Decision details

Liverpool City Region (LCR) Combined Authority bid to Department for Work and Pensions to secure £42 million European Social Fund grant. This grant will support workless people to re-enter the labour market and address benefit dependency. Sefton's share of the LCR total project cost is £6,173,124, of which £1,828,182 is match financed from Sefton MBC existing budgets and the remaining £2,742,123 from ESF and £1,602,918 from Youth Employment Initiative (YEI). The decision requested is to enable the external monies to be used within the Authority to support the delivery of an agreed range of outcomes for young people and adults at risk of exclusion from the world of work.

The Cabinet considered the report of the Head of Inward Investment and Employment which provided details of the progress of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Ways to Work European Social Fund (ESF) bid submission and a ESF and Youth Employment Initiative (YEI) grant offer for delivery in Sefton.

Decision Made: That

(1)       the in-principle approval received for the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority ‘Ways to Work’ ESF programme be noted; and

(2)       the Cabinet Member – Regeneration and Skills be granted delegated authority to accept the ESF grant offer for delivery in Sefton in line with the advice received from the Chief Finance Officer and Head of Regulation and Compliance prior to the bid submission.

Reasons for Decision:

To accept the offer of an ESF grant award of £2,742,123 and Youth Employment Initiative award of £1,062,919 for Sefton. This is part of the wider Combined Authority bid which totals £19,123,473 ESF and £10,416,183 YEI for the City Region Combined Authority partners.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

Not to apply for EU funding would be to forego the benefits (financial, social and economic) associated with external funding. EU funding would provide an essential component of the future funding of key elements of the Council’s Investment and Employment Service from 2016 onwards, and would support the delivery of key objectives for prosperity and jobs. The opportunity to attract Youth Employment Initiative funding in addition to European Social Fund offers a particularly desirable level of grant intervention rate. It is considered that this would provide the only possible method of securing this level of investment to improving the life chances of vulnerable young people the Council could pursue over the next three years.