country air 118

The newsletter of Rural Action Yorkshire Winter 2011 Issue 118

Get the latest news online: www.ruralyorkshire.org.uk www.twitter.com/ruralyorkshire

In this issue… Review of 2010 page 3 Ask RAY– Water Supplies page 6 Meet Maggie page 7 Broadband Update page 11

Plus all the latest project updates and rural news.

Chairman’s Viewpoint Regretfully our AGM in November had to be postponed due to treacherous weather conditions. Through Radio York I was able to broadcast the cancellation and appeal to any York based Charity who could use the food arranged for the luncheon. Arclight, a charity in York for the homeless, responded and fifty people sat down to your lunch! So it wasn’t wasted. The postponed AGM took place in January. It was a matter of dealing with formalities and because of your responses in providing proxy voting forms it was quorate and concluded the business as required, approving the annual report, the Treasurer’s report, the Auditor’s report (no questions were raised about our finances) and appointing Segars as our auditors for the next audit. Our Trustee Board met after the AGM and agreed our budget for 2011-12. There are considerable uncertainties about funding for the voluntary sector for next year and so we took a very conservative view about our income expectations. Nevertheless, we have been able set a budget which allows us to continue with our commitments for 2011/12 and to maintain our core services to our communities. As many of you will know, RAY is a member of the national body for rural community councils – Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE). The Trustee Board for ACRE includes trustees appointed by each ACRE region. Just over a year ago, RAY and Humber & Wolds RCC (the other RCC in our region) appointed Janet Thornton to be our regional Trustee. Janet is a long standing Trustee with RAY. She has obviously made a good impression at ACRE because she has been appointed as the ACRE Board Vice-Chair. Well done Janet! ACRE have played a very important role in advising the new government about rural issues since the general election. Sylvia Brown, the Chief Executive there, has been invited to present her views to DeFRA, Cabinet Office and Office for Civil Society ministers and we can be sure she gave a good account of herself and of the importance of Rural Community Councils. We know how hard ACRE has been working on this from their frequent requests to RCCs for evidence about local conditions in rural communities in preparation for briefings for ministers. So your voice does get heard. Indeed, the government has actively sought information to inform the development of their ideas about the “Big Society” and we have given them lots to think about. We have celebrated the snow with our cover photograph. It was taken early in the snowy phase when it was still a bit of a novelty! As you will see, I’m not in the picture. I was probably shovelling the stuff away from my front door – we got quite a dump of it in the Esk Valley.

Linda Lloyd Chairman, Rural Action Yorkshire [email protected]

RAY Contacts Switchboard: 0845 313 0270 Bill Cross, Chief Executive ............ ext.236 Gillian McIntosh Head of Finance & Admin ................. ext.230 Rebecca Craven Marketing & PR Officer .................... ext.232 Paula Wilcox Operations Officer ........................... ext.221 Marilyn Bennett Operations & Finance Assistant ........ ext.222 Jonny Wooldridge - 07722 127505 Rural Community Buildings & Playing Fields Advisor .................. ext.226 Amanda Kent - 07545 430977 Community Involvement Officer ........ ext.227 Amy Robinson - 07963 533675 West/North Yorkshire Manager Maggie Farey - 07825 380051 North Yorks Development Officer (Ryedale)

Mel McGeoch - 07722 127503 Youth Café Development Officer

Jane Johnson - 07540 691029 North Yorks Rural Development Support Officer ................................ ext.234 Nick Butterworth - 07847 619388 Rural Capacity Building Officer

Kathryn Chapman Development Officer ........................ ext.247 Tina Chamberlain - 07963 533675 South Yorkshire Manager ................ ext: 235 Melanie Swanwick - 07757 639929 South Yorks Rural Network Development Co-ordinator (Barnsley & Doncaster)

Peter Foyle - 07834 322296 South Yorks Rural Network Development Co-ordinator (Rotherham & Sheffield) YNYPFA - 0845 313 0270

02 The Newsletter of Rural Action Yorkshire

Front page picture: RAY Staff

Disclaimer: Every effort is taken to provide accurate information. However, Rural Action Yorkshire accepts no responsibility for any error or omission in, or complaint arising from, items in this publication. The views expressed in Country Air do not necessarily represent those of Rural Action Yorkshire. The display of advertising material does not represent an endorsement.

