The Belfast Agenda Statement of Progress 2023-2025

Leaving no one behind; making Belfast a welcoming, caring, fair and inclusive city

• Supported over 97,000 individuals and families through a £2.2 million Hardship Programme, providing food and fuel vouchers and a range of anti-poverty projects to help vulnerable residents.
• Hosted the first Anti-Poverty support services networking event held in City Hall in October 2024, with over 100 anti-poverty organisations in attendance.
• Distributed over 30,000 cost-of-living support guides with support also available online.
• Just A Minute (JAM) card bursary established with NOW Group for micro, small and VCSE Belfast Business Promise supporters to achieve JAM Card Friendly status.
• Delivery of a Good Relations Action Plan and programmes for refugee integration, asylum dispersal and community recovery fund.
• Belfast Learning Festival delivered from 9 to 13 April 2025, bringing together 65 partners to deliver 119 free learning events promoting inclusive access to lifelong learning for all.
• Joined the UK network of UNESCO Learning Cities in January 2025 and continued participation in the Irish Network.
• 954 visits to the Grapevine older people’s hub between April 2024 to July 2025.
• Volunteering Never Gets Old campaign on adshels and buses to promote volunteering and its benefits to older people.
• 30 young people are actively participating in the Belfast City Youth Council.
• £15.1 million investment for the PEACE PLUS Local Action Plan received.
• Developed the Belfast Child blueprint to create a supported eco-system for children aged 0-8, helping them fulfil their potential.

Embedding Inclusive Growth

We are acutely aware that inclusive growth challenges tend to present as inequalities across different geographies and communities of interest, and that turning the dial on inclusive growth requires analysis of the specific circumstances for Belfast and a bespoke approach to tracking inclusive growth which is mindful of local needs. This requires an evidence-based approach as well as proactively considering inclusive growth in the development, design and delivery of projects, programmes and plans.  

In developing an Inclusive Growth Index, we will have a mechanism to collectively understand and track our progress as a city and enable us to examine how we can deliver a more inclusive approach to opportunities and growth. Council has completed the pilot phase to test the Inclusive Growth Toolkit, with recommendations for implementation agreed. An implementation plan will be put in place to help embed inclusive growth in decision-making processes in council, with further engagement with Community Planning partners planned for 2025-26.

Addressing poverty and responding to the cost-of-living crisis

We are dedicated to supporting Belfast residents facing financial pressures from the cost-of-living crisis and experiencing poverty. Through collaborative efforts with inspiring anti-poverty organisations, we provide advice, resources and initiatives to help individuals and families in need, enhancing access to essential support and building community resilience.

Hardship Programme 

Over the past two years we have provided over £2.2 million to support over 97,000 individuals and families in need. The hardship programme has enhanced the capacity of organisations with expertise in the field of anti-poverty and working collaboratively with them we have delivered initiatives that have supported children and families, people in emergency need and older people.

Delivery highlights and progress

• Engaged 139 schools in a Schools Hardship Programme, enabling support like breakfast clubs, free hot meals, food packs, uniforms, stationery and period poverty initiatives.
• Provided 26,000 free hot meals to 2,236 children via Belfast Health and Social Care Trust’s Sponsored Day Care, easing pressure on families.
• Supported over 2,570 families through 11 Family Support Hubs with vouchers for food, gas, oil and electric and wrap around services.
• Assisted 2,174 children and families via Save the Children with food, fuel and toy packs through their early years grant programme.
• Helped over 2,600 families in emergency need (including 5,000 children) through St Vincent de Paul.
• Provided food parcels to 4,508 individuals via Trussell Trust Foodbanks.
• Delivered over 100 tonnes of free food to 42 community food member organisations via FareShare, supporting over 10,500 individuals and saving 173 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
• Aided over 1,884 households through National Energy Action’s Warm and Well Programme with advice and energy vouchers.
• Supported over 757 older people with fuel vouchers via Age NI.
• Provided 1,500 winter warmth packs for vulnerable older people during colder months.
• Delivered tailored programmes for older people across 26 council community centres and 7 independent facilities.

“This initiative has given us the opportunity to provide additional warm nutritious meals to the children that attend our afternoon sessions. Children who have access to a hot healthy meal every day can focus better, connect with their peers, and helps them reach their full potential. This funding also helps families who are struggling financially and in greatest need.”

Raising awareness and networking

To raise awareness and signpost residents to essential support and advice services, we have developed an annual cost-of-living support guide. Over the past two years 30,000 copies have been distributed citywide, complemented by an online webpage for easy access.

