Knowsley Council has announced £7.9m of funding for a series of priority projects over the next two years.
The schemes, funded through the Working Neighbourhoods fund, will support a number of the council’s priorities.
The projects comprise:
- £1m to support businesses during the credit crunch
- £500,000 to support residents through the credit crunch. Knowsley Council is currently leading a project to ensure its residents access the correct advice and guidance they need when suffering financial difficulties. This £500,000 will be ploughed into schemes to further develop this work;
- £400,000 for the second phase of the Knowsley Apprentice programme. More than 100 young people were placed in three-year training programmes in 2008/09 and this funding – which is also being matched with £1.1m from the Deprived Area Fund – secures the second phase of the scheme;
- £3.8m over two years to address health inequalities in the borough;
- £1m to support young people who are NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training). The funding will support their learning, training and employment opportunities;£1m to improve educational attainment, particularly in English and maths.The £1m is in addition to a £1m invested in 2008/09
- £200,000 for Family Support Packages, which will target a range of issues including Child Poverty Innovation.
Cllr Norman Keats, Knowsley’s Cabinet Member for Finance & IT, said: “I am delighted that we have been able to fund so many priority projects with our allocation of Working Neighbourhood Fund.
“I am particularly passionate about the work we have under way to support our residents and businesses during the credit crunch. A lot of work is taking place in Knowsley at the moment to ensure the right support is available to our residents and businesses.
“We have already passed on the VAT reduction in full for all our VAT-chargeable services and fees. We are also committed to paying all our local suppliers within 10 working days of receiving invoices, as we understand how a good cash flow is particularly vital at the moment for small businesses.
“We are now building on this work and I believe the work under way to examine the support we can offer residents and business will be able to deliver real results because of the investment we have just announced.”
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