Review of 2010 Last year saw a lot of change in the voluntary sector. For RAY, 2010 got off to an exciting start as we moved home to Askham Bryan. Then as the year progressed, there were bigger changes, not just for us, but for the sector and indeed the country as a whole. The main events were the change in Government, the great fall of the spending axe and the introduction of something called the Big Society.

The Big Society prompted much discussion and a lot of this centred round trying to understand what it is and what it would mean for our sector. Opinion seemed divided. Nonetheless, later this year, the Big Society Bank will start handing out £60m in unclaimed assets and pilots for the National Citizens Service for young people will also begin. But if the Big Society had an air of intangibility, government cuts were unavoidably real. The Charity Commission was badly hit, but at least it survived the 'bonfire of the quangos', unlike the Commission for Rural Communities, Capacitybuilders and the Commission for the Compact. The government said it would reduce the number of strategic partnerships with the sector by two-thirds. In July, a survey revealed that 87 per cent of big charities had made job cuts and that some had resorted to mergers in order to survive. Finally, 2010 closed with the Localism Bill and the government’s six ‘essential actions’ in the shift towards ‘decentralisation’. There are now useful summaries of this if you search online. What are we hoping for in 2011? For RAY, our ambition is to continue to strengthen our relationships with rural communities and to help them respond to the challenges and opportunities that the big society initiative presents. We are planning a series of local meetings around Yorkshire to strengthen our local contacts and to get more information about communities’ needs and aspirations. The Big Society initiative, if it is to work, will need communities to get involved and those communities will need help in organising themselves effectively if they do respond. That’s where our support can be especially helpful. And we will be pressing local authorities to support communities wanting to help themselves. We know that communities are already busy trying to make things happen themselves. For instance, we heard from Beal and Kellington who have a very impressive list of projects to achieve in 2011, including work on village halls, new facilities for children and young people and several gardening projects. Bagby and Thirkleby are putting together a response from their community to a forthcoming planning meeting about the development of a local airfield. We’re also looking forward to our involvement in the development of Aberford’s Master Plan. Across in the Howardian Hills, volunteer groups are putting ideas from their Community Led Plans into action.

Is RAY OK? ...and our survey said: 25%. Everyone else thinks we’re even better! When we asked for feedback from people who had used our service, 75% said their contact with RAY was ’very useful’. Rural Action Yorkshire is currently undertaking a customer needs survey. It is always very useful to gain feedback from our service users to find out how we are doing and more importantly, how we can improve on what we are already offering. We also received some lovely comments:

Good input from staff Grateful to staff

Extremely helpful Staff were very helpful

Staff have always been helpful Value partnership and joint working

Of those responding, 65% were from North, 30% were from South and 5% were from West Yorkshire.

Your responses also included useful suggestions on how we can improve our service to the rural communities we serve and what additional services we may be able to offer in the future. Thank you to all those who have completed surveys so far. We’d love more! If you have recently had contact with RAY and would like to complete this quick survey, please visit:

www.surveymonkey.com/s/H7KHG93

The Newsletter of Rural Action Yorkshire 03

North Yorkshire South Yorkshire West Yorkshire

Action in the Howardian Hills Following completion of their Community Led Plans, communities in the Howardian Hills are busy working on projects which were highlighted. In Slingsby this includes the formation of the Slingsby Allotment Association who have rented a piece of land in the village to allow interested residents to have their own plot. A new local newsletter has just been published, the Village Hall committee has refurbishment plans and new social activities have been started. Rural Arts North Yorkshire worked with many of Slingsby’s residents and Slingsby C of E School to produce a wonderful ceramic plaque which contains around 70 brightly coloured individual tiles that depict the heritage, culture and environment of the parish and surrounding area. Similar projects are planned for the Spring including creating mosaic stepping stones. The residents of Hovingham continue to work tirelessly to make things happen in their community: David Cameron take note, this is the ‘Big Society’ in action. Swinton’s Community Led Plan is due to go to the printers shortly but the Steering Group has already re-introduced the village bonfire (which was a great success) and published two editions of a new village newsletter. Many other project ideas are in the pipeline: a busy 2011 lies ahead!

