News

General news of interest to the social enterprise sector in the region.
“Roary-ing” trade as Yoga4 UK launch online website and children’s yoga club!

Award-winning social enterprise, Yoga4UK is celebrating its third birthday this month with the launch of their new interactive website and resources, successfully combining children’s love of screen time with activity.

Founder of Sheffield-based Yoga4, Farah-Naz Khan, herself a mum of two daughters aged 8 and 4 enthuses, “as a parent myself, I know how much today’s children enjoy computers and can be quite demanding when they are after additional screen time. It’s the reality, but we have a choice to be proactive and turn the “electronic babysitter” into something more positive. Our fun new “Roary” club site is named after our lion mascot. The resources provide practical ideas to support children, families and those working with children age 2 to 7 to explore movement and relaxation including posture, activities and certificates to encourage children and reinforce learning using fun and engaging characters.”

She goes on, “as the club develops, the site will become interactive with more resources and free downloads and stories. Children can watch and then practise the yoga positions which reinforces learning many have had in nurseries, classroom lessons and after school clubs. They can do the exercises with their parents too- a great opportunity for family learning and connection. We see how relaxed children open up, so communication and self esteem improve.”

Over the past three years, Farah has brought her passionate dedication to the health benefits of Yoga to many thousands of people, from pregnancy care and nurseries to schools, businesses, even care settings for the elderly- it really is a cradle to grave approach!

Purnima Tanuku, Chief Executive of National Day Nurseries Association comments: “Many of our member nurseries have benefited from Yoga4UK’s training programme, Yoga4 Nurseries. NDNA has been working with Yoga4UK to share more about how yoga can support children in nurseries, and we would like to send our congratulations on their third birthday.”

Farah concludes, “I wanted to create a quality product which brought results and had the potential for change. That’s why I set up as a social enterprise. We are delighted to be celebrating our third successful year and looking forward to taking Roary’s Club and our many other programmes even further afield.”

For more information see www.yoga4uk/roarysclub or contact Farah-Naz Khan on 07988 912825

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Benefit ‘bounty hunters’ move ‘unfair and unjust’

This article is provided courtesy of the news feed at http://www.newstartmag.co.uk/news

Government plans to crackdown on benefit fraud are likely to stigmatise the most vulnerable people, according to the Child Poverty Action group.

As part of plans to cut the £5.2bn annual cost of fraud and error, the prime minister today pledged tougher penalties, more prosecutions and new measures, including rewarding private credit agencies on a payment by results basis – quickly dubbed a ‘bounty’ payment - for each benefit fraud identified.

Mr Cameron said an ‘uncompromising’ strategy was required to reform the welfare system.

But Gabrielle Preston, policy and research officer at Child Poverty Action Group, said it was ‘unfair and unjust’ to focus on benefit rather than tax fraud and warned the initiative could ‘inflame stigma and discrimination’.

‘Whilst we recognise there is a need to minimise benefit fraud, it is currently at an all-time low of less than 1% of claims,’ she said. ‘Administrative problems and low take up remains a problem for families. A recent report from work and pensions select committee, Decision making and appeals in the benefits system “highlights the desperate need for fairer and faster decision-making to improve benefit delivery and take up”.

‘The system's complexity means £16bn is unclaimed by some of society's most vulnerable people. This initiative stigmatises the most vulnerable people and is likely to further reduce take up of much needed benefits and tax credits.

‘The National Audit Office believes at least £40bn of revenue is lost every year due to a failure to collect tax revenues effectively. Other estimates suggest the full loss may be over £100bn per annum. The decision to focus on benefit rather than tax fraud is unfair, unjust – and makes little economic sense.

‘If the government is to meet its 2020 commitment to end child poverty, it must protect children whose parents are entitled to receive benefits and tax credits.

‘It is unacceptable for politicians to inflame stigma and discrimination against some of the most vulnerable people in the country. The coalition should take a lead in challenging myths about people who rely on the welfare system.’
 
Diversity at risk as OCS slashes strategic partners

Social enterprise support organisations are in danger of losing the government’s ear after news that the Office for Civil Society is to slash its strategic partners programme.

...more
 
CLG cuts community-owned pubs programme

Communities hoping to take over disused pubs have been dealt a ‘devastating’ blow by the government after news that a £3.3m programme of support has been scrapped.

...more
 
Big Society backlash after community pubs fund axed

This article is provided courtesy of the news feed at http://www.newstartmag.co.uk/news

An emergency summit has been called to help communities trying to save their threatened local pub after the government pulled funding for a support programme.

The decision to scrap the £3.3m Community-Owned Pubs Support Programme has also led to accusations that the new government is ‘contradicting’ its own ‘Big Society’ concept.

The programme was launched in March by the previous administration to support 50 communities through community-ownership to save their local pub.

But as the community pubs feature in the current edition of New Start reported, the programme was placed under review by the DCLG following the election and before any money had been distributed.

The programme’s project leaders, the Plunkett Foundation, said the decision left communities ‘stranded’. Its emergency summit will bring together representatives from across the cooperative sector to discuss how communities can be supported to set up and run pubs in the wake of the announcement.

Chief executive Peter Couchman said: ‘This is devastating news for each community which had hoped to save their local as a cooperative. The government has turned its back on communities who were looking to take more responsibility over their everyday lives.’

He added: ‘Communities owning and running their local pub has been used by the prime minister constantly as an example of the Big Society at its best. If communities are to take control of the problems they face then they are going to need help and advice to stop them having to reinvent wheels.

‘Promised legislation for a Community Right to Buy is very welcome but without proper support it will be a Community Right to Fail.’

But local government minister Bob Neill said: ‘Pubs don't want state handouts - but they do want to be able to compete on a level playing field, without reams of red tape preventing them from making a living.’

Mr Neill said that government policies such as axing the previous government’s cider tax and making it easy to play live music would strengthen pubs against competition from supermarkets.

He added that the Localism Bill, to be introduced in November, would allow communities to bid to take on local assets and facilities, including pubs, where they are up for sale.

Co-operatives UK secretary general Ed Mayo described the decision to axe the pubs fund as ‘contrary to everything the coalition says that it stands for’.

‘The programme is a tried and tested model, used for the very same village shops that government ministers have praised.

‘For government spokesmen to accuse communities with pubs and shops of wanting to run them as a charity shows that they haven't even read their own speeches on the Big Society, let alone signed up to them.’

The emergency summit is provisionally scheduled for 6 September at The Old Crown in Hesket Newmarket, Cumbria – believed to be Britain’s first community-owned pub.
 
Regeneration body scrapped to make way for LEP

This article is provided courtesy of the news feed at http://www.newstartmag.co.uk/news

A regeneration partnership for north Staffordshire will be wound up after councillors in Stoke-on-Trent backed plans to form a local enterprise partnership (LEP).

At a meeting of Stoke Council, councilors voted to scrap the North Staffordshire Regeneration Partnership and give delegated powers to the executive team to progress with an LEP application submission on behalf of the council.

The council is seeking to pursue a LEP along with councils in Staffordshire and the leader and chief executive will work with partners in other bodies to determine how this will take shape.

It follows the government’s decision to abolish regional development agencies (RDAs) and instead encourage local authorities and businesses to become the leaders of economic development in their area. 

The council says that by forming an LEP, rather than continuing with the NSRP, the area will have more opportunities for future funding.

The NSRP is a partnership of local organisations centred on Stoke but including other north Staffordshire local authorities and the RDA Advantage West Midlands.

Its remit covers investment and regeneration in North Staffordshire.

The decision follows the announcement of the departure of the NSRP’s managing director. Tom Macartney, who is also director of regeneration at the city council, will leave both positions in September.

Hardial Bhogal, the chief operating officer of the NSRP, will take temporary control of the regeneration department.

Mohammed Pervez, leader of Stoke Council, said:

‘The city council remains committed to the delivery of a sustainable regeneration programme in North Staffordshire.'

Local blog Pits n Pots revealed last week that four proposals had been put before Stoke Council including the option to stay in the current NSRP.

The other options were to operate independently and to form a new LEP for North Staffordshire and Cheshire East.

In May, Newcastle Borough Council pulled out of the NSRP citing its desire to work with partners in south Cheshire and the slow speed of delivery on the partnership’s programme.
 
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