Salvation Army may pull out of Access

Press, 28 July 1987, Page 9

Salvation Army may pull out of Access

PA Wellington The Salvation Army said yesterday it may withdraw from the Access employment programme if it is not guaranteed a no-loss formula.

It wants “watertight measures” to ensure that its own finances are not risked. The Church said that it was reviewing its commitment as a big sponsor of Government-funded employment programmes. The statement, from Major Noel Manson, the Church’s director of employment programmes,

blamed the introduction of Access for the review. It is concerned at a “change of philosophy” which introduces a commercial approach to training schemes. “When the Army first offered its personnel and oversight to the early work programmes it was on the basis of 100 per cent Government funding,” Major Manson said.

“We saw a social need to help the unemployed in the community — an area of service consistent with our own objectives. The Army now finds it is being asked to tender for the

right to meet that need. “The Army does not exist to make profits — or to risk losses.” He said Access appeared to be delegated to community-based committees, and the direct link with the Department of Labour would be largely lost. “If training modules are to be accepted solely on the basis of the most successful tenderer, then it is clear that other people and sponsoring groups may be in a better position to assist,” Major Manson said.

The “need element” seemed to have disappeared.

The Church could not absorb risks related to Access into its social services funding, he said. In the event of significant loss, other programmes would be affected.

“The Army is already struggling to make up for the diminishing of Government funding of other social service programmes in real terms.” Major Manson said some Salvation Army programmes wound up in deficit — the Canterbury programme was now the subject of negotiation for assistance to cover its closing deficit of $161,000, plus a nine-year lease at $4500 a month. “Whichever Government is in office after the election, the Army will be forced to plan a staged

phasing down and withdrawal from Access unless water-tight measures can be established to guarantee its own finances will not be put at risk,” Major Manson said. Funding would need to be available for a reasonable minimum level of national office costs, including salaries of at least the level provided under the employment programmes. For the Salvation Army to be committed at a similar level to the past, it would need to be assured of continuity of involvement. “We could not live with periods of inactivity and unproductive expenditure where modules under Access were not accepted and where training staff, accounting staff, and national office staff had to be kept in place without guarantee of adequate funding,” Major Manson said.

“The Salvation Army is more than willing to continue to meet social need in co-operation with the Government of the day, providing the funding arrangements as up until this time are kept in place.

“Several of our 40 training centres have already translated to Access programmes, but proposals for the majority of centres have not yet been decided upon by the Regional Employment Access Council.”