Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Communities committee [11 June 2019] will consider a report summarising performance relating to the Anti-Poverty Strategy action plan [1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019].
Dumfries and Galloway Council is committed to tackling poverty, agreeing its Anti-Poverty strategy and action plan in June 2015. It agreed an updated action plan in September 2017.
In February 2019 the Council agreed its budget for 2019/20, which included anti-poverty initiatives:
• £200k for an Anti-Poverty Strategy action plan, to be determined through participatory budgeting
• £200k to area committees to address local anti-poverty priorities
• £20k to develop and sustain local credit unions
• £100k to sustain the taxi card scheme
• £260k to distribute crisis grants
• £100k to tackle child poverty through school clothing grants
Councillor Andy Ferguson, chair of the Communities committee, said: “There are a variety of inter-connected factors that cause poverty, such as employment, income, health, accommodation, rurality, access to services, and isolation. It’s essential that Council staff can recognise these when people approach the Council for help and advice.”
John Martin, vice-chair, said: “It’s a priority for our Council to protect our most vulnerable people. We’re committed to tackling poverty and reducing inequalities through our strategy and action plan.”
