Sheffield MP sets up new group dedicated to improving funding for ‘left behind’ neighbourhoods

Gill Furniss, Labour MP for Hillsborough and Brightside, has been chosen to lead the new All-Party Parliamentary Group for ‘Left Behind’ Neighbourhoods, with the area of Southey identified as one such community.

Mrs Furniss said she was delighted that an area that had been close to her heart since she used to represent it as a city councillor could be among the first to benefit.

She said: “The lockdown has brought it home about how much we rely on community groups. It has given us an opportunity to stand back and see how much they help people.

“Tenants’ and residents’ associations used to be really strong but they find it much harder to recruit people now, and austerity has really affected how much communities are able to help themselves.

“But groups such as the Parson Cross Forum and the Southey Development Forum do great work. I hope this money will inspire and enable more communities to get out there and get things done.”

While not the most deprived part of the city, Southey was chosen due to the range of social problems it suffers from including social isolation among the elderly and digital poverty among the young.

Mrs Furniss added that the timing of the announcement was especially poignant, coming as it did on the fourth anniversary of the death of former Batley and Spen MP, Jo Cox.

She said: “Jo Cox’s work on social isolation and bringing people together showed that people all want the same things; decent pay, a nice home and their children to do well.

“We hope this money will get communities working together and make a real difference to some of the most deprived parts of the city.”

Rebuilding our brave communities, post-coronavirus: Gill Furniss MP

The effects of coronavirus have been felt deeply across the country, with the worst impacts set to continue for a long time to come. Tens of thousands of lives have been tragically lost, industries are being decimated, and millions are rightly worried about what a post-crisis world looks like for their livelihoods and for their families. Yet, in this time of great despair, I have been so warmed by the ever-increasing groundswell of kindness from people throughout the UK. This is what makes me so positive about how we can come out of this crisis better and rebuild the communities so ravaged by this awful pandemic.

This crisis has clearly shown that community spirit and neighbourliness are truly alive and kicking. Thousands of community groups across the country are working incredibly hard to provide desperately needed services to those who need it most. A brilliant example can be seen at ‘Pitsmoor Adventure Playground’ who, following the closure of their playground, have joined forces with Burngreave Foodbank to deliver essentials to those most in need during this pandemic. They have been a testament to the strong sense of community values across Sheffield and the country.

Community-led action has proven to be hugely successful as a means of combating the effects of the virus on local communities. Because of local knowledge of a neighbourhood’s most vulnerable or isolated residents, communities act as an ‘early warning system’, and can most efficiently and effectively deal with local issues. When I was a councillor for Southey, I witnessed first-hand the power of community action. It is important that, post-crisis, we don’t waste this opportunity to further empower communities by giving them the resources they need to improve their areas and their quality of life.

This would have the knock-on effect of reducing the strain on overburdened councils, struggling with unprecedented demands on their services. By devolving budgets to communities and giving them certain decision-making powers over services in their areas, we can forge a new and productive relationship between local government and local community groups. This sort of ‘community commissioning’ can be hugely beneficial to both local communities and local authorities. For example, residents in Kingsbrook and Caldwell Big Local in Bedfordshire – a resident-led, community group given £1.1m in 2010 as part of the Big Local Programme – employ a ‘Community Health Champion’, which has transformed the way in which residents interact with the local health service. Based in the local GP surgery, the Health Champion offers support with non-medical issues affecting a patient’s health, such as poor housing or a sedentary lifestyle. Across 10 case studies, the health and social care savings and benefits from this service amounted to nearly £40,000. What had been a purely transactional relationship became a collaborative means to improve community health, benefitting residents and public services.

And not only will this help councils and reduce the strain on public services, but it will also serve to sustain the social connections both forged and strengthened throughout this crisis. To ensure the sustainability of this community-led moment we need to support these relationships through a strong network of civic or social infrastructure which will encourage social bonds within communities and build social capital.

This is why I will be chairing the new All-Party Parliamentary Group for ‘Left Behind’ Neighbourhoods along with Paul Howell MP, the new MP for Sedgefield. This group will provide a forum considering and advocating for policy initiatives aimed at improving the socio-economic outcomes of some of the hardest-hit communities in the country, including right here in Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough. I look forward to keeping constituents updated with the work this group will do.