North Yorkshire

Rural Voice Network - Get Heard!

Is your group looking for help with marketing? The Rural Voice team is now able to offer groups free templates and advice on things like social media, running an event and producing posters and leaflets. We discovered that basic marketing advice at a reasonable price, or even better, for free, was something which many of you were looking for. We enlisted the help of North Yorkshire based marketing company Plug and Tap and got the latest ideas and know-how, which we would now love to share with you! As well as helping groups individually, we have continued to deliver a programme of events across North Yorkshire to support remote rural voluntary and community groups. We managed to run most of these events despite the wintery weather, and all but the Sledmere event went ahead. With the caterers snowed in and the dangerous driving conditions the event was cancelled, but will be rescheduled in the new year. We apologise to anyone who tried to attend. In November Ripon CVS and Craven CVS worked together to deliver two days worth of events in Ripon and Skipton which brought services providers from across North Yorkshire together to allow groups from remote areas to meet all the right people in one place. The events were a great success and the Rural Network Officers asked those attending for suggestions for future events, so watch this space to see what’s planned. If your group would like to receive further information, contact your local Rural Network Officer. or email us at [email protected].


Quick tips • If you’re wanting to work with or attract young

people, use social media sites such as Facebook. You’ll be on the same wave length, can organize events and ask for people’s opinions quickly and easily.

• Identify your target group and use the most appropriate method to attract them. If word of mouth is the best option, there’s no point producing a leaflet.

• If you’re putting on an event make sure you have a check list of what needs doing and who is doing it. Also make sure you’ve got contact numbers for everyone on the day.

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Details of RAY’s Spring training programme are now being finalised. The new year is the perfect time to make plans, get yourself up to date and investigate ways to get more of the community involved in where they live. Those of us who live in a rural community know the importance of having an active, well run village hall that provides us with a venue for social, recreational and cultural activity. Village halls and other community buildings are an integral part of rural life and an asset that can greatly improve the quality of life in our communities. If you are involved in running your village hall you will know that over recent years a raft of changes in the regulations governing the management of village halls and other community buildings have completely changed the landscape for trustees and management committees. Many of you will be volunteers who may also have jobs, so having the time to keep up to date is not easy to manage! As part of our commitment to supporting rural communities we are organising a series of training sessions in your area to ensure that trustees and management committees are running their building in line with current regulations and good practice. Maybe you want to learn how to manage your energy costs more efficiently or ensure that you have appropriate entertainment licenses in place. Maybe your business plan needs reviewing or you might even have a particular project in mind. Whatever your particular requirements are, these training sessions will provide you with information and the support you need. The sessions are being run by a village halls specialist with a wealth of knowledge and experience. Community-Led Planning events are also on their way. With the introduction of the Localism Bill, communities now have much more control over their future development and the benefits to be gained from Community-Led Plans (CLPs) have never been greater. RAY’s training sessions will show how to successfully develop robust and comprehensive CLPs and undertake community consultation. Let us know if you would like to host one of these events in your village hall, or if you would like details of your nearest event email [email protected] We’ll keep you posted about the details of the meetings in your area on our website www.ruralyorkshire.org.uk.

