Performance Results for 2014-15 Newsask Community Futures Development Corporation
Community Futures (CF) is a program that supports community economic development and builds the capacity of communities to realize their full sustainable potential. The purpose of the CF Program is to help communities develop and implement local solutions to local problems.
Community Futures Performance Results
Results as of March 31, 2014
Strong rural community strategic planning and implementation
1. Total number of community based projects: 43
Rural access to business development services
2. Number of jobs created/ maintained/ expanded through business services 19
3. Number of business training session participants 67
4. Number of business advisory services 1849
Rural access to capital and leveraged capital
5. Dollar value of loans $680,146
6. Number of loans 10
Provide additional Information (e.g. Success stories, Links to priorities, leveraging work, communication events, etc...)
The 12th Annual YBEX (Youth Business Excellence) celebration was a huge success with 19 submissions involving 33 youth and 105 people in attendance at the awards night. The dinner was held on May 4, 2014 at the Tisdale Civic Centre, Tisdale SK. YBEX has grown significantly over the past 12 years. As a point of interest, the event is delivered within the Newsask Region for the benefit of grade six to twelve students and youth out of school under the age of 30. Since inception, over 500 students have participated and learned invaluable business and entrepreneurial skills.
The Fourth Annual Challenge 4 Communities was considered a success. This year, we received a total of seven applications.
The 1st Challenge was to submit with their application an essay of approximately five hundred (500) words or less, outlining a project and the benefit the project would be to the community, along with the application. Photos were accepted with the essay and the application deadline was November 1, 2013.The 2nd Challenge offered was due by November 8, 2013 – the applicants were challenged to create a Facebook Fan Page to promote their idea and market it to the region. The applicant was encouraged to promote their Facebook networks to join their fan page and positively represent any partners and Community Futures Newsask.The 3rd Challenge due date was November 15, 2013. The applicant was challenged to create a YouTube video promoting their project. The 4th Challenge was due by November 22, 2013 – the applicant was challenged to create an audio advertisement for a 30 second radio commercial.
Regional EDO/Economic Development Committee
Newsask hosts Regional EDO/Economic Development Committee meetings on a quarterly basis. Our goal is to bring together the region's economic stakeholders to discuss and address regional opportunities. For example:
In 2014, our group successfully initiated a joint tourism marketing campaign in partnership with Tourism Saskatchewan. We branded the campaign "A Thousand Miles of Snow". We combined our funding resources in a concerted effort to promote the recreational opportunities that the snow in northeast Saskatchewan offers all Saskatchewan residents. Our group developed a full page ad in the Destination Saskatchewan magazine, radio ads in the Regina area and we developed a Facebook page.
More recently, we invited the Minister responsible for the Economy, Bill Boyd to our Regional EDO meeting scheduled on June 12, 2014. In addition, we invited our federal MP's and/or provincial MLA's to outline the Ministry's plans for economic development in northeastern Saskatchewan.
We believe our group will benefit by understanding the Ministry's plans for our region. The group plans to leverage this information and continue our own regional dialogue. One of our goals is to align our priorities with those of the government on a community basis and/or broader regional basis. As a result, we as a group will be well equipped to provide leadership in the Region and ensure the citizens are aware of the federal government's and the Saskatchewan Ministry's economic plans for northeast Saskatchewan.
"Thousand Miles of Snow" was a project that developed from the regional EDO meetings that Newsask hosts on a regular basis. Discussion took place in regards to how they can promote tourism in the northeast region and consensus from the economic development officers in attendance was the groomed snowmobile trails in this area and we should be selling our snow. Contributing communities include Hudson Bay, Nipawin, Melfort, Porcupine Plain, Tisdale, Arborfield, Carrot River and Kelvington. The total advertising dollars contributed was $4,700 (including $1000 from Newsask). An advertising campaign took place and each community in the northeast who wished to participate contributed funding to complete a full page ad in the Destination Saskatchewan magazine to promote the rally's that are taking place over the next couple of months. A radio ad was placed on Wolf 104.9 and ran from January 13 to 25. An online campaign (Facebook Ads & Google AdWords) in partnership with Tourism Saskatchewan took place.
Urban Aboriginal Strategy – WES Nipawin
Newsask developed a project that had objectives as follows:
To increase the workplace essential skill levels of 15 Aboriginal people living in Nipawin. Utilizing the coursework from Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council (CTHRC) a contracted instructor followed the Retail Sales Associate curriculum;To promote economic participation through job skills development and education. Focusing on TOWES "Measure Up" activities and HR skills for communication, reading, document use and numeracy;To provide an opportunity to gain workplace experience. Utilizing community business partnerships, participants received a placement for on the job experience.To provide an opportunity to achieve National Retail Certification. At the end of the project, students will be able to write the national exam for certification. If they have enough work experience from prior work, they will be able to complete an experience log for the second part of the certification.
Overall Evaluation:
Overall the students found the information useful and informative. We feel that the objective of improving the knowledge of retail, and work place essential skills was achieved, as we overcame some of the challenges. We had a productive class with the ones that stayed with us. They were all feeling more experienced and happy to have completed the work placements, essential skills & testing. Three of the students also obtained the WHMIS training, which provided them with additional satisfaction and job opportunities. We were disappointed that attendance was not as great as initially indicated, however the students that completed the course experienced a sense of accomplishment and increased confidence.
Women's Shelter in Melfort
A new Women's Shelter in Melfort is being developed and the corporation was able to obtain funding to assist the Women's Shelter with resources for their library in the amount of $2,750.00 through the CFS Entrepreneurs with Disabilities Fund