About Us
THE
LOCAL CONTEXT FOR THE COMMUNITY ACCESS POINT
The
Houghton Racecourse Community Access Point is one component from
a range of initiatives and programmes designed to renew and regenerate
the former Southern Coalfield area in the Local Authority area
of Sunderland. As part of a range of initiatives designed to
improve the quality of life for people in the Coalfield it must
be seen in the context of the significant decline experienced
in the many communities that make up the coalfield from Shiney
Row, Philadelphia and Newbottle in the North of the area through
Houghton to Hetton and Easington Lane in the South.
Project Objectives
The project has a number of interlinked objectives. A project summary sets
out the objectives as:
- To create opportunities for local people to manage their own
provision,
- To empower the community,
- To breakdown barriers to access of cost, transport, childcare,
confidence, disability/ability and culture,
- To encourage and support local people through training and
education leading to employment,
- To create opportunities for the whole community to participate
and benefit from the Community Access Point,
- To listen and respond.
Key Objectives
The original project
bid to the Lottery Community Fund identifies three main objectives
for the project, to be achieved through the lottery funding.
- To advance education and reduce financial hardship, enabling
people living on the racecourse estate and in surrounding areas
to gain access to advice, information and training,
- To increase opportunities for access to employment and wider
opportunities,
- To increase and enhance awareness of personal potential of
local people –removing barriers to access of cost, childcare
and transport.
These three objectives were designed
to meet the programme criterion for the Community Fund:
- To improve the quality of life of people on the estate and
surrounding areas who area affected by poverty and disadvantage
and to regenerate the community enabling people to enhance their
lives.
Outputs and Outcomes
The Lottery bid did not identify specific outputs and outcomes, although it
did identify in some detail how the project would benefit the people who
would use it over the three years.
- Providing support and social change for individuals, to build
people’s confidence and aspirations in relation to the
needs of the changing employment market,
- Providing opportunities for qualitative and challenging practical
experience at an individual level,
- Raising educational standards, improving and enhancing local
community needs,
- Involving local people in the community and breaking down
existing barriers,
- Promoting self worth, self esteem and self awareness of previously
unknown capabilities,
- Ensuring that the project is locally accessible to all ages,
abilities and circumstances,
- Providing free transport and childcare,
- Providing disabled access,
- Improving financial opportunities for local people,
- Providing a drop-in crèche for the local community.
Although there were no specific quantified outputs for the Lottery
Funding the project has established systems to monitor activities
and these are looked at in the impacts section.
HRCAP, 46-48
Queensway, Houghton le Spring, DH5 8EN, Tel: 0191 5534020
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