Three new jobs as Caithness Voluntary Group gets £200,000 for projects to benefit vulnerable people
More than £200,000 in Scottish Government funding has been awarded to Caithness Voluntary Group to develop projects that will benefit the most vulnerable people in the community.
It is part of a package of £1.5 million from the Aspiring Communities Fund being shared among 11 community organisations across the Highlands and Islands. The fund, with European support, was launched by the Scottish Government in 2017 to help reduce poverty and enable inclusive growth in disadvantaged and fragile areas around Scotland.
Wick-based CVG is receiving £200,584 for an initiative called Adaptive and Collaborative Communities which will run for 21 months, creating two full-time jobs and one part-time post.
CVG's senior development officer Allan Tait said: "We are absolutely delighted to receive word of this funding. Previous work by CVG in partnership with Pulteneytown People's Project and Thurso Community Development Trust helped identify areas of inequality in our community.
"We saw the impact the absence of reliable and affordable transport has on people's life opportunities. Social isolation, along with very limited support for people suffering with mental health issues, was identified as a problem throughout the county.
"Food insecurity was another area that needed to be addressed.
"All the issues identified prior to Covid-19 are still there and are likely to be exacerbated now due to the current crisis. In addition we are likely to be faced with an economic recession and rising unemployment.
Social isolation, along with very limited support for people suffering with mental health issues, was identified as a problem throughout the county.
"The project will run for 21 months and will see the recruitment of a part-time co-ordinator and two full-time development officers whose role will be to work with the community to develop projects to the benefit of the most vulnerable individuals in Caithness.
"The team will work with another team operating in Sutherland and share knowledge on projects and develop a library of information and guidance that can be accessed by everyone."
Kyle of Sutherland Development Trust was allocated £249,168 for its Adaptive and Collaborative Communities programme.
Six of the 11 awards in the fifth round of Aspiring Communities Fund approvals were given to groups in the Outer Hebrides (totalling nearly £617,000), while two projects in Orkney benefited from more than £330,000 and one in Inverness-shire received more than £130,000.
Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) helped community organisations in the region to apply.
The funding was approved shortly before the coronavirus lockdown. HIE says it is now working with groups leading the projects to help ensure delivery of the benefits in the context of the pandemic.
Douglas Cowan, HIE’s director of communities and place, said: “It’s great to see more projects in the Highlands and Islands receiving support from the Aspiring Communities Fund. The fund supports community organisations to develop relevant services to address local circumstances and needs.
“It is designed to empower and strengthen community resilience, sustainability and quality of life by supporting valuable local initiatives that tackle poverty and social inclusion.
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“The lockdown has presented news challenges for everyone and we are working with the community organisations leading the projects to help ensure they can progress in the context of the pandemic.”
Scotland's communities secretary Aileen Campbell said: “The Scottish Government wants to create a fairer and more equal Scotland and we know that local communities understand best where funding can make a difference in their own areas.
“The Aspiring Communities funding will support organisations to deliver tangible, innovative approaches to tackle poverty and inequality based on local need and priorities.
“I’m confident that each of these great projects will support people to tackle the disadvantages they face and have a long-lasting, positive impact on people’s lives and the communities they live in – many of which have been impacted by the non-health harms caused by Covid-19.”