Executive Committee
Date: 4 December 2012
Agenda Item No. 13
Support for Voluntary Organisations
Report by:
Stephen Moore, Executive Director, Social Work
Wards Affected: All
Purpose
This report presents to Committee support to a range of voluntary organisation in
the field of Criminal Justice Social Work for the remainder of this financial year,
2012/13.
This report also presents an update in respect a voluntary organisation previously
funded by the Council and recommends continued funding.
Recommendation(s)
It is recommended that Committee approve the level of funding to the voluntary
organisations as detailed in the attached schedule.
Resource Implications
The grant schedule appended to this report provides recommendations from the
Social Work Service totalling £91,470.
Legal & Risk Implications
It is envisaged that the organisations will receive funding as recommended for the
remainder of 2012/13. The funding is recommended subject to compliance with
Fife Council's Monitoring and Evaluation Framework which requires that all awards
are reviewed on an annual basis as part of the council's on-going commitment to
ensure that organisations are meeting the terms of their Service Level Agreement.
Impact Assessment
None required.
Consultation
There has been full consultation and agreement with the Fife and Forth Valley
Community Justice Authority from whom the Council receives the Criminal Justice
Social Work Grant. The relevant voluntary sector organisations have also been
consulted in the preparation of this report.
1.0 Background
1.1.
During 2011/12 the Fife and Forth Valley Community Justice Authority (CJA)
approved and administered a total grant of £6,019,264 and in 2012/13 a total grant
of £6,041,698 for the delivery of Criminal Justice Social Work Services in Fife.
(Four elected members from Fife Council are represented on the Fife & Forth
Valley Community Justice Authority)
1.2.
The majority of the grant allocation is used to meet staffing costs to deliver core
services that support people subject to statutory community justice sentences or
post-custodial licences.
1.3.
There is provision within the grant to develop services that support the statutory
interventions with people who offend and that contribute to reducing re-offending
and that improve community safety. Working in partnership with the voluntary
sector allows the service to meet the agreed outcomes and activity detailed to the
Community Justice Authority.
1.4.
The following voluntary organisations have been instrumental in their continuing
commitment to support people who offend, while there has been a requirement to
seek clarification in respect of the responsibility of appropriate committees to make
decisions in respect of Community Justice Authority funding, the Social Work
Service wish to ensure that Fife Council elected members are fully informed of the
work, this report therefore outlines the work of the voluntary organisations in
2011/12 and 2012/13.
2.0 Apex (All Cleaned Up)
2.1.
There is provision within the CJA grant to develop services that support the
interventions with people who offend and that contribute to reducing re-offending
and that improve community safety.
2.2.
All Cleaned Up is a social enterprise company wholly owned by Apex Scotland that
provides a range of services including industrial cleaning, disaster recovery, waste
clearing and property maintenance.
2.3.
The Criminal Justice Social Work Service, as part of the Community Payback
Unpaid Work Scheme, provides opportunities to people subject to this element of
statutory supervision, to put something back into their communities by undertaking
a set number of hours of unpaid work.
2.4.
Since the introduction of the Community Payback Order in February 2011, Fife has
seen a significant increase Community Payback Orders and in particular those with
the requirement for people who offend to undertake unpaid work in the community.
2.5.
In order to meet this increased demand, the Criminal Justice Social Work Service
has been looking for practical and innovative ways to enable and support people to
complete their orders within the timescale set out by Scottish Government. Given
the increased demand, this has been a challenge.
2.6.
In consultation with All Cleaned Up it is proposed that the voluntary organisation
will provide staffing, resources and opportunities that will enable the Criminal
Justice Social Work Service to provide opportunities for an additional 10 to 15
offenders per week to attend for unpaid work and complete their order. This will
contribute up to 105 more hours per week of unpaid work to communities in Fife.
2.7.
In conjunction with colleagues from Housing and Communities Service, a rota of
work involving the cleaning of common close areas has been identified. This is
work that would not otherwise be done and for which the Council has no other
resources available.
2.8.
The total request for grant allocation for this service which will allow the
organisation to operate from mid December 2012 until 31 March 2013 is £14,820.
3.0 SACRO - Women's Mentoring Service
3.1
In 2010/11 and 2011/12 the Scottish Government provided ring-fenced funding
totalling £100,000 to each of the eight Scottish Community Justice Authorities,
including Fife and Forth Valley.
