NACRO (National Association for the Care and Rehabilitation of Offenders) plays a part in reducing crime on buses.

 

NACRO is a charity working to reduce youths offending and to promote and deliver education and training in the Black Country.

 

NACRO received Centro's SIF to pilot the 'Moving on Transport' education programme. The programme supports NACRO's role in tackling the link between youths offending and poor literacy and numeracy skills. It also focuses on the impact of anti-social behaviour and vandalism on public transport, by covering the wider economic, social and environmental impacts.

 

To help raise young people's educational standards, the Moving on Transport project improves basic literacy, numeracy and ICT skills and all young people completing the eight-week course either receive a certificated City & Guilds qualification in key skills or a certificate of completion.

 

NACRO's Moving on Transport project is an innovative pilot that provides young people with key skills and is just one example of how SIF can make a difference to an organisation. It has allowed the charity to deal directly with issues of anti-social behaviour on transport, youth crime and perceptions that other people have of young people, therefore making a positive impact on the wider community.

 

 

Community Transport Solihull helps improve access to key services

 

Community Transport Solihull received Centro's Social Inclusion Funding (SIF) to deliver the 'Skills on the Road' project. The project has gone on to improve the lives of many people across Solihull.

 

Community Transport Solihull, a voluntary organisation that provides transport services for voluntary and community groups, schools, colleges and the Local Authority applied for SIF to establish and provide passenger assistants and a Minibus Driver Awareness Scheme (MiDAS). This included a training programme for volunteer drivers to gain recognised qualifications along the way.

 

The key objective of the training programme is to enable Community Transport Solihull to have access to a pool of trained drivers and passenger assistants to improve services for local groups and drivers that other voluntary organisations can utilise. Furthermore, the MiDAS training and qualification provides the volunteer drivers with additional skills, experience and confidence and improves their employment prospects.

 

Since the start of the project in April 2006, 27 people have been fully trained to MiDAS standards and as passenger assistants. As a direct consequence, there has been an increase in the number of community groups registering with Community Transport and an increase in passenger numbers and trips being made. Community Transport Solihull has also contributed to the regeneration of North Birmingham by helping reduce social exclusion by transporting people in the area to employment and training opportunities.

 

 

Hamstead Hall Sport and Community Programme helps break down transport barriers

 

Hamstead Hall Sport and Community Programme (HHSCP) provides a wide range of sports, arts and physical activities for disabled children, young people with specific needs and local people and is one project that has tapped into the Social Inclusion Fund (SIF). It is a working partnership between Hamstead Hall Community Learning Centre, Birmingham Leisure and Culture, Birmingham Local Education Authority, sports and community organisations and the local community.

 

Before HHSCP applied for Centro SIF, many members of the community were unable to attend activities due to a lack of suitable transport. A number of children and young people regularly visiting the centre also suffered mobility difficulties, long-term illness or behavioural problems and many required specialist transport to and from the centre.

 

To address the unmet transport needs of the community, HHSCP applied and was awarded Social Inclusion Funding from Centro. The fund enabled the employment of a full time driver and fully accessible transport provision, necessary to allow access to the centre's activities. An after school transport service now operates five days a week to leisure, sports and recreational activities, at sites across the north west of Birmingham. Weekend transport and local trips to HHSCP and other local centres is now possible.

 

Importantly, parents using the HHSCP reported that the programme has allowed them to share their life with others who are in similar circumstances and given them the ability to cope with their child's disability. Also, transport is no longer an issue, increased numbers of people are enrolling onto the programme and many more groups are working in partnership with the centre. It is hoped more schools and community centres will follow in the footsteps of Hamstead and take a holistic approach so local people can take full advantage of activities available to them.