2.3What Families Really Value About Local Assets

Contents

1Introduction & Background

2Assets in Moss Side

2.1List of mapped physical assets

2.2Additional Assets

2.3What families really value about local assets

2.4Barriers to accessing assets

3Voluntary sector organisation profiles in Moss Side

3.1Chrysalis Family Centre

3.2Gingerbread

3.3Home-Start Manchester South

1Introduction & Background

A partnership of public sector agencies from across Greater Manchester, with support and representation from local voluntary and private sector leads, is developing a New Delivery Model and business case for Greater Manchester’s early years services.

This partnership are also, with The Children’s Society (TCS) as lead, developing a stage 2 bid and development plan for the Big Lottery Fund’s Fulfilling Lives: A Better Start programme. The purpose of the bid is to provide ABetter Start in life for children from pre-birth to three years old with a particular focus on communication and language, social and emotional development and nutrition.

The rationale behind the Better Start programme has been heavily influenced by the work of the Dartington Social Research Unit, appointed by the Big Lottery Fund, to support the Stage 2 process in 15 shortlisted areas, including Greater Manchester. Dartington Social Research Unit’s work emphasises evidenced based interventions[1], preventative work, and the need for change to be community driven:

“Effective partnerships benefit significantly from the involvement of community representatives. This is not just a 'nice to have'. There is now robust evidence showing that the authentic involvement of the community increases the impact of services on child outcomes[2].”

The bid, if successful, would fund intensive delivery in five wards and inform learning across Greater Manchester.

In order to inform the bid and support wider knowledge development, TCS contracted Greater Manchester Centre for Voluntary Organisation (GMCVO), in partnership with our local members and networks, and with the support of partner agencies, to profile assets in the five bid wards.

The aim of this work, with the support of local public and voluntary sector partners, has been to identify and better understand what:

• parents and relevant community networks value in their community
• local additional assets and resources could support positive change for the benefit of parents and their children
• local additional assets and resources could support the Early Years New Delivery Model.

In doing this, this work aims to build on and complement the findings of the community engagement work carried out by The Innovation Unit,with support and coordinationfrom GMCVO, and the Wellbeing Profile findings.

Looking ahead, and to put this work in context: How can communities play a bigger role in delivering‘a better start’? How can we mobilise community driven change?

The Five Bid Wards

This work has focused on five wards that were chosen in line with The Big Lottery Fund’s criteria. These five wards are therefore the wards (one per Greater Manchester local authority in order to maximise local public, voluntary and private sector engagement and potential) that had the highest percentages of ‘child poverty’, ‘low birth weight births’, ‘obese children (Year 6)’ and the lowest percentage of ‘child development at age 5’.

This asset profiling exercise, therefore, has sought to build a picture of the strengths and resources that lie within the five ‘bid wards’:

Coldhurst (Oldham)

Farnworth (Bolton)

Langworthy (Salford)

Milkstone and Deeplish (Rochdale)

Moss Side (Manchester).

This report is about the ward of Moss Side in Manchester.

GMCVO’s approach to mapping assets

In order to gather as much useful information and local knowledge regarding assets, while working to tight bid timelines, a multi-layered approach was used. We felt that this would better bring out the different aspects of each place. Alongside insight gained through the engagement events held by The Innovation Unit and supported by GMCVO, there were five routes to identifying local assets.

Firstly, identification of key local assets and resources by parents for themselves and their children. This approach was central to our work and, to do this, we appointed Community Asset Investigators from each ward. Each investigator worked in one ward only (December 2013/January 2014) and was selected based on their active involvement, via locally rooted community organisations, in the early years worlds of their respective ward. It was very important, in the selection criteria, that Community Asset Investigators were connected into local community networks. Investigators took a variety of approaches, including holding workshops with parents and families, and talking one-to-one with parents in their ward. The format of these conversations was open-ended but guided by the three areas, defined by A Better Start and identified by Dartington as critical to having abetter start in life: language development, social and emotional development, and nutrition.

In Moss Side, the role of ‘Community Asset Investigator’ was carried out a by a Community Organiser hosted by St Wilfrid’s Enterprise Centre, a community hub in Hulme near the border with Moss Side. She spent time visiting a variety of residents and listening to their views and opinions in order to help build a picture of family life in Moss Side.

Secondly, an online survey was circulated to front line workers operating in each area. The survey was kept deliberately short and again was focused on identifying assets linked to the wellbeing of families with young children.

Thirdly, desk-based research was conducted to complement community-led identification of assets and resources.

Fourthly, we carried out interviews with voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (Voluntary Sector / VCSE) organisations supporting families in each of the wards, some of whom are profiled here or in the ward-level reports. This provided more detail on the assets that families' value in their area, including how:

• individual, local organisations currently contribute to a better start and
• the nature of their assets (e.g. their volunteer base, income streams, established links and relationships within a particular community).

