Community Learning and Development - A year of Community Learning and Development 2023 to 2024

Abernethy Pavilion is a community asset and run as such. It's used for scouting, elderly groups, as well as football, Abernethy Amateurs and community events. The Community Investment Fund has allowed the committee to upgrade the building to make it fit for the next 30 years.

Community funding

Community funding programmes are made available annually to local community groups and organisations, and with the relationships we have built within communities, we play a key role in distributing these grants, often in partnership with PKC Community Planning Team. We work with and inform our communities of these funds and upskill volunteers in the application, monitoring and evaluation process. And with our knowledge and understanding of our communities, we can encourage groups to come together to strengthen resources.

Warm Welcome Fund

In 2023, Perth and Kinross Council granted a budget of £250,000 to support community groups and organisations in their delivery of the provision of Warm Spaces and Warm Home Packs over the winter months. This would help alleviate the cost of living whilst also contributing to a reduction in social isolation. 94 community groups took part in a series of workshops which were facilitated by the Community Learning and Development Team in each Ward area to encourage community groups and organisations to work more collaboratively with each other, avoiding duplication of their offer and recognising what their communities' needs were. Funding was then allocated through collective agreement with each other based on what they could offer and what local needs were.

Celebration of volunteers event

In March 2024, the Provost held a civic reception to honour the contributions of the 350 volunteers involved in delivering Warm Spaces in their communities.

Volunteer representatives were also presented with certificates for their group and each individual volunteer as a token of appreciation for their efforts throughout the winter months.

During the event, Perth and Kinross Third Sector Interface (TSI) also launched a new online Volunteering Platform which aims to encourage volunteering in local communities. The 'Be the Change' platform is a self-service directory of opportunities for community groups and organisations to promote their volunteering roles and for residents to sign up and take part in volunteering activity in their local community.

Key achievements

• £400,000 was allocated to tackle local inequalities through PKC Community Investment Fund (CIF) in partnership with PKC Community Planning. 108 applications were submitted from community groups with a total of £383,075 awarded.
• 89 community members and elected members were involved in CIF funding panels.
• £215,386 of Green Living Fund was allocated to local community groups addressing the cost of living and climate change through a Participatory Budget (PB) Process. Decision-making was carried out by the public, and with a total of 2,050 individuals placing votes on their favourite projects, 41 out of 53 groups received funding.

The grant for Free Football Project (in Blairgowrie and Rattray) allowed over 70 members of our community to take part in physical activity on a weekly basis for the last year. The programmes were all about bringing people together to play football and take part in sports on a weekly basis, going from being inactive and not taking part in any organised activities, to active and attending weekly sessions.

The Ukulele group at Auchterarder and District Men's Shed Music Project has now 17 members who play regularly every Tuesday. We have been playing to patients in St Margaret's Hospital and have plans to play at local care homes. The mission of the Men's Shed is to improve wellbeing and physical and mental health of our members, and this music project is an excellent addition to our other activities.

Case studies

Opening Warm Spaces in Kinross-shire

The Warm Welcome fund process invited groups and organisations across the area to take part in open and transparent discussions about what they could offer the communities of Kinross-shire.

Working collaboratively

Many interested groups came together to collaborate, plan, and strengthen their proposals together. This involved group sharing of ideas and feedback, with a focus to refine their offer to ensure there was a fair offer across the area.

The Kinross-shire Warm Welcome offer

Activities were diverse and varied, offering something for everyone from coffee mornings with delicious home-baking, lunch club, film shows, afternoon entertainment with coffee and cake, all kinds of family activities, youth activities, winter warm packs delivered to homes and warm packs available at various venues.

Outcome

Groups and organisations and communities were able to work together to negotiate and agree a group consensus about how their local budget could be used to reflect fairness across the whole area.

Residents of Kinross-shire were able to take part in an excellent Warm Welcome offer provided locally by groups and organisations who were open to work together to develop the Kinross-shire offer.

It has been heartening to see such a good turnout each month to both our Warm Spaces events, hall talk evenings, and coffee and chat mornings. We have attracted people of all ages, not just from the Fossoway community but also Perth and Kinross communities nearby.

Participating in local decision-making

The Green Living Fund was part of a Participatory Budgeting process, where local people decide how public money is spent. A total of £226,505 was available to community groups within Perth and Kinross to support projects focused on Climate Change and the cost of living.  

Participation

Communities were encouraged to participate in a decision-making process that involved using an online voting platform, which showcased applications submitted by local groups.

Inclusion

To increase participation of those digitally excluded, Community Learning and Development staff organised voting pop-ups throughout Perth and Kinross, particularly in the most rural areas, to help reduce transport barriers. Many voting pop-ups were organised alongside community activities, such as Warm Spaces.

2,050 individuals over Perth and Kinross placed their votes, with 479 (23%) of these individuals attending pop-up events.

Thank you for coming along and talking to our lunch club members and volunteers as this gave them the opportunity to hear about all the projects, and encouraged them to get involved and not only support our project but decide on their other preferred projects.

Did you know?

• The population of Perth and Kinross is 153,800.
• The population per square mile of Perth and Kinross is 75.
• The population has increased by 1,900 in the past year.
• The population has increased by 31,900 since 1981.

(Source: 2022 Census)