Today I visited Local Solutions – a local social enterprise set up in 1974 to help vulnerable and excluded people. Local Solution’s work includes, among other things, running helplines to help combat bullying and domestic violence, offering support for carers, offering support for those with mental health problems, working with dyslexic people, running a home insulation and handyman service, helping the disabled into employment and offering homecare, supporting the homeless, offering early years provision, providing care training, providing a shop mobility service and a welfare rights service, and more. As you can see, the work Local Solutions do is wide and varied, and they are an invaluable asset to the community.
We went up to Mount Vernon Green, and to the Liverpool Carers Centre to meet some of the carers taking part in a Tai Chi class. We then visited the site on Scotland Road, to see the work going on there with young homeless people, and also those for people affected by dmoestic violence and bullying.
We went to Liverpool One next, to see the shop mobility service provided by Local Solutions. Finally, we visited Queen’s Dock to see the Merseyport Centre, and the watersport activities which are being opened up there.
In particular, I was thrilled to see the work which Local Solutions are able to do with money from the Government’s Future Jobs Fund. Local Solutions were awarded a slice of the £1billion Government fund, designed to help get 18-24 year olds who have been hit by the recession back into work.
It was fantastic to see Labour investment in action, right here in Liverpool, especially supporting a social enterprise such as Local Solutions which is able to provide such a wide range of services to the local community.