Fifthly, using the latest available data we analysed the scale of resources drawn down into the wards by voluntary sector groups. These findings were based on research carried out by the Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research which was published in a series of State of the Sector reports which included: Greater Manchester (Sheffield Hallam University: May 2013) and seven local authority areas in Greater Manchester. There were individual reports on four of the five bid ward authority areas (Bolton, Manchester, Oldham, and Salford).[3] The State of the Sector reports, besides drawing on the latest available sector data, incorporated survey responses from 1,403 VCSE groups from across Greater Manchester.

Through a strong emphasis on community-led identification of assets and resources, this multi-layered approachhas sought to find out about the buildings, spaces, services, existing and potential voluntary sector activity, and any other potential assets like informal support networks or key individuals in each of the five wards that currently contribute to a better start in life.

This asset profiling exercise has sought to build a picture of the strengths and resources that lie within Moss Side, and identify gaps where new approaches may be needed to enhance the ability of the community to build on its strengths. What you will see here is not an exhaustive analysis of the ward’s assets, but rather a ‘profile’ that presents clear messages about what works and what the key assets are. This document provides a ‘snapshot’ at this given time, with potential for further investigation to build a more detailed picture.

Through a mixture of techniques, from online surveys to face-to-face interviews we have begun to paint a picture of the Moss Side community.

It is of course easy to understand the problems that inevitably exist in such a deprived community. However, focussing on what is missing undermines whatdoes work.

2Assets in Moss Side

In Moss Side, 54% of children live in poverty, referrals to children’s social care are well above national averages and 68% of children do not have English as a first language. The proportion of mothers’ breastfeeding beyond six to eight weeks is well below the national average, as are measurements of school readiness with significant gaps in areas such as communication and language and personal, social and emotional development. Numbers of young mothers (aged 15-17) are well above national averages.

Moss Side lies a short distance to the south of the centre of Manchester. Extensive regeneration over many decades has left the area without a clearly defined high street or shopping district, although a large brewery, ASDA superstore and Retail Park dominates the central area. Bounded by a number of major roads, it is significantly bisected by the busy Princess parkway, which is a major route linking Manchester to the M56 motorway.

To the western end of the ward, there are significant areas of council-built properties, whilst the eastern end remains largely Victorian terraces. Traditionally, Moss Side has had a strong local identity built around a vibrant West Indian community.Now containing a very diverse immigrant population, Moss Side has a mosaic of communities including Somalis and Eastern Europeans, co-located if not always mixing. The ward also includes a high proportion of transient student accommodation within its Victorian terraces. The University and Hospital to the North and West further serve to isolate Moss Side from the centre of Manchester. There are no rail links, creating a reliance on buses to access the city centre.

Redevelopment continues, including the area around the old Manchester City Football ground.

As with the other bid wards, Moss Side has a significant number of identified problems. The focus of this work, however, is to identify what does work, for parents of young children, and what stops those things from working better.

We identified around 65 physical assets valued by families and children.

What you will see here is not an exhaustive analysis of the ward’s assets but a ‘snapshot’ at this given time, with potential for further investigation to build a more detailed picture.

Moss Side – link to online map available here.

NB – This map is a work in progress and serves an illustrative purpose – please report any inaccuracies to GMCVO.

The map above is illustrative of the physical assets that have been identified through GMCVO’s work. They range from the obvious, such as Children’s Centres, to the more obscure like galleries and social venues. Whilst physical assets are important, it must be remembered that they are only locations where activities take place, and there will be further assets alongside the ones identified here, such as small corner shops, cafés and childminding networks that will be valued by, and valuable to, parents of young children.

The full list, to date, of identified local assets is on the following pages.

2.1List of mapped physical assets

Children’s Centres
Claremont Sure Start Children’s Centre
Moss Side Sure Start Children's Centre
Rusholme Sure Start Children's Centre
Health facilities
Brook's Bar Medical Centre
Kath Locke Centre
Manchester Royal Infirmary and St Mary's Children’s Hospital
Moss Side Family Medical Practice
Robert Derbyshire GP Surgery
Community
Chrysalis Family Centre
Gingerbread
Manchester Council for Community Relations
Manchester Refugee Support Network Advice Centre
Moss Side & Hulme Community Development Trust
Platt Lane Community Centre and cafe
Support for Progress
The Hideaway Youth Project
Trinity House Resource Centre
West Indies Sports & Social Club
Faith Buildings
Al Furqan Masjid
Arrahman Manchester Islamic Cultural Association (Amica)
Christ Church Moss Side
Grace Church Manchester
Islamic Life
Machester Chinese Christian Church
Our Ladys RC Church
Polish RC Church of Divine Mercy
St Wilfrids Presbytery
Vinelife Church Manchester
Whally Range Methodist Church
Outdoor play
Alexandra Park, Moss Side
Moss Side Adventure Playground
Moss Side Community Park (aka Broadfield Park)
Moss Side Millennium Green
Platt Fields Park
Rosberry Street Children's Play Area
St Mary's Park
Whitworth Park
Indoor Play
Manchester Aquatics Centre
Moss Side Leisure Centre
Daycare
Cuddlycare
First Steps Day Nursery
Honeybear Nursery
Kiddi Days Childcare
Kiddi Days Day Nursery
kidsunlimited Day Nursery - St Mary's
Little Leaders
Schools and education
Claremont Primary School
Divine Mercy RC School
Heald Place School
Manchester Academy
Moss Side Powerhouse Library
St Mary's C Of E Primary
University of Manchester
Webster Schools and education
Other
Aldi
ASDA
Fallowfield Credit Union
Manchester Credit Union
Manchester Leaving Care Service
Platt Lane Police Station
Twelve Tribes of Israel Headquarters
Voyager Alliance Credit Union Ltd
Whitworth Gallery and café