Save Libraries You will probably know the library service in North Yorkshire is facing cuts and is currently consulting on proposals for the future delivery options of library and information services in North Yorkshire. This provides an opportunity for your community to be involved. If your community is looking to run your local library make sure you have read the FAQs and completed the consultation response form which are available on the North Yorkshire County Council website. You will also be able to complete an expression of interest form. You will then need to provide evidence that you have consulted within your community and that there is the support for using the service. Get in touch and we can help you with your community consultation. Community Videowire Community Newswire is the Media Trust's unique partnership with the Press Association, where charities and community groups submit press releases to professional Press Association journalists. They’ve now launched Community Videowire, which takes your video footage and if newsworthy, Press Association journalists turn it into a news package, which goes directly to television and online media. If you are a charity or community group, take advantage of their skills and networks for free and find out how to shoot quality video www.mediatrust.org/videowire


RuralYorkshire RuralActionYorkshire Don’t forget to complete the consultation documents on North Yorkshire Library Closures http://bit.ly/gAf4XR 2 hours ago Favourite Reply Delete

A Changing Landscape

If you’ve got a problem or query which you’d like help with: ask RAY! By sharing issues, ideas and solutions, other communities can hopefully learn something too and get a different perspective on how they are doing things. This issue we look at water. Could you guess how many private water supplies there are across North, South and West Yorkshire? We haven’t done a detailed audit but it might be as many as 5,000 and is certainly more than 3,000. About half of these are for individual dwellings and the other half are supply systems to several consumers.

We know this because we have had a small number of enquiries from people with private water supplies asking about help to up-grade them and we have been finding out what we can about the issue.

It seems that at the beginning of the year new EU regulations came into effect which changed the way that Environmental Health Officers had to deal with supplies found to be below standard. The result is that some of these supplies may need to be up-graded.

The numbers affected will be quite small and certainly the regulations do not mean that all of these thousands of supplies will need to be up-graded. Supplies to individual households will not be inspected unless the householder requests it and for other supplies the existing inspection regime has ensured that standards are generally high. But the change means that Environmental Health Officers are now not able to be as flexible as they were in dealing with systems found to be below standard and must require action.

So some supplies will need to be up-graded to ensure that standards are being met. Alternatively, affected consumers can seek a mains supply. The choice is largely one of cost, though it may suit some to move to mains supply anyway in order to avoid the risk of future failures to maintain standards.

As for help to communities that need to make improvements, so far as we have been able to discover there is none. For connecting to the mains, Yorkshire Water need to make a commercial charge and have no means by which that could be subsidised and there does not seem to be any scheme to provide financial assistance to upgrade private supplies.

To rub salt into that wound it is interesting to note that the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland Governments do provide subsidies in these cases. In Scotland, for example, where a supply needs to be up-graded, subsidies of up to £800 per household are available.

The upshot of these investigations is that we have not been able to be very helpful to enquirers. It may be that affected communities would benefit from comparing notes about what they are faced with and how they are dealing with the issue and we would like to help if that is so. Please let us know if you are facing this issue and would like to know about others in the same situation, or if you feel you could offer advice to others on the basis of your experience. Send us your contact details and we’ll try to connect you.

Hovingham Market - the UK’s Greenest

Congratulations to our friends in Hovingham! The Hovingham Village Market has been crowned as the UK’s Greenest Market by the National Market Traders Federation.

The market beat off strong competition from markets across the country in a contest to find the most environmentally aware market with the most effective green practices.

Markets were judged in three geographical areas – North, Midlands and South and there was a category for the most improved green market as well as the national accolade of the UK’s greenest market which went to The Hovingham Village Market.

This award is real recognition for the fantastic success of the community’s achievement for the market to be green and to establish real support for local produce and rural businesses. Their community, stall holders and volunteer market team must be congratulated in this success, they have supported and practiced the market’s green credentials and this has now achieved national recognition.

The Community Market has over 40 stalls and is definitely worth a visit. It’s held at Hovingham Village Hall on the first Saturday of every month.

