PARTNERSHIP OUTCOMES
P1 . Added value beyond that brought by the funding alone :
1.4 BETTER ABLE TO RESPOND TO CHANGES
BREATHE
The move to the High Street premises wouldn ’ t have happened without the UYW funding and it has had a significant impact on how we are perceived - more neutral and accessible to all young people . ”
Opening new drop-ins in new locations and doing outreach work has brought partners into contact with swathes of young people that they had not met before . It has expanded their reach , their knowledge of the wider uncharted territory in the area and their connections within it . This was most prevalent in Perth City , where previous funding had pushed YMCA deep into a mode of specialised and targeted work that was not considered as ' universal ' due to its low reach . The fund has therefore transformed their whole strategy , as the Manager acknowledged :
" It has taken us back to our roots and made us reflect of who we are and what we deliver . To be honest I think we had lost that because our building , capacity and staff focus was more on delivering specific [ targeted ] projects and programmes and it made us realise we hadn ’ t delivered universal youth work for years . Through discussion and facing up to challenges we ’ ve made such a difference in a relatively short period of time ."
Throughout the pandemic , the services have been gravely impacted over what can be delivered , where and with whom . At the same time the organisation have undergone significant changes in staff and structural re-organisation . Whilst this is a normal part of life for youth service providers , the partnership has provided somewhere to go for support and advice .
In addition to helping each other , partners have often sought advice from fund officers or had to respond to queries over fund management . Partners have shared that although at times difficult this has proved beneficial in keeping services going throughout challenging times . It has raised calls to create a ' facilitator ' role going forward .
I think there is a case for a role that focuses on the governance of the partnership . This could be done by increasing the hours of someone from within the partnership ." AYP
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