Funding pot of money for local projects is scrapped

A funding pot worth £136,000 for councillors to invest in local projects has been scrapped.

Since 2022, each of North Northamptonshire Council's 68 councillors have been allocated £2,000 every financial year for local initiatives and groups within their wards.

The executive committee on the Reform-led council instead voted that £68,000 would be repurposed to develop a youth empowerment grant scheme.

The remaining £68,000 from the former ward member empowerment fund will be used in the "general revenue fund as an in-year saving", the council said.

Syl Rielly, a Corby resident, said: "I think we need to think carefully about what happens if funding like this disappears.

"A local project quietly closes, a volunteer group scales back because costs become too high, a youth activity disappears.

"Over time, communities become less connected, less resilient, and more isolated."

Councillor Emily Fedorowycz, the Green leader on the council, said: "This is not a saving.

"Slicing up a tiny pot of community funding rather than funding things properly is both unfair to our young people and our community groups, who are already stretched."

Reform councillor Julie Lumsden said: "I do feel the way this is going, vital funding will be taken away from certain areas."

Conservative councillor David Brackenbury said the effect on local communities would be far-reaching and there was "cross-party opposition" to the plans, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

A council report showed last year only £86,000 was spent and if two grant schemes were to run it would require an additional £20,000 in costs.

Liberal Democrat councillor Simon Fairhall said any undistributed funds were "shocking" and "an indictment on our performance as councillors".

Reform Councillor Kirk Harrison, portfolio holder for regulatory services, said: "Our responsibility as an executive is not simply to continue things because they're popular or well-intentioned, it's to ensure that our decisions are right and proper and sustainable."

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