One of Rotherham’s most deprived communities has been left out of a key consultation on how to spend £20 million of government funding, and the areas’ councillor says the delay is just the latest example of how areas like East Herringthorpe are forgotten.

The estate, ranked in the most deprived one per cent of the entire country, was included in the government’s “Plan for Neighbourhoods” funding zone, but when the consultation was launched online by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, East Herringthorpe was nowhere to be found on the list.

For Councillor Michael Bennett-Sylvester, who represents the Dalton and Thrybergh ward alongside Councillor Jodie Ryalls, the omission was infuriating.

“It makes no sense whatsoever,” he said. “East Herringthorpe was in the geographic area, and this is the most deprived one per cent of the country. But when you went on to the menu for the consultation, it wasn’t available to comment on. We’ve had to get angry that we’ve been an afterthought.”

Cllr Bennett-Sylvester said East Herringthorpe was among the worst-served areas in Rotherham, with a stark mismatch between the number of homes and the level of community services. The estate, he noted, had just one field, a small play area, and a neighbourhood centre barely larger than a bungalow.

placeholder image — Cllr Bennett-Sylvester said East Herringthorpe was among the worst-served areas in Rotherham, with a stark mismatch between the number of homes and the level of community services. The estate, he noted, had just one field, a small play area, and a neighbourhood centre barely larger than a bungalow.

He says he flagged the issue two weeks ago but nothing happened. Then he discovered consultations were going ahead in parts of Rawmarsh that weren’t even eligible for the funding.

“Last week, I basically spat my dummy out of the pram. I found out they were doing consultations on parts of Rawmarsh that aren’t included in the geographic area.”

After pushing back, he and Cllr Ryalls finally secured a commitment from the council that East Herringthorpe would be added to the consultation drop-down list, and officers would come out for a face-to-face meeting.

But the damage is done, he says, and the community is now two weeks behind other areas in having its say, and trust is once again wearing thin.

He’s now urging residents to attend the drop-in or fill in the online form before the consultation closes on 8 September, saying local voices are essential to fighting for a fair share of the funding.

“We’ve got East Herringthorpe in the game and we need people now to get along and make their opinions known as we can make sure we’re fighting the corner for this extra money.”

But for Cllr Bennett-Sylvester, the issue runs deeper than a missing menu option. He says the way neighbourhood investment is decided, both by government and the council, continues to leave out places like Dalton, Thrybergh, and Munsbrough, where deprivation is high but attention is low.

He points out that while his ward contains around 1,800 council houses, it receives the same neighbourhood working hours as areas like Todwick, which has just 269.

“That’s the next argument to be had, what we’re going to do for places like Dalton, Thrybergh, Munsbrough. These kinds of places are missing out and they’re going to fall further behind.”

He’s also fiercely critical of how the council’s Housing Revenue Account - a ring-fenced pot made up primarily of council tenants’ rent, along with service charges and other housing-related income - is used to fund housing services across the borough. is used across the borough, with no weighting for areas of greatest need.

Cllr Bennett-Sylvester said East Herringthorpe was among the worst-served areas in Rotherham, with a stark mismatch between the number of homes and the level of community services. The estate, he noted, had just one field, a small play area, and a neighbourhood centre barely larger than a bungalow.

He says the schools need more support, and the lived environment is crying out for basic improvements such as like natural planting and green spaces, but those are just surface-level fixes.

“We’ve still not got to that point where our very deprived communities are first and foremost. A lot of councillors don’t live in these areas. A lot of officers don’t live in these areas.”

Councillor John Williams, cabinet member for transport, jobs and the local economy, said: “Clearly the team cannot be everywhere, but in response to feedback, council staff were in East Herringthorpe – one of the areas in the boundary – on Wednesday 6 August, to speak directly with residents and gather their views at an eleventh session.

“When we launched the consultation, there was an issue with our website which resulted in users being unable to select East Herringthorpe as a response option. It did not prevent people from providing their views and comments, however, and was corrected the same day it was brought to our attention.

“Rotherham’s Plan for Neighbourhoods boundary was chosen by the government and is known as a ‘Built Up Area’. It is based on data provided by the Office for National Statistics and is the area of a town characterised by urban features such as town centres, major infrastructure and larger populations. This is the area that is the focus of the consultation and for the ultimate delivery of the programme.”

“Like all stock holding local authorities, the council pools all its income from rents and other charges in its Housing Revenue Account. The council then takes decisions about how that money is invested based on its priorities.

“When setting its annual Ward Housing Budget, the council takes into account how many council homes are in each ward. All wards receive a basic amount of funding, but those with more council homes get extra funding. The more council homes a ward has, the more additional funding it receives.”