Budgets for voluntary groups in Ashfield are to be slashed

Nottinghamshire County council have written to voluntary and community groups in Nottinghamshire to inform them their funding will be dramatically reduced.

Funding from the county council account for as much as 70% of community groups budgets. The austerity measures have been brought in to place as the council struggles to save up to a hundred and fifty million pounds over the next three years. 

Alan Lloyd, chief executive of Mansfield CVS (Community and Voluntary Services), says the cuts will have a ‘debilitating’ effect on the voluntary sector but the county council could not be blamed.

“I have worked with the county council for 15 years and have always found it a strong supporter of the voluntary sector,” he said.

“Unfortunately the council has found itself in this position but ordinary people will feel the effects.”

The CVS is expecting to see its funding cut by up to 70 per cent across the board, which will reduce the amount of work it can do with the unemployed, the elderly and other vulnerable groups.

“The need for these services is going up but the resources for them is going down,” Mr Lloyd said.

“But we have to make the best of it. The voluntary sector is very resilient and we will hopefully get back to where we were in two to three years or so.”

These latest cutbacks come on top of proposed mass redundancies reported in August. Up to 3000 redundancies were reported to being made by the county council in August.

But at the same time the County council employed Greg Michael, with a hundred and ten thousand pound salary, to advise on cost cutting measures.

How can the conservatives bring about their idea of the big society, volunteers replacing paid employees providing essential services, when the volunteer groups can no longer afford to survive?

It is apparent now more than ever that the three main parties cannot be trusted to run our country.  The constant cycle of Labour taking this country into recession, the conservatives then slashing everything to it's knees cannot be repeated forever.

Its time now for the citizens of Ashfield to wake up, and see that there as to be a change from the old gang parties. They have to vote BNP, to secure a better future for their children.