Ask RAY 06 The Newsletter of Rural Action Yorkshire

We’re a friendly lot and we like getting about Yorkshire and meeting people. But how much do you know about RAY and its staff? Country Air caught up with Maggie Farey to find out more…

CA How long have you worked for RAY? MF I started in 2003, though it was called YRCC then. I’ve had various job titles, but in the last few years my main work has been parish plans. In Ryedale over 50 parishes have been involved in producing a parish plan. I now work in the Howardian Hills in the HHAONB area, to engage with communities via various methods, working with local schools, organising meetings, events, ‘drop–ins’ and working with partner organisations. We’ve pooled resources in order to offer the best support for community groups. CA What have been the highlights for you Maggie? MF When parishes are able to use Parish Plans as evidence of need to getting funding for various uses, such as new play areas and village hall improvements. They help to get new groups and clubs started and increase the number of volunteers and residents included in village activities and events. I believe it’s vital that residents have a ‘voice’ and the fact that questionnaires are anonymous encourages more to participate. CA What do you love about your job? MF I enjoy meeting & working with residents and community groups and listening to their stories, especially from the ‘good old days’. I’m constantly amazed by the enthusiasm and hard work of small numbers of dedicated volunteers. Also, Ryedale is a lovely area and just travelling around is a real pleasure. In rural areas groups are so welcoming and grateful for the support we can offer and this can sometimes make a big difference. CA You know a fair bit about living somewhere rural, don’t you? MF I live in a small hamlet with no amenities but a red phone box. The nearest shop is 8 miles away, nearest pub, church and well-used village hall are about 3 miles. You get used to it and make sure you have plenty in the cupboards and freezer, especially in winter. But the peace and quiet and stunning scenery and the dark skies at night, more than make up lack of amenities. CA What changes have you seen? MF It’s sad when villages lose basic services such as shops, Post Office, schools and local businesses such as garages and tradesmen. It greatly increases the dependency on private transport. But in many villages newer residents especially the early retired have brought skills and energy and have thrown themselves into village life and made a big difference. CA Finally, a less-known fact about Maggie? MF I am learning to play the drums, (just one of those things I always wanted to do but never got round to it). At least where I live you don’t annoy the neighbours!

Who is RAY? The 2011 Census Help Tomorrow Take Shape The census has collected information about the population every ten years since 1801 (except in 1941). The next census in England and Wales is on 27 March 2011. The census tells us how many people live where and the types of people they are (young, old, married, single).This means decisions, like working out who needs facilities in the future, are focused on accurate, relevant details. Millions of pounds shared out The Department of Communities and Local Government and the Department of Health allocate money to local and health authorities. Census statistics feed into that process. That’s why you need to be counted to make sure that your community is properly represented in the decision-making process. Every person counted in a Census is worth thousands of pounds to local authorities over the ten year census period in the allocation of central government funding. Your community and family benefit You need to complete and return the Census form so that the services and facilities your community/family uses can be identified. These services include schools, hospitals and emergency services. Census statistics help work out the amount of funding allocated to facilities in communities. If you, or your group needs more information, or can help by raising awareness of the Census within your community group, please contact Census Customer Services on 01329 444 972 or through the website www.2011.census.gov.uk


Rural Deprivation “That’s not fair – because we live in a rural area people think we’ve got everything we need” This was the response of someone from a rural part of Rotherham to the Big Lottery Fund’s announcement that its Community Buildings Grant will decide eligibility based on post code. In fact, though this group had been turned down by other funders because they were felt to be in a ‘well off’ part of Rotherham, they do figure on the Big Lottery Fund’s list. Surprisingly they also figure on the Government’s deprivation index for the worst 10% of areas in the country – not for things like income levels, or crime, but for measures of barriers to housing & services, and the environment. This reflects what people in rural areas are very aware of – housing can be very difficult to come by, with little available and high prices; they can be a long way from basic services such as GP surgeries, schools, post offices or supermarkets. The environment category includes measures of air quality (this area is close to the M1), and road accidents, common on twisting country lanes. As part of its work in South Yorkshire, RAY is producing reports showing that rural areas should remain high on the agenda of decision makers. They should not be dismissed with the assumption that because general income levels may be high, there are not some people struggling, and that the fact of being in a rural areas raises very different issues that should be taken into account. It is clear looking at the situation in Rotherham that some rural areas include pockets of high levels of deprivation – low income levels, poor education achievement, and poor health. If these factors are combined with the distance from basic services, the cost of travel or the difficulty of an ill person making a journey, it shows that there can be real barriers for people living away from the town centre. The worry at the moment is that where public services are having budgets cut, the more expensive outreach services are an easy target compared to a central point of delivery. This may be cheaper but will leave many people in real need even more isolated than they are now. RAY is keen to make sure that the needs of these people are not ignored.

