Barrhead community groups urge Scottish Government to protect ‘lifeline’ funding

Community groups in Barrhead last week warned of the ‘devastating’ prospect of cuts to a key community fund after the Scottish Government cast huge uncertainty on its future next year.

Barrhead has been among several areas in Scotland to benefit from the Investing in Communities Fund, a £27 million Scottish Government fund aimed at tackling poverty and strengthening community-led regeneration.

The Scottish Government said the fund was aimed at supporting the most disadvantaged communities across Scotland and formed part of the government’s overall Empowering Communities Programme which focuses on delivering projects, services, and activities that address poverty and inequality directly within these communities.

A range of local organisations have benefited from the funding, which is administered by Barrhead Housing Association under its Brighter Futures programme, with 11 community groups providing everything from children’s drama and cookery classes, arts and crafts sessions, gardening, and distributing free school uniforms to children throughout the town.

Despite this round of the Fund, which began in 2023, being projected to last three years, its future was plunged into doubt after the Scottish Government told Barrhead Housing in July it would be reviewing funding on a monthly basis. The government then responded by confirming funding would remain in place this year, but would be cut by five percent.

Among the community groups which receive funding is the Use it Or Lose It exercise and dance class, which its participants have affectionately dubbed ‘The Monday Morning Girls!’.

The class which runs every Monday morning at Barrhead’s Auchenback Resource Centre, and involves women of all ages and abilities, has become about far more than dancing.

Retired supermarket worker, Carol Hainey, 77, said the social and mental health benefits of the class were essential for the community in Barrhead.

She said: “We would be absolutely devastated if the funding was cut for the Monday Morning Girls. It’s become about far more than an exercise class, it’s something we look forward to every week, all of us are really close and we end the class each week by going for teas and coffees and a chit-chat.

Morag Easdon, a retired civil servant, is another of the regular fixtures at the Monday Morning Girls and she said that funding cuts would leave many women in Barrhead isolated if funding was cut next year.

“If this class wasn’t on, many people in Barrhead would end up stuck in the house, especially over winter.

“All of us have become so close, and any week the class isn’t running we still try to meet up for a walk and socialize, but the class always makes us feel better.”

Stephanie Elliot, who alongside her employment at the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) runs Use It or Lose It in Barrhead, another class in Dunterlie, and a separate chair-based class for Barrhead Housing’s sheltered housing tenants said funding cuts would have a ‘serious impact’ on community wellbeing.

She said: “We are devastated to hear the news of the potential cut to our funding. We engage some of the most vulnerable people within our society and support them to improve their health and wellbeing through adapted physical activity. Our groups give citizens direct access to free, impartial health and wellbeing advice from specialists in exercise and chronic disease and provide safe spaces for expression and self-development.

“Intermittent funding devalues our programmes and damages trust between service delivery partners and the communities they serve as the individuals who set long term goals with us may now feel that their efforts to improve their health were pointless as they now need to continue their journey alone.

“I sincerely hope the Scottish Government do not withdraw the ICF from Barrhead Housing as it would mean Use It or Lose It having to reduce our staffing and potentially close our groups which would have a serious impact on the wellness of our community.”

These calls were echoed by Barrhead Housing Association who said that as a community anchor in the town it had seen first-hand how much the groups involved in its Brighter Futures initiative had done to tackle poverty and deprivation in the town.

Chief Executive Lorna Wilson said: "Everyone is aware of the funding pressures being experienced by government. However, the importance of the fantastic work being done by community groups in Scotland cannot be underestimated.

''Our own Brighter Futures programme, involving eleven community groups across Barrhead, is testimony to this. It is an outstanding example of how ordinary people in communities are doing extraordinary work to tackle poverty and deprivation, isolation and inequality. 

''They are making a massive difference to the quality of the lives of so many people, and Barrhead Housing is absolutely determined to do all we can to continue providing the support they need and deserve.''

The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) said Barrhead was among a number of areas in Glasgow and across Scotland who relied heavily on government funding to tackle poverty in their communities, and it lent its support to calls to protect funding.

SFHA Chief Executive Sally Thomas said: “Housing associations exist to provide warm, secure and affordable homes for their tenants. And beyond this, they are also central to tackling poverty and creating thriving communities, something demonstrated brilliantly through Barrhead Housing Association’s Brighter Futures programme.

“We’d urge Scottish Government to not turn away from its track record of investing in communities and use the forthcoming Scottish Budget to commit to fully funding the Investing in Communities Fund. Guaranteeing its long-term future would be a major contribution to helping our communities flourish.”

SFHA is currently seeking clarity from Scottish Ministers on the impact of yesterday's budget on the fund.