Tag Archives: funding

Deadline looms for free childcare applications

Working parents have been reminded they must meet a 31 August deadline to apply for the new 30 hours free childcare offer which comes into effect in September. The new arrangements double the weekly hours of Free Early Learning, the Government-funded childcare programme available to 3 and 4 year olds, and eligible 2 year olds. Nursery bosses however are warning many parents may be unable to get places for their children as the funding available to nurseries will not match the cost of provision. Baillor Jalloh reports for Sheffield Live!

£800k funding boost to uncover Sheffield Castle

Sheffield Council has allocated nearly £800,000 to uncover the remains of the city’s ancient castle and to develop the Castlegate Quarter. A total of £786,000 has been earmarked from the city’s Capital Growth Fund to support the transformation of the quarter into a digital hub and visitor location. It will include an archaeological dig to find remains of the mediaeval castle where Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned for more than a decade. The funding will also enable environmental improvements, transformation of empty shops and action to protect the Old Town Hall. Simon Thake reports for Sheffield Live!

Mental health charity facing closure after funding cut

Mental Health Action Group Sheffield has four months left before its doors will shut to service users unless it secures new funding. The announcement comes after a Sheffield Council decision to withdrew grant funding for the Organisation. MHAGS, established in 1992, is based in Creswick Street, Langsett and provides meeting space and support for people with mental health problems. In recent years it has received a £10,500 annual grant from the Council to help with expenditure. Baillor Jalloh reports for Sheffield Live!

New funding may reveal Sheffield’s hidden rivers

Plans to uncover some of Sheffield’s riverside history are moving forward at Castlegate thanks to new funding from the Environment Agency. The Environment Agency has awarded a £50,000 grant to Sheffield City Council to develop designs for Sheaf Field, which could ultimately see the River Sheaf de-culverted as it passes the former Castle Market site. Simon Thake reports for Sheffield Live!

Council to invest £1.5 million in Sheffield parks

Community parks and play facilities are set to benefit from £1.5m funding by Sheffield City Council over the next three years. A recent parliamentary inquiry highlighted a countrywide crisis in community parks, with declining facilities and under-investment. The majority of the funding will come from the city’s public health budget, with a focus on reducing gaps in health-related deprivation across the city. It is also expected to lead to the creation of new jobs. Sheffield Live! reporter Baillor Jalloh spoke to councillor Mary Lea, cabinet member for culture, parks and leisure.

Sheffield City Region receives £7.5m cycling boost

Sheffield and its South Yorkshire neighbours have received a £7.5 million boost to improve cycling and walking facilities across the area. Sheffield City Region successfully bid for the slice of a £64 million government funding package to get more people saddling up or travelling by foot. The money will be distributed between Sheffield, Doncaster, Barnsley and Rotherham, with the exact split yet to be decided. In Sheffield, the Council have said the cash would support more than 20 cycle projects over the next three years, including schemes to provide cycling training, bike hire and secure parking for cyclists. Simon Thake reports for Sheffield Live!

Charity worker, “people need action not only words”

Prime Minister, Teresa May has outlined plans to tackle what she described as the “hidden injustice” and stigma of mental illness. The PM said there will be additional training for teachers, an extra £15m for community care, and a £67.7m investment into online services such as self-checks to help diagnose mental health in its early stages so surferers can get the help they need. Mrs May’s speech comes as she outlined her plans to use the state to create a “shared society”. Tim Jones is the founder of Sheffield mental health action group, a charity organisation where mental health surferers meet to socialise.

 

Campaign boost to restore Old Town Hall to former glory

Friends of the Old Town Hall, set up to rescue of Sheffield’s former Town Hall and Courthouse has been granted funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to find a way of acquiring the building and bringing it back into use. The money will enable the campaign, set up in 2014, to register a charitable trust and to seek professional advice on how to develop a funding plan and a business strategy. The Grade 2 listed building has been empty since 1996 and has been owned since 2004 by a London- based property development company. Baillor Jalloh reports for Sheffield Live!

Sheffield Badminton star speaks out over Olympic funding cut

Sheffield badminton and Team GB athlete Chloe Birch has spoken out against UK Sport’s decision to cut funding for badminton leading up to Tokyo 2020. Funding has been cut despite Marcus Ellis and Chris Langridge winning bronze to secure Britain’s first men’s doubles medal at Rio this year. Badminton had its funding cut from £7.4m to £5.9m after London 2012, after no players managed the minimum fourth-to-eighth-placed finish that had been targeted. Yet despite the surprise success of Ellis and Langridge, the sport will not get a slice of the £345m of national lottery and government funding which UK Sport has announced will be invested over the next four years. Badminton England are appealing the decision and have started a petition on their website which has over ten thousand signatures. Our reporter Simon Thake spoke with Chloe Birch and Badminton Sheffield Chairman Alan Barber at the English Institute for Sport.