A councillor said it ‘would be absolutely cruel and perverse if the very people employed in our communities to get people into work risk being put out of work themselves because of delays’
Labour Party Hull City Councillors Daren Hale (left) and Shane McMurray (right)(Image: Hull City Council/Richard Addison)
Two Hull councillors have called for an urgent decision to be made on schemes designed to support people into work. They have blamed a “lack of decision making” at the Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority (HEYCA) for creating a ‘doomsday scenario’ for those working in the projects amid claims that up to 50 people could face redundancy.
However, HEYCA says it is currently reviewing information it has received from both Hull City Council and East Riding Of Yorkshire Council and that “it would not be appropriate to take decisions or make commitments before that work is completed and options are properly assessed”.
The schemes in Hull used to be funded by Hull City Council‘s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) grants from the Government. Since the formation of HEYCA, which is headed by the region’s Mayor Luke Campbell, the funding for such projects now bypasses the council, going instead to HEYCA.
However, with projects soon set to run out of funding, the leader of the Hull Labour Group, Cllr Daren Hale, has called for a greater sense of urgency amid concerns for the people who remain in the dark about their future. He said: “The voluntary sector-delivered projects run out of funding in March; the lack of decision-making we see at HEYCA could lead to up to 50 people in Hull facing redundancy notices in the coming weeks.
“If this was still administered by Hull City Council, these organisations would have found out their fate by now. We call upon the Mayor to urgently take action, otherwise many people could face redundancy.”
Cllr Hale said that HEYCA is set to recruit several new staff while, he says, “others are worried about their futures.” HEYCA’s website does currently advertise for three Executive Directors, with salaries of up to £145,000 and four Programme Directors with salaries of up to £115,000.
Cllr Hale’s Labour Party colleague, Cllr Shane McMurray, added: “If this is due to HEYCA processes not yet being in place to make timely decisions, the Mayoral Authority could use its reserves for a short period to extend existing contracts to take away uncertainty and prevent redundancies in the meantime. Our gripe is not with Hull City Council; they share our concerns about the uncertainty and want these decisions to be urgently taken.
“It would be absolutely cruel and perverse if the very people employed in our communities to get people into work, risk being put out of work themselves because of delays. Either way they need to learn their fate in a timely fashion.”
HEYCA’s full response to the councillors’ concerns is as follows: “Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority recognises the importance of community-based employment support and understands the concerns being raised by organisations delivering frontline services following the conclusion of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. UKSPF was a national, time-limited programme which was originally due to end in March 2025 and was subsequently extended by Government to March 2026. As part of the devolution arrangements, responsibility for considering successor approaches now sits with Mayoral Strategic Authorities rather than constituent councils.
“As part of transition planning, HEYCA asked its constituent councils in late 2025 to provide detailed information on how UKSPF funding had been managed locally, including delivery models, contracting arrangements and governance processes. That information has been received in January 2026 and is currently being reviewed.
“Issues relating to the end of UKSPF and future arrangements have been raised by Members through the Combined Authority’s scrutiny arrangements and are being considered through the appropriate officer and governance processes. In reviewing the information provided, the Combined Authority is focusing on understanding the existing landscape and the implications of the transition, in line with Government requirements and established governance processes. Given the scale and significance of this funding, it would not be appropriate to take decisions or make commitments before that work is completed and options are properly assessed through the Combined Authority’s formal decision-making routes.
“The Combined Authority’s focus is on ensuring that any future approach is robust, properly governed and aligned with wider employment, skills and economic priorities across Hull and East Yorkshire. While we recognise the desire for certainty, it would not be responsible to offer assurances until this work has been completed.”