A letter to Susan Woolf, our Children’s Society representative.
The last year has undoubtedly presented challenges we could never have anticipated when the Coordinated Community Support Programme pilot began in August 2019. The pandemic has highlighted the vital importance of providing assistance to individuals and families facing financial crisis, as well as the need to coordinate Local Authority and Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector support within a local area.
With this in mind, we are delighted that the Coordinated Community Support Programme Year 1 evaluation is now complete and can be found on our website: https://www.coordinatedcommunitysupport.org.uk
Despite having to significantly shift their methodological approach in light of Covid, the external evaluation and learning team have done an excellent job capturing how the programme has developed in all four pilot areas – Oldham, Norfolk, Swansea and Tower Hamlets.
Highlights from the report include:
Coordination between services and provision does not just happen; it requires resource, capacity, funding and headspace for organisations to engage with each other and build networks
The CCS programme provided over £100k in grants to pilot site partners between March – October 2020. Funding was directed towards addressing issues including:
Organisational capacity – provision of infrastructure support and facilitating delivery of services (in line with WFH guidance)
Direct funding for those in need – distribution of emergency food, fuel, furniture items and data top-ups to those in need, including people with No Recourse to Public Funds
Service expansion – support to enable organisations to meet rising demand (i.e. family solicitor services in Norfolk)
The CCS Programme was found to have:
Acted as a local ‘asset-identifier’ by bringing together local partners around a common goal
Become a broker between VCFS Organisation and LAs, particularly with reference to small community and volunteer led organisations that, whilst small, are integral to the fabric of local crisis provision
Provided a flexible and solutions focused space to discuss immediate and emerging needs
Operated a flexible and needs-led funding approach devised in partnership with the local CCS network
Provided opportunities for partners to make valuable contributions to local and national policy related discussions, including The Children’s Society policy and campaigns work
Thank you for your continuing support