Living in Bristol to launch the programme, which was first announced in May and will invest £3 million over four years in helping DPOs improve how they are run.
Miller announced that Rich Watts, director of policy and development for Essex Coalition of Disabled People, had been seconded part-time to the government’s Office for Disability Issues to lead the Strengthening Disabled People’s User-Led Organisations programme.
Campaigners have increasingly been raising concerns that the local authority spending squeeze – largely caused by the government’s deficit reduction plan – has been putting the future of many local DPOs at risk.
DPOs can now bid for “modest” amounts of money – expected to be a maximum of £10,000 and up to £30,000 in total over the four years of the scheme – to fund specific projects.
Stephen Lee Hodgkins, director of Disability LIB, which was itself set up to build the capacity of DPOs, welcomed the appointment of Watts, who he said was “the right person for the job”.
He said the funding was welcome but “a drop in the ocean” when measured against the huge financial strain facing DPOs as a result of government cuts.
He also said that funding was likely to be awarded for projects that fitted the government’s agenda, rather than the agenda of DPOs.
But he welcomed the decision that any money that was needed to meet access requirements – such as BSL interpreters – would not be counted as part of the maximum funding DPOs could receive through the scheme.
As part of the same programme, the government has appointed 12 “ambassadors” to “promote the cause” of DPOs and “encourage mutual sharing and support”, although the Department for Work and Pensions was unable to say how many of them were disabled.
Hodgkins said he was disappointed that it had not been made more explicit which of the ambassadors were disabled people as that would have helped them in their role.
The government is now seeking volunteer “experts” who are willing to share their skills with DPOs, in areas such as human resources, financial management, IT and business planning.
In a statement, Watts said: “Leading this programme is a great opportunity to raise the profile of disabled people’s user-led organisations and to sustain and share the successes they achieve, including providing the support that disabled people really need.
“Working with a team of ambassadors, we will share our skills and experience with other organisations, as well as learn from them and pass it on, to ensure that disabled people have their voices heard at every level.”
A new £10million fund to find and back innovative new ideas for increasing volunteering and charitable giving was opened today by Nick Hurd, Minister for Civil Society.
The Innovation in Giving Fund was announced in the Giving White Paper published in May and forms part of a £34million package to increase levels of social action.
It breaks away from traditional government support to focus on new technologies and networks that can make it easier and more attractive for people to help each other. Social innovators have already established exciting initiatives such as Freecycle, which links people who have things they want to get rid of with people who can use them and JustGiving, which allows people to sponsor friends online. The Government wants to help more ideas like these get off the ground so people can unleash untapped community spirit, and even get something in return.
Nick Hurd, Minister for Civil Society, said:
refer http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/news/%C2%A310m-back-big-society-innovators
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has pledged £2m a year for the next four years to support people needing help with their taxes, benefits and tax credits.
The department has awarded 17 grants to 10 Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) organisations working across the UK.
In this funding round HMRC is seeking to build on achievements across the sector in previous years, increasing both the reach and numbers of vulnerable people that the VCS will be able to support.
Stephen Banyard, Acting Director General for Personal Tax, said:
“The money goes to provide independent, trustworthy support for vulnerable people and those on low incomes, to help sort out their entitlements and tax problems.
“The organisations we are funding provide support to people who may not normally come to HMRC for help and advice but who may need a helping hand understanding what benefits and credits they are entitled to claim and how the tax system affects them. For example, some of the funding will go to organisations such as Citizens Advice and Tax Help for Older People, who can help those who have worries about their finances and taxes.”
Part of the funding goes to new ways of providing support - for example, a project piloting video link-ups from a number of locations throughout England to the charity TaxAid’s specialist advisers. Funding also goes to VCS training – for example, Gingerbread will deliver training courses in Tax Credits for advisers working with lone parents.
Notes for editors
1. HMRC’s funding programme is open to applications from social enterprises, co-operatives, large and small mutuals, in addition to voluntary and community organisations and charities.
2. HMRC announced its 2011/15 funding programme in January 2011 and invited Voluntary and Community organisations to apply for grant funding to cover 2011/12 to 2014/15. A list of the successful organisations, details of their projects and amount of award are at: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vcs/funded-orgs.pdf.
3. HMRC has operated a multi-year funding commitment since 2007/08. The current funding runs over the four years 2011/12 to 2014/15. The programme will continue to:
* Help hard-to-reach and vulnerable customers get the right entitlements and to pay the right amount of tax;
* Improve the experience of hard-to-reach and vulnerable customers in their dealings with HMRC; and
* Help HMRC to gain a better understanding of the needs of customers who seek support from the voluntary and community sector.
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