Plans to cut £4.5m funding for Edinburgh charities rejected amid backlash

Edinburgh charities will not see an immediate cut in their funding but they still face the prospect of losing millions in the long term.

Dozens of city charities receive support from the Edinburgh Integration Joint Board, which oversees the capital’s health and social services but is now facing its own financial crisis.

The health authority on Friday voted on plans to fund 64 organizations that offer services ranging from mental health support to promoting healthy eating.

Protesters gathered in front of City Hall before the meeting. Chants of “cuts will kill” could be heard from the committee room, where attendees filled the gallery and spilled into another room where the proceedings were being televised.

There was almost unanimous agreement not to proceed with a proposal to stop current funding this year immediately, which would save £750,000 but give charities just 90 days to fund alternative funding.

But the board was divided on whether to accept the recommendation not to provide a grant scheme from March to save a further £4.5 million.

Members voted 6-4 to reject both proposals and instead agreed to “hold discussions” with NHS Lothian, the council which jointly funds the funding body, to “consider alternative proposals for the long-term future of third sector funding”.

They have been asked to ensure that the additional cash announced in the UK Government budget for Scotland is used to plug funding gaps.

Third sector leaders said the cuts would put at risk 150 jobs and vital services accessed by tens of thousands of vulnerable residents.

Councilor Vicky Nicolson said she had received an email from “hundreds” of local GPs last week warning of the huge additional pressures the cuts would put on doctors, carers and nurses.

But service director Andrew Hall said that, following a “forensic analysis” of every aspect of operations, the proposals in the report were the “best option” because without a “significant injection of additional funds” the EIJB would not be able to meet its legal obligations. Provide care to the sickest.

This has been met with repeated claims that the plans will do nothing for the Health and Social Care Partnership in the long term, as those currently accessing services provided by 64 charities will eventually flock to GPs and A and E.

Rachel Green, director of the Restalrig-based Ripple Project, which runs lunch clubs and day services for people over 65, including people with dementia and learning disabilities, said authorities were “overestimating the benefits and underestimating the risks” of the cuts.

He said charities had been “advised” to extend the grant scheme in 2025-26 and that there was “no reason to believe this will not happen”. But Mr. Hall objected to this.

Ms Green added that she would have to refer 87 people to social care services “immediately” for care packages if the cuts continued.

Catriona Windell, of the Edinburgh Community Health Forum and All Round Health, was appalled by the lack of any consultation with affected organizations ahead of the meeting, adding: “I don’t think we’ve ever been treated with such disrespect.

“I think we could save a lot of money if we put our heads together.”

Representatives from other projects at risk, including healthy cooking classes, citizen advisory services and homeless support services, said the cuts would put lives at risk and “destroy things that took years to build and could take years to rebuild”. .

Speaking at his last meeting as EIJB chief officer, Pat Togher stressed that the NHS-council partnership was established in 2016 with a “structural deficit” of £32 million, which has now “exacerbated all our financial difficulties”.

A total of £50 million has been cut in services run by the board in the last two years; There was a deficit of £26 million in the current year and a further deficit of £50 million in the next financial year.

He said this meant the focus had to shift to “core business and core legal responsibilities” as the need to fulfill legal duties was “far more important than anything else”.

He said: “This is the worst thing ever and we plan to invest a further £50 million next year. “This is simply unsustainable.”

He added: “As the IJB, as a health and social care partnership, we are concerned. . . There is a risk of reverting to basic legal services only.

“What came out loud and clear from the delegations this morning is that this will require a collective effort going forward.

“We must also recognize that producing collaborative work is a necessity to move forward.”

Mr Togher said the decision not to accept the recommendations would lead to a “refocus on where we get all the savings from the health and social care partnership” and called on the board to carefully consider the impact on the wider workforce, which will face further cuts. .

Speaking after the meeting, joint chief executive Katharina Kasper said: “The EIJB has listened to voices from across Edinburgh and voted not to proceed with in-year savings on third sector grants at this time.

“We also agreed that the long-term underfunding of the EIJB cannot continue.

“We are committed to working with our third sector partners, the City of Edinburgh Council and NHS Lothian to find a way forward that supports charities in the city.

“The EIJB’s budget deficit inherited from its partners in 2016 continues, with savings of £60 million required this year and £50 million next year. The EIJB has a legal duty to protect essential services such as care homes and drug-related death prevention services. “If a solution cannot be found, we will have to come back with a rescue plan to realize these savings.”