Agenda item

Update from Working Group.

10.1     Copies of a presentation giving proposals for the governance of the Community Fund had been circulated.  The Clerk to the Council gave a recap of what Scottish Borders Council had agreed in March 2021 and the Area Partnership had agreed in June 2021 with regard to the Community Fund.  A number of options were given on what could happen to the funding allocated to a Community Council in the Pot A Fund where no Assessment Panel had been set up; and also details were given of a proposed way of making appointments to the Assessment Panel for the Pot B Fund.  For Pot A, these options were that a Community Council could allocate their funding to another Community Council; could deal with any applications to their funding directly at one of their Community Council meetings; or could allocate their funding to Pot B, with that funding ring-fenced for that particular area until the end of 2021 and any applications would be dealt with by the Pot B Assessment Panel.  It would be up to the particular Community Council to make that decision.  At the end of 2021, any unspent funding for that Community Council ring-fenced in Pot B, along with unspent funding from Pot A, would transfer to the wider Pot B fund. 

10.2     With regard to the Assessment Panel for Pot B, it was suggested that the number of members be set at between 7 and 11, including a maximum of 3 SBC Elected Members who would be non-voting.  A recruitment campaign would be run by SBC Officers and Community Council members would be eligible to put in their application as well as members of other organisations or the public.  It was further proposed that the appointment of the members of the Panel would be delegated to the Director of Customer & Communities in consultation with the Chair of the Teviot & Liddesdale Area Partnership and the SBC Executive Member for Community Development & Localities.  To allow for immediate opening of the fund for Pot B, it was suggested that until the Assessment Panel members were appointed, Council officers would assess applications received using previous fund criteria, and these assessments would be brought directly to the Area Partnership for decision.  This was an interim measure and once an Assessment Panel was in place it would take over the assessment of applications and recommendations to the Area Partnership.

10.3     Mr Kerr objected to the proposed membership of the Assessment Panel for Pot B, advising that the original plan was for each Community Council to be represented and that being augmented by other representatives.  Ms Woods advised that they had struggled to get people not in the Community Council involved and while it was hoped to bring in people from the wider community, this was not practical at this stage.  The Communities & Partnership Manager, Ms Smith, reminded the members of the previous SCDC report which advocated a wide community involvement from other organisations not just Community Councils and also the decisions of Scottish Borders Council in March.  An open recruitment campaign would comply with this.  Members of the Area Partnership discussed the options and did not find favour with the proposed allocation of members to the Assessment Panel for Pot B.  As a compromise, the Clerk to the Council suggested that a representative from each Community Council area could be appointed to the Assessment Panel, with an open recruitment campaign for a further 3 to 5 members, that number depending on the applications received.  This was accepted by those present.  The scoring matrix, application form and guidance which had been circulated for Pot A applications, was approved to also cover applications to Pot B.

            DECISION

AGREED:

(a)       that it would be for those Community Councils without an Assessment Panel in place for their allocated Pot A fund to choose whether to allocated this funding to another Community Council, or deal with any applications directly at one of their Community Council meetings, or allocate their funding to Pot B, with the funding ring-fenced for that particular area until the end of 2021, and any applications would be dealt with by the Pot B Assessment Panel;

(b)       that at the end of 2021, any unspent funding in either Pot A or any ring-fenced money in Pot B would transfer to the wider Pot B fund and be open to applications from across the Teviot and Liddesdale area;

(c)       that the Pot B Assessment Panel would comprise a representative from each of the Community Council areas in the Teviot and Liddesdale area and an open recruitment would be carried out for a further 3 to 5 other members from the wider community;

(d)       no SBC Elected Members would be included in the membership of the Pot B  Assessment Panel;

(e)       that appointment of members from the wider community to the Pot B Assessment Panel would be delegated to the Service Director Customer & Communities, in consultation with the Chair of the Teviot & Liddesdale Area Partnership and the Executive Member for Community Development & Localities; 

(f)        applications to the Pot B Fund would open on 1 October 2021l

(g)       to approve the scoring matrix, application form and guidance for the Pot A Fund  and that this be extended to cover the Pot B Fund.