Your Police, You Decide – Caithness funding project invites local groups to apply for share of £32K

Police Scotland and the Caithness Voluntary Group (CVG) are inviting local groups to apply for a share of a new £32,000 fund for Caithness.

The ‘Your Police, You Decide’ project has been funded by the Scottish Government and aims to ensure the local community is engaged in decision making to improve safety and wellbeing in their region.

The project will run throughout the rest of summer and autumn 2022 and a steering group, made up of people representing the Caithness area, has been recruited to help run the initiative.

Community groups are being invited to make their case for funding for initiatives aimed at improving the safety and wellbeing of communities in Caithness.

Applications can be made by clubs, groups, and community-led forums such as parent or community councils, and should fit with at least one of the following broad themes:

• Safety and wellbeing – including mental health: Making sure that everyone in Caithness has the chance to lead safe, healthy, active lives.
• Poverty and inequality – including tackling cost of living, fuel poverty and transport: Reduce the harms caused by poverty and inequality, and improve dignity for anyone experiencing poverty.

The organisers are particularly keen to support activities or projects which support people who are often seldom heard, marginalised or facing social injustice in communities, or who face barriers to participating in democracy.

Applications will be reviewed by the steering group before being put to a public vote. A celebratory community event will be held later in 2022 to announce the successful applicants. For more information and to apply, visit https://tinyurl.com/ypydcaithness

Senior development officer at CVG, Allan Tait, said: “It has been a very difficult few years for everyone so we are really excited to be working with the Scottish Government and Police Scotland to bring this fund to Caithness and look forward to working with the local community to see some projects getting developed that will make a difference.”

Chief superintendent Conrad Trickett, local policing commander for Highland & Islands Division, said: “It is very important to us to listen to our communities and act on what people identify as priorities for policing.

“We also need a shared vision and collective response to some of the most pressing challenges such as poor mental health, drug and alcohol use and ensuring everyone has access to the right services at the right time. This innovative project gives an excellent opportunity to empower the people of Caithness to tell us what they feel will improve their wellbeing.

"We are committed to ensuring that the public, communities and partners are engaged, involved and have confidence in policing and I want this to be a conversation which will benefit everyone in Caithness. I would urge anyone with ideas or projects they feel would improve the safety and wellbeing of people and communities in Caithness to apply.”

Minister for public finance, planning and community wealth, Tom Arthur, said “The Scottish Government continues to support participatory budgeting as a tool to empower communities across Scotland. This is an innovative and democratic process in which community members can decide directly how to spend part of a public budget by voting on it.

“Police Scotland has taken a collaborative approach with Caithness Voluntary Group to deliver the ‘Your Police, You Decide’ pilot initiative. As previous initiatives have shown, this participatory budgeting approach will help communities deliver projects of most value to them and ultimately will work to improve health, safety and wellbeing in Caithness.”