By Lisa McElherron from NICVA
Published on 18 Apr 2008
The DSD committee at the Assembly has heard claims that Neighbourhood Renewal has not lived up to stated claims.
Sinn Fein MLA Fra McCann told a meeting of the Assembly's Department for Social Development Committee that he believed communities have been lied to about the way in which Neighbourhood Renewal would improve their areas.
Mr McCann, who is also a local councillor and member of his Neighbourhood Renewal (NR) partnership, said that communities were led to believe that Neighbourhood Renewal would have proper engagement from all the necessary government departments and agencies which would commit resources to the areas that needed them most. However he believes that the new approach offered by NR has never been implemented and departments outside DSD have not lived up to their responsibility.
Ulster Unionist MLA Fred Cobain agreed and said that despite numerous initiatives and strategies nothing had really changed to improve the lives of the most deprived communities across Northern Ireland.
Mr Cobain accused DSD of ‘washing its hands’ of the issue of deprivation by passing NR to local councils as part of the Review of Public Administration changes. Mr Cobain said that there are many issues impacting on deprivation, such as education and health, which cannot be solved at local level and need a regional approach. He called for the relevant Departments to be properly resourced to take the necessary steps to tackle deprivation.
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Committee members asked the DSD officials present to detail the number of jobs that will be lost in the voluntary and community sector when NR comes to an end. The exact number was not available but officials assured members that they were taking the necessary steps to ensure that groups found alternative sources of funding.
When questioned about which groups would not continue to receive funding, DSD officials said that judgments were being made in line with the priorities agreed in each local community plan. Some committee members said they were still unclear as to how a service which was currently funded under an action plan could cease to be a priority and it was agreed that further information would be sought.
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