2.2Additional Assets

Listed overleaf are assets identified that are not plotted onto the map. This is because they:

• have no single location
• are situated outside of the map area (but have been recognised as an asset valued by those living/working in the ward)
• are a person/people

Additonal Assets

• After School Clubs (Claremont, Trinity House)
• Bowes community allotment
• Bowes Street Bus
• Claremont school playing field – left open for community use out of school hours
• Classes for adults at Claremont School
• Community Furniture
• Community Garden (associated with Cranswick square residents association)
• Fallowfield Library
• Fathers Against Violence ‘Can U Kick It’ – football group for fathers and sons
• Greenheys Adult Education Centre
• Play workers at Children’s Centre

• Save the Children ‘Eat Sleep, Learn, Play!’ programme (Supports children living in the most severe poverty by providing families with household essentials, like a child's bed, a cooker or educational books and toys)

• Yes We Can: Community Action Forum
  

2.3What families really value about local assets

Many families feel that, alongside the difficulties Moss Side faces, there is a sense of community and neighbourhood, with some familiar, friendly faces

Alexandra Park is valued as a large, enclosed, family friendly space. Platt Fields Park is also popular and valued although families consider it more of a ‘day out’ given its sprawling layout.

Libraries were heralded as a huge asset. Families feel they provide a ‘safe haven’ and that theyprovide an opportunity for their children to interact with others.

Whitworth Gallery is seenas a key asset, as it provides something for children (and parents) of all ages, is free of charge, and has a welcoming, friendly atmosphere.

Parents value the recommendations and views of fellow parents. This is often how they become aware of what is available.For example, for many, this was the case withthe Chrysalis Family Centre.

Children’s Centres:Parents value the experience of spending time with other parents and sharing parenting experiences “It’s great when parents can see that other people's children also have tantrums and they don't feel like it's their fault” (Source: Moss Side Parent).

Transport/proximity to the city centre is valued.

In terms of facilities accessible to families, parents value the choices available to them, although many tend to access those closest to them, which may be outside of the ward boundary.

Claremont school is valued as alongside regular schooling, it provides after-school clubs and classes for adults. Its playing field is left open out of school hours and is well used by local residents for sports and playing games.

2.4Barriers to accessing assets

As with other areas in Greater Manchester, Moss Side experiences high levels of crime. This has a huge impact on families for whom the fear of crime affects the way in which they spend time with their children, with some choosing to keep their children inside the house.

Cleanliness and safety were issues for some families and can stop people using assets such as parks.

Roads: a large road (known locally as Princess Parkway) runs through the ward. This is a barrier for families out and about with young children and can stop parents accessing assets that are on the other side of this road. For example, some families rely exclusively on the small shops on or around the Claremont Road area; without access to a car, travelling to Asda is simply too difficult, both in terms of safety and physically carrying heavy shopping.

Alongside the physical barriers, travel horizons play a part in families’ choices about what they will access.Although close to central Manchester, many families will not take advantage of the opportunities this offers.

Community garden: this is potentially a valuable asset but it is often notopen and few people are able to unlock the gates.

Parents who do not work and therefore are without the essential need for childcare may not find out about what is available. By not using early years settings, they can remain isolated.

Alexandra Park, valued as an asset, is due to be redeveloped. Parents who are aware of the regeneration plans (many are not) are worried about the separation of playgroundsfor older and younger children, which is featured in the plans. This would make it very difficult for families with children of different ages to use this asset.

Confidence: There is much positive community activity within the ward but there is a potential barrier to wider participation in that many do not feel confident taking part.

3Voluntary sector organisation profiles in Moss Side

Voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations are often key to supporting people within the community. Drawing down and developing additional resources within local areas, voluntary organisations are also an important dimension in understanding local assets and asset development.