Youth funding proposal will benefit rural areas in Shropshire

Members of the Cabinet voted yesterday to make the changes after a public consultation in which 97 per cent of respondents said they did not agree with the proposed budget cuts from £234,950 to £135,000, while 95 per cent saying they disagreed with the removal of rural considerations from the funding formula.

Instead they will be cut to £174,500 with many rural LJCs including Ellesmere and St Oswald being able to access up to £3,000 from a centrally-held rural grants pot worth £33,000.

Ellesmere will also receive a budget of £4,000 on top of the rural pot.

Gobowen, Selattyn, St Martins and Weston Rhyn LJC will see a slight reduction of £120 to make their funding for 2018 to £12,000 - however it is still higher than most LJCs because of the "significantly higher population and numbers of young people aged 10 to 19 years".

George Candler, director of Place and Enterprise, said: "The consultation feedback demonstrated that there was strong support for the council continuing to fund youth activities in rural areas, keeping rurality considerations in the funding formula and continuing to offer grants to small voluntary clubs.

"The feedback also showed that while respondees would like to see all the council’s funding for youth activities continue at current levels, they particularly would like

funding in rural areas to be protected."

Meanwhile, Oswestry LJC will see its budget reduced from 24,640 to £14,500 as with the Shrewsbury and Market Drayton as the town councils in those regions have previously indicated that they would consider financially supporting youth activities.

Leader of Shropshire Council, Peter Nutting, told the Cabinet meeting: "The larger towns by the way they are geared are able to raise funds more easily than some of the very rural parishes, that is the reality, and most of those town councils are away that needs to be done and are happy to detail it within their precepts for the coming year."