3.2
In each of these years the Fife and Forth Valley Community Justice Authority
allocated and administered a proportion of this ring-fenced grant allocation to each
of the four constituent local authorities.
3.3
In anticipation of the outcomes from the Commission on Women Offenders, Fife
Council Criminal Justice Social Work Service, with the support of the Community
Justice Authority, supported SACRO to provide a Women's Mentoring Service.
3.4
SACRO's mentoring services are based upon a detailed assessment of service
users' needs, and goals are jointly identified and tailored accordingly. Mentoring
improves outcomes for service users on a range of issues including
accommodation, mental health, debt, education and training, addiction, selfconfidence, motivation and social skills.
3.5
Mentoring also offers an opportunity to create new social networks and positive
peer group associations.
3.6
This funding will help Fife Council and our partners to take forward mentoring as a
key element in enabling women who offend to lead a more pro-social lifestyle.
3.7
Establishing mentoring services was a significant component of the findings from
the Commission on Women Offenders and accepted by the Scottish Government as
a key contributor to the implementation of the Reducing Re-offending Programme.
4.0 SACRO - Circles of Support and Accountability
4.1
Circles of Support and Accountability (CoSA) is a model of intervention that assists
in the monitoring and community reintegration of certain high risk offenders.
4.1
The arrangements for the management of people who commit sexual offences are
determined in statute by the Management of Offenders (Scotland) Act 2005. It is
the statutory responsibility of the responsible authorities, Fife Council, Fife Police,
NHS Fife and the Scottish Prison Service to maintain Multi Agency Public Protection
Arrangements (MAPPA) for the Fife Area. The lead Council service for MAPPA in
Fife is the Criminal Justice Social Work Service.
4.2
In 2010/11 the Social Work and Health Committee approved funding to enable the
introduction of CoSA within Fife. Partnership funding was approved by the Criminal
Justice Social Work Service, Fife Community Safety Partnership and the Fife and
Forth Valley Community Justice Authority to enable SACRO to operate the service.
4.3
The purpose of CoSA is to assist in reducing the risk of re-offending by high risk
sexual offenders and thereby increase public protection.
4.4
Circles of Support and Accountability work by establishing a 'circle' of trained
volunteers around the offender and co-ordinated by a professional Circles Coordinator. Circle members offer support and guidance to the offender to help them
reintegrate into society.
5.0 Conclusions
5.1
Committee and member's approval for funding is requested to support all three of
these services to support the Criminal Justice Social Work Service to continue to
deliver high-quality services; meet performance targets; reduce re-offending and
support the reintegration of people who offend; and, to make Fife a safer place to
live and work.
List of Appendices
1.
List of recommendations for grant payments to the organisations Apex and
Sacro.
Background Papers
The following papers were relied on in the preparation of this report in terms of the Local
Government (Scotland) Act, 1973:
∙ Policy Paper: Review of Support for the Voluntary Sector – Policy and Resources
Committee, Fife Council 16.02.06
∙ Code of Guidance on Funding External Bodies and Following The Public Pound COSLA/Accounts Commission 1996
∙ Voluntary Sector Monitoring & Evaluation Framework
Report Contact
Bill Kinnear
Service Manager
Social Work
Telephone: 08451 55 55 55 Ext 450530
Email - Bill.Kinnear@fife.gsx.gov.uk
Awards to Voluntary Organisations
Recommended Awards - 2012/13 – Executive Committee
Social Work Service
Recommendation
Grant
Organisation
Project Description
Received Requested
via CJA
Grant
11/12
Apex
All Cleaned Up
£0
£14,820
£14,820
£0
£0
£14,820
SACRO
Womens Mentoring
Service
£15,000 £48,650
£33,650
£0
£0
£48,650* *Total includes £15,000 for
2011/12 allocated through the
CJA process outlined within
this report.
SACRO
Circles of Support &
Accountability
£13,600 £28,000
£14,400
£0
£0
£28,000* This represents additional
funding to cover the period to
March 2013. * Total includes
£13,600 for 2011/12 allocated
through the CJA process
outlined within this report.
2012/13
2013/14
2014/15
Total
Additional Comments
Service to operate from mid
December 2012 to 31st March
2013.