Our South Yorkshire team

Rotherham and Sheffield: Peter Foyle 07834 322296 Barnsley and Doncaster: Melanie Swanwick 07757 639929 S.Yorks Development Manager Tina Chamberlain 07963 533675

Network Update A key part of RAY’s work in South Yorkshire is helping groups in rural areas to find out about the support that is available to them, those agencies such as Voluntary Action Rotherham, the South Yorkshire Funding Advice Bureau, and Together for Regeneration. A variety of ways are used to make contacts with groups, and help them make the most of what support is available:

General network events – run as a market place, where people can sit down and talk to the agencies, find out what they do, and sign up to particular help. The most recent one in Rotherham ran like this. The people who braved the sub-zero temperatures found it very useful. They met several support agencies for the first time and were able to talk to them in detail about the help that they needed

Themed network meeting – the rural groups in Sheffield are generally up to speed on the support available, but want to relate it to specific ideas. A meeting was planned which would cover the specific issues of village shops and renewable energy. The support agencies would be able to offer advice on specific areas of expertise, eg if we set up a group to run a shop, what structures are appropriate, what funding would be available, how can we best manage the finances? Sadly, a foot of snow on the moors above Sheffield put paid to our carefully laid plans

Local Authority Area Meetings – these are opportunities for talking to groups, but how successful they can be in making contact can depend on their format. In Sheffield, a general meeting was attended by a lot of people, but more with individual concerns than issues as community groups. On the other hand, meetings where groups were applying for Council funds, called ‘You Choose’, offered far more contact, as everyone there had some connection with community groups. RAY was able to discuss issues with groups, and signpost them on to other support agencies

Advocacy – RAY is preparing reports on the issues for the rural areas in the different districts of South Yorkshire and will be presenting them to the appropriate local decision makers. We want to ensure that the needs of local communities are not forgotten.


South Yorkshire

Pro-active Penistone People

Rural Action Yorkshire recently joined Twitter and we’ve been busy ‘tweeting’ about the very latest news from Government, funders and local authorities. Twitter is an information network made up of 140-character messages called Tweets. It's an easy way to discover the latest news (“what’s happening”) related to subjects you care about. It’s like being delivered a newspaper whose headlines you’ll always find interesting – you can discover news as it’s happening, learn more about topics that are important to you, and get the inside scoop in real time. To get started, you need to look for users to follow and then their messages will show up on your homepage ‘timeline’ for you to read. Start by looking for @ruralyorkshire and then have a look at who we are following, as some of these will be of interest too. Try looking for businesses you love, public service accounts, people you know, celebrities, or news sources you read.

Once you've followed a few people, you'll have a new page of information to read each time you log in. Click links in others' Tweets to view photos and videos they have posted and the profiles of users mentioned in their message. Some Tweets use a #, which is a way to introduce a keyword that others can then search for. For example, people using #yorksnow in their Tweets before Christmas meant that someone could search for other messages belonging to that subject from across Twitter (not just the ones they were following). You can also use Twitter on your mobile phone. Here are some of our tweets:

Digital Switchover Big Countdown Begins The digital switchover in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire has now entered its final stretch. In just eight months time, 2.7 million households will have gone completely digital with many receiving Freeview channels for the first time. With the Central, Anglia and Scottish Central TV areas also switching this year, the next 12 months promises to be the busiest year ever with 66 per cent of the UK population having completed the process by the end of 2011.

Important Dates

Their Regional Team in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire can support you by providing information and materials for use at local events. They can provide information and advice about the Digital Switchover Help Scheme for older viewers and those who need extra help and support. They can help you to help people locally to make the switch. For more information or to order supplies of information email [email protected] For technical advice and information about how to convert individual televisions to digital, please contact the Digital UK Advice Line on 08456 50 50 50 or visit digitaluk.co.uk For advice about the Digital Switchover Help Scheme call 0800 40 85 900 or visit helpscheme.co.uk.

