InvestSefton

Sefton Library service is officially Sefton’s first National Portfolio Organisation (NPO), awarded by Arts Council England, as part of a three-year national investment in arts and culture.

The Library Service will receive £195,000 per year from 2023-2026 to deliver its partnership project — ‘At the Library’ — a series of artist-led happenings, events, commissions and interventions in Sefton’s libraries, co-produced with local people and responding to their concerns, wants and needs.

‘At the Library’ is curated and produced by Rule of Threes Arts, a small social arts business in Sefton that brings to life art projects for social change.

Since 2017, the programme has brought artists, activists, gardeners and other creatives into the library space to rethink the creative and civic role libraries play within our community. Over the years, artists have worked with community members to produce a host of ingenious and wonderful projects, including creating a fully functional ceramic dinner service with Aliyah Hussain; cooking up everything from sauerkraut, to foraged blackberry jam doughnuts with Gregory Herbert and Niamh Riordan, and exploring sound and radio waves with Shortwave Collective and Andrew PM Hunt.

Arts Council England Chair, Sir Nicholas Serota, said: “As well as continuing our commitment to our many established and renowned cultural organisations, I am deeply proud of the support we will be giving to those new organisations which will help ignite creativity across the country.  We are facing economic pressures at present but this funding is about an investment in our future. This portfolio will support the next generation of visionary inventors, makers, performers and artists. In particular, the growth of our funding for organisations that support and develop work for children represents a profoundly important long-term investment in our country’s talent.” 

Free and accessible to everyone in Sefton, the programme and library service will continue to support communities through a challenging winter in the face of rising costs of living by acting as a Warm Hub, delivering light-touch moments for connection, warm food, and somewhere to gather.

Thanks to its increasing popularity and quirky successful projects, Arts Council England has since awarded the project National Portfolio Status, meaning the project will now be able to explore the full potential of its project with local people and expand its work into Netherton and Southport libraries to further support and upskill communities, as well as increasing community wellbeing and civic bonds.

Cllr Trish Hardy, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing, said the funding grant of £585,000 will be put to use straight away.

She said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have been awarded Arts Council National Portfolio status.

“With that status comes vital funding which will allow us to continue to provide our programme of artist-led workshops, projects and commissions in community libraries in Bootle and Crosby, as well as extending the programme to other libraries in Southport and Netherton.

“This is a wonderful recognition of the work of the At the Library programme, which uses creative activities to reach out to those who may be feeling lonely, giving them the chance to learn new skills and share their talents with others.

“We are one of only two local authorities in the North West to receive National Portfolio status, which goes a long way to cementing our reputation as a Libraries service that puts our communities at the heart of everything we do.”

For more information about the ‘At The Library project, please visit www.atthelibrary.co.uk.

For more information about ‘Rule of Threes Arts’, please visit: https://ruleofthrees.co.uk/

For more information about Sefton Libraries, please visit: https://www.sefton.gov.uk/libraries

Sefton Council’s business and support investment service, InvestSefton, is hosting a ‘Meet the Buyer’ event with Barnfield Construction on Thursday 20th October.

Running from 9:30am to 12 noon at Southport and Birkdale Sports Club in Birkdale, the event is a chance for to provide local businesses the chance to learn about forthcoming contract opportunities with the construction company.

Sefton Council’s Housing Development Company Sandway Homes has commissioned Barnfield Construction to work on three of it sites, where over 140 homes are being built. The first two sites in Ainsdale and Crossens are nearing completion, and the third site is in Netherton, and work is due to start in 2023.

As a result, Barnfield Construction is actively looking to expand its supply chain and work more closely with Sefton businesses and procure services including groundworks, bricklaying, roofing, joinery and plastering, within the Borough.

Cllr Hardy, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing, said:

“When we set up Sandway Homes our main aim was to develop high-quality and affordable housing in Sefton, but we also wanted to generate opportunities for local people and businesses in the Borough.”

Cllr Marion Atkinson, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Skills, said:

“This InvestSefton ‘Meet the Buyer’ is doing just that by providing a great opportunity for Sefton businesses, suppliers, smaller contractors, and sole traders to explore forthcoming contract opportunities and network with others within the sector and find out more about ways of working with Barnfield and Sandway Homes.”

A spokesperson from Sandway Homes said: “Sandway Homes is committed to making a difference within the Borough of Sefton. As well as providing much needed quality homes to the Borough, social value is high on our agenda.

“With our building contractor, Barnfield Construction, we are looking to source more local trades and suppliers to join us on our next development at ‘Molyneaux Gardens’, adjacent to Buckley Hill Lane, Netherton.

“We are looking forward to meeting and hearing from local businesses who provide services to the Construction Industry at the Meet the Buyer event, which is being hosted by InvestSefton on our behalf.  If you would like to join a developer that cares about its customers and has pride in its product, please contact InvestSefton to book your place.”

The ‘Meet the Buyer’ event programme includes sessions on:

• sites, works and timescales;
• how Barnfield chooses its suppliers;
• pre-approval processes;
• a Q&A with Barnfield Construction and Sandway Homes;
• guide to the free support available from InvestSefton and Sefton@Work, including tendering support and staff recruitment;
• networking opportunity.

Businesses, suppliers, smaller contractors, and sole traders wanting to attend the event can book their place by calling InvestSefton on 0151 934 3452 or by emailing investsefton@sefton.gov.uk.

Southport and Birkdale Sports Club is located at Trafalgar Road, Birkdale, PR8 2HF.

InvestSefton is Sefton Council’s enterprise, business support and inward investment service.  It offers free information and advice and access to a wide range of services. It is there to help any business, of any size, in any sector.

People wanting to find out more about how the InvestSefton can help support their business, can visit www.investsefton.com or contact the team on 0151 934 3452 or investsefton@sefton.gov.uk

Further information:

Sub-contractors must be able to demonstrate a proven history of quality workmanship and have the necessary capabilities and H&S accreditations (where relevant).

They must also be familiar with working under a JCT sub-contract order with retention and defect rectification periods.

Barnfield Construction is looking to procure the following works and suppliers, this list is not exhaustive:

Works

• Groundworks
• Bricklayers (labour only)
• uPVC windows and external doors
• Roofing
• Rainwater goods
• Joinery (labour only doors, frames, skirtings, stairs, and balustrades)
• Plastering
• Painting
• Kitchens
• Tiling (labour only)
• Plumbing/mechanical
• Electrical
• Fencing/gates
• Tarmacking

Suppliers:

• Building materials
• Stone/aggregate
• In situ concrete