Barrhead Housing Association holds Participatory Budgeting event
Funding of £30,000 awarded to seven projects.
Barrhead Housing Association hosted its first Community Choices event at The Foundry, Barrhead on Saturday 17 March 2018.
The event was part of a commitment to engage the community through Participatory Budgeting (funded by the Scottish Government) and the association said it received a “wonderful response” from the residents of Barrhead, Neilston, and the wider community of East Renfrewshire.
Twenty-two projects were shortlisted and represented on the day in the market place and competed for the votes of the community. In two and a half hours, 2,880 votes were cast, and approximately 700 members of the community passed through the market place. With match funding from the association, the total pot of £30,000 was awarded on the day to seven successful projects – the Barrhead Men’s Shed, Levern Valley Brass Band, Neilston Wasps Football Club, Neilston Scout Group, Include Me2Club, East Renfrewshire Good Causes and Yoga Untangled.
Councillor Annette Ireland, Barrhead Housing Association Board Member, and member of the Steering Group set up to oversee the project, said:
“This is my first event representing the association, and I was delighted to take part in such a successful day. I look forward to hearing how the funding will be spent by the successful groups.”
Shirley Robison, Barrhead Housing Association Chief Executive, said:
“I’d like to thank the local community and our staff for making this a very successful event for the association.”
The successful projects were presented with their cheques on 22 March 2018 by the Steering Group. The projects will be delivered across the next 12 months and Barrhead Housing Association will work in partnership with the organisations to support the success of the individual projects and deliver the evaluation of each project. The Participatory Budgeting event is one of a number initiatives that Barrhead Housing Association is committed to delivering through a new Community Regeneration Strategy which has been created to increase opportunities for tenants and the wider community.