Decision on charity's funding delayed until June
An award-winning Falkirk-based charity which supports victims of childhood abuse has had a last minute reprieve on a decision to cut its funding by 40%.
Open Secret claims it will be forced to end support services for hundreds of vulnerable people in the Falkirk area if the council goes ahead with a recommendation to cut its funding from £149,000 to £89,000 over the next two years.
Without funding from Falkirk Council to cover our core costs, Open Secret’s ability to provide support for people in the Forth Valley area will be severely reduced - Janine Rennie
Earlier this month Falkirk Council’s scrutiny committee proposed making a saving by amalgamating abuse services run by four organisations in the area into a single triage service fronted by Women’s Aid – who would then signpost people towards the right organisation for help.
The result would be a reduction of funding to other services, including Open Secret, which would see its funding cut by £34,000 in 2014/15 with a further reduction of £26,000 the following year.
It was expected a final decision would be made by councillors on Tuesday at the council’s executive committee meeting but discussions were postponed due to “new information”.
A council spokesperson said: “The decision has been postponed because issues relating to Open Secret and relating to its funding have come to light since the scrutiny committee earlier this month and members have indicated they would like more information on these issues.
“Once these matters have been investigated, a final decision is expected to be taken at a meeting of the executive in June.”
Janine Rennie, chief executive of the charity which launched in 1994, has fought a campaign against the cuts and said it would mean over 300 abuse victims in the area would be left without support.
“Without funding from Falkirk Council to cover our core costs, Open Secret’s ability to provide support for people in the Forth Valley area will be severely reduced,” she said.
“We would be unable to maintain a team of volunteers to provide counselling and other core activities, unable to attract external funding for additional services and have no structure to manage the organisation.”
Rennie questioned how the introduction of a middleman, in the form of the triage service, would work and highlighted that the local Women’s Aid organisation has no experience with survivors of childhood abuse.
“Survivors often find it immensely difficult to come forward to tell their story, and we strongly believe that the prospect of contacting a triage service would be intimidating,” said Rennie.
“Those that would come forward may not be served as well by a triage service and may not always get the help they need.”
It is unclear what new information has been discovered but the council’s scrutiny committee had also argued as Open Secret carries out work outside the council boundary its funding should be reduced to reflect this.
The charity, however, continues to operate predominantly in Falkirk and has increased its reach from 75 adults a year in 2007 to supporting 308 adults in the last year.
“The funding for these projects is kept completely separate from the funding provided by Falkirk Council and all costs are recovered; they do not impact on the Falkirk service and in fact help contribute towards Falkirk costs,” said Rennie.
Councillor Linda Gow, Falkirk Council’s spokesperson for health and social care, said: “We want the best possible services for our communities that reflect their real needs.
“We have asked officers to look into this new information and to produce a further report to be discussed by members next month.
“It is important that we have all the facts before taking any final decisions.”