Have you Tweeted yet? The Newsletter of Rural Action Yorkshire 09

Area served Stage one

Stage two

Transmitter Group

Scarborough area

3 Aug 11

17 Aug 11

Oliver’s Mount

Lincolnshire & East Yorks

3 Aug 11

17 Aug 11

Belmont

Sheffield area

10 Aug 11

24 Aug 11

Sheffield

Chesterfield area

10 Aug 11

24 Aug 11

Chester-field

West & South Yorks

07 Sep 11

21 Sep 11

Emley Moor

RuralYorkshire RuralActionYorkshire Want to raise funding through a community share issue? Great guide by Chris Hill http://bit.ly/gjCV3C 6 hours ago Favourite Reply Delete

RuralYorkshire RuralActionYorkshire And now the #BigSociety Awards... Your chance to get recognition for your efforts http://bit.ly/g7ZnZu 23 hours ago Favourite Reply Delete

RuralYorkshire RuralActionYorkshire Free #broadband for a year? BT helping community groups to get people online http://bit.ly/eEYt8Q 3 hours ago Favourite Reply Delete

Rural Community Buildings Changes to Music Licensing Regulations The UK government has amended the music licensing rules for not for profit organisations. The new rules came into effect on 1 January 2011 and will mean that many village halls will require an additional music licence.

Not for profit organisations using recorded music (records, tapes, CDs, radio but not live performance) will need a licence from Phonographic Performance Ltd (PPL). These changes will provide remuneration to performers and record companies. Performing Rights Society (PRS) collects royalties on behalf of the composers and publishers of music. Management committees of village halls, community centres, church and similar halls run by voluntary organisations are obliged to ensure that a license from PRS is obtained if PRS controlled music is performed on the premises. This music includes records, CDs, tapes, radio, television or performers in person. Many halls already hold a PRS licence. The changes mean that in addition to a PRS licence they will require a PPL licence unless only live music is performed on the premises.

Although the legislation is due to take effect in January 2011 it will be January 2012 before community organisations need to purchase a licence as there is a 12 month period of grace while final decisions are made regarding ‘smaller’ charities, such as village halls. The CSLMG (Community Sector Law Monitoring Group), of which ACRE is part, are still negotiating with PPL to try and obtain the best possible scenario. It is very unlikely that a zero tariff will be available and the lowest tariff will probably be £40 plus VAT.

The Sustainable Community Halls Project Over the last year, we’ve been busy delivering training courses and one-to-one help to over 60 halls as part of this project. Training has covered topics such as business planning, licensing, funding, policy development and project management. Although principally aimed at village halls in the North York Moors, Coast and Hills LEADER area they are also open to any RAY member village halls across Yorkshire, subject to availability.

So far 20 halls have received a detailed energy audit and the Project is also assisting community halls with their Hallmark assessment. It is hoped that these halls will soon achieve Hallmark Level 1 and that other halls will start the process of achieving the accreditation.

Any village halls in the North York Moors, Coast and Hills LEADER area interested in training, consultancy, energy audits or Hallmark Quality Assurance should contact Jonny Wooldridge at RAY.

Reaching Communities Building Fund

Village Halls can now apply for capital funding from BIG of between £100,000 to £500,000.

The money will be available for all types of multi-purpose buildings used by communities including memorial halls, community centres and village halls. Each project should have a total value of no more than £750,000.

The new funding stream has been designed with a view to transforming current buildings into community buildings which can offer a wide range of activities benefitting a broad group of citizens.

Sanjay Dighe, Chair of Big Lottery Fund’s England Committee said: “This gives rural and urban communities the opportunity to revamp and update buildings and – consistent with its mission - BIG will be directing funding towards communities most in need.

“Earlier this year BIG announced its plans to provide a dedicated stream of capital funding within Reaching Communities. Consultation told us how popular this funding would be.

