PK Anti-Poverty Taskforce: A Year in Review

Juana Sahagun
Jan 22
2 min read

Updated: Jan 28

Here is an update from Juana Sahagun, Project Manager for the Perth and Kinross Anti-Poverty Taskforce, about this steering group's work in 2024.

Happy New Year 2025! For those who have not had the opportunity to read the last report before the holidays period, please have a look at the information below.

20/12/2024

I joined the Anti-Poverty Task Force part time in early 2024 taking over the full-time post in August 2024, in an attempt to coordinate all the work that is happening across our local area and to understand how we can make things better for people locally.

This is a great opportunity to present a round up for the progress so far, including our new connections and upcoming plans for the following year. Key Highlights include The Tackling Poverty Strategy being mentioned on STV News STV Player | STV News - Dundee and endorsed by all members,! We heard from Jacky Close in Dundee on the importance of putting real people at the heart of our work, the introduction of a new way of working with the SPAN programme, the roll out of the FORT system by Perth CAB, and a whopping 100,000 items delivered to families from the Big Hoose and so much more!

A lowlight was the unfortunate news we received from the Robertson Trust that our application for “in work poverty” voice of lived experience coordinator had been rejected after Stage 2. However, we will pick up as a steering group to discuss how we progress.

What I realise is that without building relationships and trust, progress will be limited. We can drive change together through collaboration. And although at times it has been a challenge, there has been much to celebrate!

The vision and direction of the APTF co-chairs Shaheena Din and Gareth Ruddock, taken from listening sessions held with members, as well as the expertise of the steering group, have been a vital element for the new approach and progression of this year.

Our purpose

The Anti-Poverty Task Force supports the Perth & Kinross community to have an increased understanding of the current actions taken locally to address poverty, identify where the gaps in service are, and to harness our collective knowledge to drive systemic change.

Who we are:

We are a diverse network of individuals, elected members, senior officers of PKC, anchor organisations such as NHS Tayside, third sector organisations, the business and educational sector who share this purpose.

Our Steering Group Members: