Issue - meetings

-        Dave Richmond, Director of Housing and Neighbourhoods

Dave Richmond, Director of Housing and Neighbourhood Services, presented a report on the poverty theme of the Health and Wellbeing Strategy, setting out the extent of the problem, its determinant factors and highlight some of the approaches being taken to tackle the issue.

The Poverty theme had the following outcomes:-

Priorities

-          We will make an overarching commitment to reducing health inequalities particularly in areas suffering from a concentration of disadvantage

We will ask the Rotherham Partnership:-

-          To look at new ways of assisting those disengaged from the labour market to improve their skills and readiness for work

-          To ensure that strategies to tackle poverty do not just focus on the most disadvantaged but there is action across the Borough to avoid poverty worsening

-          To consider how we can actively work with every household in deprived areas to maximise benefit take-up of every person

Attention was drawn to the following:-

-          Much of the work was undertaken at a neighbourhood level as part of the Deprived Neighbourhoods initiative

-          The 2010 Indices of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) had highlighted significant concerns in relation to a worsening position for Rotherham. 

-          Corporately, work was underway to develop a Building Resilience Strategy which would ensure a strategic multi-agency approach towards tackling the key underlying issues affecting poverty in the Borough.  Its 4 overarching objectives were:-

·           Maximising access to sustainable, decently paid employment and relevant training

·           Inclusive economic growth that benefits all of Rotherham’s communities

·           Helping people to thrive and fulfil their potential

·           Building social capital and helping neighbourhoods to flourish

-          A new approach agreed by Cabinet and the Rotherham Partnership based on local leadership and a long term commitment from partners to tackle inequalities in disadvantaged areas.  Cabinet Member and Strategic Director leads were identified for each of the 11 deprived neighbourhoods (as identified through the 2011 IMD) as well as Area Co-ordinators with the remit of:-

·           Developing a local rich picture

·           Putting in place governance and engagement strategies

·           Establishing an action plan

·           Making connections with the key players from other agencies to deliver the action plan

-          Each priority area had been evaluated to assess progress with emerging issues set out in the report submitted.  The following actions were recommended:-

·           Children, Young People and Education – stronger links needed to be created between the Area Co-ordinators and the learning communities.  Young people in deprived neighbourhoods were not achieving England and Maths to the Local Authority average and of the 16 learning communities predominantly those in the deprived communities were below the Local Authority average

·           Adult Skills – increased community engagement activity to build up the connectivity within a community.  Consideration to be given to outreach support work in the geographical areas with targeted groups of greatest need.  From the 2011 census, 40% of those in deprived neighbourhoods had no qualifications and only 19% had a Level 3 qualification or above

·           Employment – targeted action had been undertaken to tackle unemployment.  Unemployment and inactivity had to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9