Applications will be assessed on a monthly rolling basis taking the pressure off applicants having to rush through an outline proposal. Organisations can register for further information by calling 0845 4 10 20 30.

The Reaching Communities Building Fund is not available everywhere in Yorkshire. To find out if your village hall is in an eligible area use the online checker: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/prog_reaching_communities.htm


Energy Audits Is your village hall as energy

efficient as it could be?

Ask RAY about energy audits and save money

Call 0845 313 0270

Churches Supported RAY works in partnership with many different organisations in order to ensure that rural communities get the support they need. So when a new Support Officer for churches in the community in the Ripon and Leeds Diocese was announced we were keen to meet to look at how we could work together. Tina Chamberlain met with the new Church Buildings Support Officer, Alice Ullathorne, to find out about the project Alice is working on. The project is a pioneering joint initiative between Ripon and Leeds Diocese and English Heritage and is a three year post part funded by English Heritage under their ‘Inspired’ programme. This aims to make the task of looking after historic buildings easier for congregations by providing specialists who can come alongside and give them access to a wide range of skills and advice. “One of the most important elements of the role”, says Alice “is to help churches to engage with the wider community. To be sustainable in the future many churches need to be relevant to the whole of a neighbourhood or village. Therefore, bringing community uses into churches serves the communities they stand within as well as securing the future of the buildings”. “Each church is different – sometimes a community will need a radical rethink, but often simple solutions can make a big difference. That’s where I hope to come in, working with church communities on an action plan, looking at the significance and potential of their building and offering practical help and advice.” Alice can be contacted at [email protected]

Broadband Update

When we read a recent press release announcing the average UK broadband speed was just over 5Mb/sec we had to laugh! Whilst this is certainly achievable in many communities, there are still large areas where connection speeds of less than 500kb/sec are normal and it is impossible to choose insurance, a holiday or research homework online. If your community suffers from having little or no broadband access and you don’t want to wait until 2015, the Government’s deadline for all UK homes to have 2Mbps broadband, there are a number of things you can do. If you are within a LEADER area grant funding is available from Yorkshire Forward but applications must be made by 25 March 2011. This funding will cover up to 60% of the cost of upgrading existing infrastructure to exceed the universal standard of 2Mbps or the installation of new hardware to adopt ‘next generation’ broadband with speeds of up to 50Mbps. If you are not in a LEADER area you could replicate other communities who have set up successful community broadband projects. There are different ways to tackle the problem and choosing the most suitable, based on where you are is the first step. Robin Hoods Bay’s “Bay Broadband” is a wireless system set up as a not for profit Social Enterprise Co-operative, the nominal monthly charge paid by members means they have sufficient income to update their equipment and put money into local community projects. Newton on Rawcliffe is on the southern edge of the North York Moors about 5 miles from Pickering where NYnet had installed super fast fibre optic cable into the secondary school. From there microwave technology delivers super-fast broadband to Newton-on-Rawcliffe and then on to Stape. In Ashby de la Launde, Lincolnshire the residents got out their shovels to dig the trenches needed to lay fibre optic cable in a ring around their village and then into each house. Digging their own trench kept the cost down and they have been rewarded by speeds of up to 100Mbps – as fast as Canary Wharf! The Catch 22 is that most of the information about broadband is on the internet so if you do struggle with access, contact us and we will send you some information in the post. If you then want to take this further, Rural Action Yorkshire would be happy to talk to you about how we could help your community through this process. Remember, broadband connection is not free and the capital costs could be as much as £50,000 but divided by all subscribers this could mean a one off fee of less than £300 per household. But run as a Community Interest Company, all profits go back into village projects so it’s a great way to secure the future of your village hall!


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Localism Bill explained

Find out what you need to know about the Localism Bill Attend one of your local events and learn:

• Information and knowledge on the Localism Bill • The key areas: the right to buy, build, challenge • The opportunities available to rural VCS groups • How we can all work together to provide action on the opportunities.

Sledmere - 9 March Barton - 15 March Burley in Wharfedale - 10 March Barnsley - 16 March To book your place, email [email protected]

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