The Big Help project in Knowsley is the latest organisation to benefit from the Knowsley Council’s Community Asset Transfer Scheme, which is aimed at encouraging community groups and organisations to take ownership of local facilities and run them for the benefit of local residents.
Following an open competitive process earlier in the year, the social impact charity was selected to maximise the social value of the centre and expand their support to residents in Knowsley.
The Big Help Project have 11 years’ experience of working in Knowsley, helping residents to overcome poverty, manage their debt, help people into affordable housing and to assist people onto a better future. The charity also operates the Knowsley Foodbank, the Big Help Project Food Club and Baby Basics a scheme that provides much needed essential items and help to vulnerable groups such as teenage mums, asylum seekers and women fleeing domestic violence and trafficking.
The organisation plan to offer a wide range of services from Roby Community Centre, based on their already successful projects in other parts of the Borough, in order to deliver the best programme for the local community. The Big Help will start by launching their Food Club and local residents will be kept up-to date as more projects launch at the centre.
The building has undergone a series of maintenance works to make it ready for The Big Help to move to the premises this month.
The charity will be granted a lease term of 27 years with a peppercorn rent to ensure that the have the stability and flexibility to offer impactful support to the surrounding community.
Peter Mitchell, Chief Executive Officer for The Big Help Project said: “We are delighted to have been selected by Knowsley Council as the new custodians of Roby Community Centre. People in Knowsley will be aware of Big Help Project from our award-winning services around the borough over the last 11 years. We are so excited to be able to work closely with the Council to fulfil this site’s potential and look forward to hosting fun, enriching and accessible activities from the centre as well as delivering our life changing services including welfare rights, employability, debt advice, our popular food clubs and so much more to this part of Knowsley. We can’t wait to get to meet our new neighbours and get started!”