Youth projects in Bramley and support for female ex-offenders in Kirkstall are just some of the projects that are seeking funding at the next Inner West Community Committee, writes Keely Bannister.
Held on Wednesday 25th September from 6pm at Fairfield Community Centre in Bramley, members of the public are welcome to attend and join their local councillors as decisions are made which will directly affect the council wards of Armley, Bramley & Stanningley and Kirkstall wards.
The most important decisions on the agenda are around the spending of each ward’s wellbeing budget for community projects and youth activities.
As detailed in a report, projects seeking funding at this meeting are:
- Broadlea Tea Time Club run by Barca Leeds, seeking £3,773
Continuation of tea time youth club provision seeking to reduce social isolation and raise aspirations in six-12 year olds living on the Broadlea estate, Bramley.
- Bramley Youth Group run by Barca Leeds, seeking £1,100
Money to cover rent for another 12 months for the continuation of a youth group helping local youths to build a positive relationship with local youth workers through activities such as sport, arts and crafts, music and dance, cooking and team games.
- Drugs: The Truth run by Drug Watch Foundation seeking £3,333.33 per ward, £10,000 total
Providing information packs and workshops to young people up to the age of 19 in schools and colleges educating them about the dangers, laws, health and social implications of drug and alcohol abuse with the aim of building self-esteem and mitigating issues such as anti-social behaviour and health problems.
- One Stop Shop Project run by Grassroots enterprise for social inclusion and poverty relief, seeking £6,000
Aiming to make the Kirkstall community safer through supporting at least 30 female ex-offenders by giving them continued support such as counselling, skill building and training for employment.
- Wythers Community Development – The ‘Greenhouse’ Project run by Voluntary Action Leeds, seeking £5,000
Funding for a development worker to remain in post for the rest of the financial year to help this pilot project which is aiming to improve community engagement and involvement and levels of community led social action onto a more sustainable.
- Young people-led participative research / social action project run by Bramley Our Place seeking £4,850
This project aims to revisit youth work principles of young people’s right to participate in decision-making and create the form and function of their youth work experience through their own research and social action.
Since the last meeting in July, the following spending has been approved:
- Armley In Bloom, Armley Action Team, £4,000
- Bramley After School Hub Klub, Kidz Klub Leeds, £3,128.18
- Portable Defibrillators, Armley Helping Hands, £3,104
It is noted in the report that a request for £10,000 for traffic calming measures for Victoria Park, Armley will likely be forthcoming when discussions between officers and local residents are completed.
It is also proposed that a £500 contribution will be issued by each ward to support the purchase of a 12-month supply of sanitary products in community hubs to help end period poverty.
Other items on the agenda include updates on the climate emergency – with councillors being asked for possible streets to close for car free days and schools that may wish to be involved, as well as areas where there might be scope to increase biodiversity or educate the public about idling.
Councillors will also be updated on progress made in relation to “Making Leeds a More Active City” through the Get Set Leeds initiative.
There will also be updates on what has been going on in each of the three council wards looking at areas such as health and wellbeing, safety, anti-social behaviour and environmental issues such as waste and littering.
You can view all the relevant documents associated with the meeting by following this link.