Minister confirms funding to combat worklessness

Published	5 February 2008

Councils in the most deprived areas of the country are to receive additional funding to tackle the acute problems their communities face, Local Government Minister John Healey today confirmed.

The New Working Neighbourhoods Fund follows the former Neighbourhood Renewal Fund and the Deprived Areas Fund, and directs central government funding to areas facing greater challenges as a result of high levels of worklessness and low levels of skills and enterprise.

A total of 87 councils in the most deprived areas of the country will benefit from a share of £464.4m through the Working Neighbourhoods Fund in 2008-09. Mr Healey also published indicative allocations to councils for 2009-10 and 2010-11, taking the total Government commitment to the Fund over the Comprehensive Spending Review period to £1.5 billion.

Local Government Minister John Healey said:

"The employment rate in the UK has been rising since 1997, and is now one of the highest in its history.

"However, not all parts of the country have shared in this success. There are currently over five million people claiming 'out of work' benefits, with around a fifth of these living in the most deprived 10 per cent of neighbourhoods in the country.

"The Working Neighbourhoods Fund is designed to help turn this around, with councils being best placed to take a central role in helping people in their local communities to improve their skills and get into and get on in work."