Following the 2002 Spending Review, the Government announced the establishment of a £125m ?Futurebuilders? fund to provide a one-off, three-year investment in voluntary and community organisations wishing to deliver services in the areas of health and social care, crime and social cohesion, education and learning, and support for children and young people.
The Treasury has recently launched a consultation document on the use of this fund, which outlines proposed principles to guide the use of the fund, ways in which the fund could be targeted at public services, and mechanisms for the fund to be set up. The document discusses what the fund might support and also raises questions about how the finance might be tailored to the needs of individual organisations. It considers a range of funding options including grants, loans and guarantees.
The Voluntary Arts Network (VAN), which has recently published a research report into the role of the voluntary arts in addressing issues of social inclusion (see above), is encouraging voluntary and community cultural organisations to have their say. Roger Fox, VAN?s Chief Executive, has identified several key issues for the voluntary and community cultural sector, which includes organisations ranging in size from national umbrella organisations such as Making Music (formerly the National Federation of Music Societies) to local arts and crafts clubs and societies. He said ?Futurebuilders is a key document, and umbrella bodies and local groups alike should respond to the proposals. It is crucial that attention is drawn to the role of the voluntary cultural sector, as it is notable that the DCMS is not mentioned in the consultation document.? Other issues for the sector include the potential for the delivery of local services by national bodies ? in particular umbrella bodies ? and the role of communities of interest which may not have a physical presence in target localities.
Copies of the Futurebuilders consultation documents are at http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/consultations_and_legislation, and responses to the document are invited by July 21.