Bury Cost-of-Living Summit 2024

Tuesday, 5 November 2024 09:25

By David Murphy

People who care about Bury came together on Monday (4 November) to understand how we have helped, and continue helping, the most vulnerable people in the Borough.

A cost-of-living summit took place at Radcliffe Football Club with the aim of understanding our progress on anti-poverty – and how we work collectively to prevent poverty and help people out of it.

Attendees include Bury Council’s elected members and officers, other public service leaders, voluntary organisations, and other community groups representatives.

Cllr Eamonn O’Brien, Leader of Bury Council, said: “The reality is that life has become harder for many of our residents because of the cost-of-living crisis but, by combining efforts, we are stronger.

“We heard about amazing examples where – working together through our LET’S Do It! principles of taking a local and strengths-based approach – we are making a difference.

“The passion and commitment of people who care about the Borough shone through and we will continue having a positive impact and changing lives for the better.”

Cllr Sandra Walmsley, Cabinet Member for Communities and Inclusion, said: “We are working jointly to find the most suitable and sustainable ways to share resources and share funding to improve lives across the Borough.

“Our voluntary groups are at the frontline of providing services and we heard firsthand examples of how they help.

“We also looked forward to how we best use the Household Support Fund (HSF) and what we do more of, or differently, to support people and achieve our ambition to reduce inequalities across Bury.”

Public Health Specialist Dr Beenish Hanif gave a presentation to set the context of life in Bury pre-pandemic, through 2020, and the impact of the LET’S Do It! strategy so far.

Dr Hanif’s assessment is that Bury’s anti-poverty strategy demonstrates strong leadership and effective coordination, addressing immediate, medium, and long-term poverty challenges.

Another speaker explained how more people are gaining access to pension credit they are entitled to through targeted, data-led, work to contact them directly and provide support. Hubs are open in locations throughout the borough between now and 21 December.

Voluntary sector leaders, Katie Jenkinson (Trust House) and Tina Harrison (Grow Together Radcliffe), gave insights into their experiences working with some of our most vulnerable residents. Along with hearing from experts, attendees took part in workshops to identify how to continue having a positive impact.

The discussion and actions resulting from the day will influence an update to the LET’S Do It! strategy for the Borough to recognise the progress made so far and how we continue with it to work towards our vision for Bury in 2030.

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