Agenda item

The Cabinet gave consideration to a report of the Director of Public health which sought approval to allocate £648,000 of Contain Outbreak Management Fund (COMF) monies to the previously established single grant for the Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise sector (VCFSE) in Oldham, known as the ‘One Oldham Fund’. This investment would support the sector’s resilience to enable key VCFSE organisations to remain viable to continue to deliver the ongoing Covid19 response and to contribute to the delivery of Oldham’s Covid Recovery Strategy priorities.

The Covid19 crisis had a direct and significant impact on the Voluntary, Community, Faith & Social Enterprise (VCFSE) sector in Oldham. The crisis has precipitated a rise in demand for services delivered by the sector, reduced their ability to generate income and left many community groups and organisations having to radically redesign their delivery or cease activity for some time. The sector has equally been a critical partner in delivering the Covid19 response work across Oldham’s communities and has provided a significant leadership role at all levels of Oldham’s coordinated response.

At the outset of the pandemic action was taken to support the sector. The Council and CCG in Oldham committed to allowing the sector to be creative with existing public sector funds and resources, and to easing monitoring and reporting deadlines, the Council also offered a route for VCFSE suppliers to request relief and for grant holders to make contact.

Action Together launched a quick response grant fund to help local groups and charities access immediate funding and support, as well as a public fundraising drive to help raise money, so that groups and charities could help local people struggling through the crisis. To date the quick response fund has raised £89,025 through a contribution from the Action Oldham Fund, public fundraising, GM grants and local business donations. Subsequently a further £170,000 was pooled from Thriving Communities Fast Grants, Standing Together and Oldham Housing Providers funds into the Covid19 Response Fund. To date grants have been awarded to more than 150 organisations through this fund to support Covid19 response.

In addition, during the pandemic Oldham has been awarded funds through the MHCLG Community Champions fund and the DEFRA Emergency Assistance grant a proportion of which have been used to invest in VCFSE organisations to deliver Covid19 related engagement activities and humanitarian aid respectively. Action Together have also supported groups to access external funding throughout the pandemic.

These funds had been vital in enabling the sector to play an integral role in the Covid19 response in Oldham. However, often funding would cover new and additional costs, which could still leave some organisations drawing on reserves to cover core costs where income is reduced or with fewer options if they are unable to operate fully during the crisis although they may have a vital role in supporting the recovery within our communities.

From a position of operating at historically low levels of reserves pre-Covid it is likely that coming out of the crisis the VCFSE sector would be less resilient than coming into the crisis. However, their services and activity are critical if we are to respond to the impact of the crisis on levels of poverty, food insecurity, mental health and wellbeing, domestic violence, social isolation and physical health.

A thriving and sustainable VCFSE sector is essential to the delivery of the ambition set out in the Oldham Plan and Locality Plan. Thinking differently about our investment to the sector is a key component of this, and through the Thriving Communities work prior to Covid19 consideration had been given to the role of a strategic VCFSE investment fund for Oldham as a vehicle for transforming our approach. The establishment of such a fund was also a recommendation of the recently published evaluation of the Thriving Communities programme. A single strategic fund would consist of:

The use of COMF funding to invest in the VCFSE to support Covid19 recovery according to the same principles can act as a stepping stone to establishing a strategic investment fund. Beyond this financial year (and the COMF funding allocation) the investment fund could provide a focus for external funding and an opportunity to drive innovation and grow the sector.

This report proposed that a further £648,000 of COMF funding is used to extend the One Oldham Fund for 22/23. This would equate to a total of £1.11m investment over 21/22 and 22/23. When the decision was made to extend the funding in January 2022 this was done based on previous government requirement for funds to be allocated before 31^st March 2022, so funds were awarded in anticipation of awarding micro and small grants to be spent in that time period. As the period over which COMF funds can be spent has been extended until 31^st March 2023 it provides an opportunity to award larger grants which can be spent over a year and provide some longer-term stability for organisations.

The proposal to allocate COMF funding to a single grant investment fund for Oldham was built upon work that the Council and Action Together have been developing through the Thriving Communities Programme, 10+ years’ experience of making grant investment to the VCFSE and learning and insight gained throughout the last 12 months of delivering Covid Response grant investment to the VCFSE.

The anticipated costs were detailed below:

Options/alternatives considered

Option 1 – No investment is made to One Oldham Fund from COMF

This was not regarded as a viable option this would significantly impact on the VCFSE sector’s ability to contribute to Oldham’s Covid19 recovery strategy, as well as on the sustainability of organisations in the sector over the next 12 months.

Option 2 – £648,000 is awarded to One Oldham Fund from COMF

This option is recommended to ensure continued role of VCFSE sector in Oldham’s Covid19 response and effective contribution to the recovery strategy and key outcomes. This investment will also benefit the sustainability of the sector over the short to medium term and provide a framework and learning for future strategic investment in the sector.

Option 3 – A smaller investment is made to One Oldham Fund from COMF

This option may be required if there were wider demands on the COMF funding. In this case a smaller investment fund could be established based on the same principles and investment framework. The option is not recommended as it will mean funding will not reach the breadth of organisations required and therefore will have more limited impact on key Covid19 recovery outcomes, and on the sustainability of the sector overall.

RESOLVED – That £648,000 is awarded to One Oldham Fund from Contain Outbreak Management Fund (COMF).