[WiLT] The Empowerment Fund: Consultation - closes 30th Sept 2008

[WiL Admin]

The Empowerment Fund: Consultation on proposals for funding third
sector organisations to empower communities across England

Closing date 30 September 2008

This consultation paper seeks views on a draft of the Empowerment Fund
Prospectus which the Government intends to issue. This fund will
provide support for existing national third sector organisations
operating across England to help local communities turn key proposals
into practical action on the ground.

This publication is only available online - see below to download.
* The Empowerment Fund: Consultation on proposals for funding third
sector organisations to empower communities across England PDF, 259 kb
, 25 pages
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/communities/pdf/887344.pdf


** Have Your Say **

Respond by email to thirdsector at communities.gsi.gov.uk

Respond in writing, using the following address:
The Empowerment Fund: Consultation on a draft Prospectus
Third Sector Team
Communities and Local Government
Zone 5/B1, Eland House
Bressenden Place
London SW1E 5DU

Complain or provide feedback about the consultation process
http://www.communities.gov.uk/corporate/contact?consultation=true

Alternative formats

If you require this publication in an alternative format (eg Braille
or audio) please email alternativeformats at communities.gsi.gov.uk
quoting the title and product code/ISBN of the publication, and your
address and telephone number.

All details and links at
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/empowermentfund

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The themes

3.1 The purpose of the Empowerment Fund is to give financial
assistance to national third sector organisations which in a variety
of ways are helping to support those local community organisations
that are central to empowering people and their local communities.
Such national organisations can be active in relation to a range of
themes which in various ways can contribute towards giving people some
real power, control, and influence over decisions that affect them and
their communities.

3.2 We believe that those organisations which are active in the themes
set out below are likely to be able to make the strongest and most
effective contributions to delivering the goals for empowering people
set out in the White Paper Communities in Control: real people, real
power. Accordingly the Secretary of State considers that such
organisations are likely to be well placed to make the most effective
use of financial assistance from the Empowerment Fund, enabling them
to do yet more to empower people and local communities.

3.3 These themes are:

Encouraging and supporting:
. Community Leadership - for communities to feel empowered they need
civil and civic leaders they trust who understand them and reflect
their makeup. But in many places significant groups feel they lack
pathways into power.
. Community Development - this seeks to empower individuals and groups
of people by providing them with the skills they need to effect change
in their own communities.
. Community and Social Media - this provides alternative sources of
information and platforms for dialogue and debate, enabling citizens
to make choices about where to get information on their
neighbourhoods, and supports innovation.
. Community Voices - to support third sector individuals in their role
on Local Strategic Partnerships and thematic sub-groups to ensure
connections with the wider community.
. Community involvement in Planning - this includes, for example,
involvement in statutory and community led planning, supporting
specific disadvantaged sectors of society and those wanting to get
involved with environmental issues
. Improving communication between councillors and citizens - to
support communities and councillors to have increasingly effective
forums for ongoing dialogue.
. Social Enterprise - these are businesses with primarily social
objectives whose surpluses are principally reinvested for that purpose
 in the business or in the community. Such enterprises can involve
providing goods and services across a range of sectors, and creating
work and wealth, particularly in the most deprived neighbourhoods.
. Empowerment of excluded communities by facilitating small
organisations to come together around shared goals - this enables more
collaborative working between organisations and service providers to
help empower excluded communities organisations.