- Your paper suggests that some 4000 jobs are at risk out of the 33,000 total as a result of the termination of current EU programmes. What has been done so far to alert the sector and find ways of sustainability?
The emphasis seems to be on mainstreaming the group programme policy, which means funding eventually from local/central government. The Government contribution to the voluntary/community sector is £190m at present, but there is the potential for this to rise to £500m. Will that then necessitate a shifting of the burden around the various Departments?
The voluntary/community sectors are said to represent effective vehicles for tackling social need. However, my experience is that there has been a multiplication of groups that seem if anything to be becoming more dependent on financial intervention.
There is a considerable overlap in programmes with many providing similar objectives and outcomes. As this has been known for some time, has the Department taken any steps to address the problem of duplication?
- The sector is already aware of the threat to jobs. NICVA has been undertaking a series of consultations within the sector and is now grappling with this major issue.
There is no agreed definition of "mainstreaming". Some may see as the acid test of a project whether it can continue beyond the end of its funding. The community sector would argue that there are wider implications, and that the legacy delivered by a project is also important. For example, if through an innovative approach an organisation can find a better way of delivering a service that is mainstream, it could be contracted to supply that service to the statutory sector. So it can impact on Government policy.
The NI Statistics and Research Agency analysed each Department's responses to the social inclusion. The clear consensus was that the main benefit of funding was to tackle exclusion and bring in marginalised groups.
The Department is well aware of the need to minimise duplication and focus on complementarity. There are databases for information, and funding application forms place the onus firmly on the applicant to make clear whether any other funders are involved and to advise of any change of circumstances.
Social Development Minutes 10 February 2000