Neighbourhood Learning in Deprived Communities 2014-2015

The main purpose of the Neighbourhood Learning in Deprived Communities (NLDC) fund is to reach disadvantaged communities and individuals; to enable them to participate in learning, with progression towards further learning and/or sustainable employment as a key theme.

The City Council’s and Manchester Adult Education Service’s (MAES) priority is to tackle the issue of worklessness amongst key groups in the most deprived wards of the City, particularly those residents in receipt of out of work benefits. Therefore this is the target group for this funding.

MAES in partnership with Greater Manchester Skills Funding Agency are seeking to support innovative projects and new ways of working that can provide people with their ‘first step’ into learning, increased confidence and increased motivation and ability to access further learning opportunities. It is recognised that the community and voluntary sector can provide some of the most innovative ways of providing learning opportunities to groups that have traditionally been hard to engage.

The NLDC funding comes from the Skills Funding Agency (SFA) and is subcontracted by MAES. As such, all contracted activity must meet the requirements of the SFA and is subject to inspection by Ofsted.

Each organisation commissioned will be supported to meet the SFA requirements and quality standards required by Ofsted via monthly training sessions, assignment of a Link Manager from MAES for each organisation and a programme of observations of teaching and learning sessions. Each organisation also needs to have a named person who will take responsibility for quality assurance and quality improvement for their provision.

Aims and objectives
The aim of the fund is to build the skills levels of Manchester residents while complementing and providing progression routes to further learning and employment and volunteering.

The key objectives of this activity are:
• To deliver a programme of community learning activities which enable adults to move towards sustained employment and active citizenship, improving employability and essential skills and/or providing opportunities for learners to become involved in the local community

• To encourage Manchester residents who are workless and have low level skills to engage in learning and progress to further training opportunities, particularly targeting those who mainstream provision struggles to engage

• To provide Information, Advice and Guidance for workless residents from voluntary and community based organisations about further learning, volunteering or mainstream employment services and/or getting work

Who can apply?

To apply for NLDC funding you must be:

• An established organisation proposing learning activities with the target group
• Proposing learning activities which are aimed at adults aged 19 and over
• Targeting under-represented groups to help residents who are ‘hard to reach’ progress onto further learning opportunities: these are likely to be people who are out of work or excluded from the labour market for various reasons. However the fund can also be used to help people who have temporary, casual, part-time or low-skilled jobs if projects will help them to improve their skills and confidence to obtain a more secure place in the labour market
• Able to show that all tutors involved in the project are suitably trained and experienced and have the relevant health and safety and other safeguards in place to deliver the project (e.g. if working with vulnerable adults, staff and tutors have been DBS checked
• Able to give a named person responsible for completing the necessary quality assurance tasks associated with this funding

A range of organisations are eligible to apply for this funding, including:
• Voluntary and community unincorporated associations (e.g. community centre, group with a basic constitution)
• Registered charities
• Community benefit societies registered as industrial and provident societies
• Community interest companies or organisations of another type if you operate as a social enterprise and principally reinvest your surpluses for social benefit (for example, with at least three unrelated Directors and a clear clause within your governing document about how you reinvest surpluses into the community)
• Any other organisation which has a written governing document and is managed by a board of governors, trustees or management committee

Multiple applications will be accepted from the same organisation and/or organisations as part of a consortium. Organisations can apply jointly with other providers working with them in partnership or as part of a consortium.

Projects will be funded from a minimum of £20,000 up to a maximum of £125,000.

Find out more
A meeting will take place on:
Date & Time: Wednesday 7 May 2014, 9.30am
Venue: Abraham Moss Adult Learning Centre (Crumpsall, M8 5UF)
This meeting will give interested organisations an opportunity to discuss their proposals with MAES Managers and how they fit with the local offer.
It will also give organisations considering putting in an expression of interest a chance to ask any questions they have about NLDC funding in general. It will explain in more details the requirements of this specific funding because any provision we commission is subject to Ofsted standards.

For further information, contact Elaine Borrell, on 0161 234 5610, or email: [email protected]

Deadline for submission of Expression of Interest Form: Friday 16 May 2014, 12noon