There was submitted the Minute of the meeting of Erskine, Inchinnan, Bishopton and Langbank Local Partnership held on 6 June 2024.

DECIDED: That the Minute be approved.

There was submitted a report by the Chief Executive, Renfrewshire Council, relative to the funds allocated by this Local Partnership in 2024/25 and the current budget position.

The Strategic Partnership & Inequalities Manager noted that at the previous meeting of the Partnership it had been agreed that a hold would be placed on the grant awards to a number of groups pending the receipt of further information.  The Partnership were advised that some of these grants had been paid in error prior to the information being recieved but assurances were given that, where the information was not forthcoming, there were measures in place which would allow the funds to be reclaimed. 

The Chair shared the concerns raised by members around this and advised that she was working with the relevant officers to ensure that processes were updated to avoid a repeat of this error.  It was noted that a Local Partnership Development Officer was due to take up their post in October 2024 and that this would allow for more time to be dedicated to the grant awarding process.

A table setting out the funds allocated by Erskine, Inchinnan, Bishopton and Langbank Local Partnership in 2024/25 and current budget position was attached as an appendix to the report.  It was noted that awards totalling £30,412.42 from an available budget of £43,639  had been made, leaving a remaining balance to be allocated during 2024/25 of £13,226.58.

DECIDED:

(a) That the update on the grant payments made in error be noted; and

(b) That the budget monitoring report for 2024/25 be noted.

A presentation was delivered by the Strategic Partnership & Inequalities Manager relative to identifying common matters that were important to people in the area and setting local priorities for improvement. It was envisaged that, once identified, these local priorities would be used to target resources and improvement actions. The presentation, which included national and local data profiles provided detailed key facts about the demographic and migration of the local population; religions, languages and races within the community; access, health and crime deprivation; children and education; population demographics, health resources; and local assets, etc. specific to this Local Partnership area. Based on the information provided, members worked in groups to identify and set local priorities for the area. 

The current local priorities - intergenerational work; health and wellbeing; connectivity; community identity; planning and environment; and community empowerment - were discussed. Members were asked to consider these priorities in the current strategic context  and determine which, if any, needed to be updated, removed or replaced. It was agreed that the current priorities remained relevant however it would be useful to add a new priority with a focus on leisure, culture and arts.

While discussing the priorities A McNiven, Engage Renfrewshire, noted that there had been a drop in volunteer numbers across the sector. It was agreed that a presentation on the impact of this at a future meeting would be helpful.

DECIDED:

(a) That all of the current priorities remained relevant and should continue to be a focus for the Partnership;

(b) That a priority around leisure, culture and arts should be added; and

(c) That the Partnership would receive a presentation at a future meeting on the fall in volunteering numbers and the associated impact on the third sector.