To foster partnerships and collaboration within the anti-poverty ecosystem, we hosted an inaugural networking event at City Hall in October 2024, attended by over 100 organisations. This annual event aims to highlight available services, strengthen cross-sector relationships, amplify the voice of service users, create valuable networking opportunities and inspire collective action toward eradicating poverty in Belfast.  

Celebrating Belfast’s status as a learning city

Festival of Learning in Belfast

The Belfast Learning Festival was launched on 2 April at City Hall (40+ organisations across multiple sectors attended). The festival ran from 9 to 13 April. The festival brought together 65 partners to deliver 119 free learning events to promote inclusive access to lifelong learning for people of all ages and backgrounds. £23,548 was awarded in small grant funding to assist not for profit organisations’ involvement and participation in the festival week.

Summary of impact data (based on survey data among participants and event hosts) shows:

• 93 per cent of event hosts agreed the festival helped them to reach new audiences
• 80 per cent of event hosts agreed that the festival enabled their organisation to pilot a new idea or event
• 89 per cent of participants agreed they felt inspired to access learning opportunities across the city following their attendance at a festival event
• 83 per cent of participants agreed they felt more connected to other people or groups in their community following their attendance at a festival event, and
• 73 per cent of participants agreed they felt more aware of the learning providers and opportunities across the city following their attendance at a festival event.  

Irish Network of Learning Cities

Belfast Learning City continues to liaise with the Irish Network of Learning Cities. Belfast attended Cork’s International Learning City Exchanges in April 2025 and shared learning on the city’s Digital Badging approaches. Delegates from across the world were in attendance and the event was opened by Director of UNESCO Ms Isabel Kempf.

UK Network of Learning Cities

In January 2025, the city joined colleagues in Bristol, Birmingham, Derby, Kirklees, Manchester, Nottingham and Swansea to form a UK Network of Learning Cities, committed to improving lifelong learning opportunities. 

Global Network of Learning Cities 

The Learning City Coordinator along with Professor Mark Tully, Ulster University, presented at the UNESCO webinar for global network of learning cities about how Belfast is embedding age friendly, lifelong learning initiatives across multiple settings in our city. There were 100 participants in attendance from across the world.

Promoting Good Relations and Shared Future

Partners continue to look at innovative approaches to build peaceful and thriving communities in Belfast. We are committed to building an inclusive city and delivering programmes such as PEACEPLUS to continue our journey of reconciliation.

Highlights and progress include: 

• Secured £15.1 million for Belfast PEACEPLUS Local Action Plan.
• Continued delivery of a good relations action plan for refugee integration and asylum dispersal.
• Established and commenced delivery of a Community Recovery Fund; a UK Government initiative providing £600,000 to local authorities to rebuild trust and cohesion between communities, following public disorder events in July to August 2024.
• Opened consultation on a draft Irish Language policy; A Language Strategy Action Plan has been agreed, and work is beginning on implementation.

Delivery of Age-Friendly Belfast

Partners are committed to delivering an age-friendly Belfast, with our Age Friendly Plan in its third year of delivery. This plan focuses on supporting those specific groups of older people who are more vulnerable to losing social connections, or whose physical activity levels are below what is recommended for good health and wellbeing and who face additional challenges in keeping strong and active.

Delivery highlights and progress

• The Belfast Health and Social Care Trust‘s Older, Active programme works to increase physical activity levels in older people and address loneliness and isolation.
• Developed and led by older people, the Connection Hub now known as “The Grapevine” has been established in the city centre in 2 Royal Avenue.
• The Active Ageing Partnership has supported procurement of equipment to facilitate physical activity sessions aimed at later years to be distributed to 26 community centres and to support the new older people’s hub, The Grapevine.
• A tiered suite of Loneliness and Isolation training has been coordinated, promoted and delivered.
• A video presentation to increase awareness of recommended physical activity levels in older people has been developed with partners from SEHSCT area.
• 46 people attended an online housing webinar delivered to increase awareness of ageism in housing design and look at ways more age-friendly housing designs can be utilised.  
• Ongoing development of dementia friendly cafes across city. 
• Volunteering Campaign aimed at older people ‘Volunteering Never gets old’ was launched.
• Research to understand the landscape of interventions to support older people to live healthy and socially connected lives completed.
• Currently in the process of submitting proposal to Older, Active and Connected Group for funding for pilot project aimed at changing the mindset of individuals who have become chronically lonely through psychological techniques. 
• 700 winter warm packs were delivered to vulnerable older people’s organisations across Belfast. These packs included items such as blankets, hats and scarves which help to keep older people warm in their homes and outside.

The Grapevine

Launched in April 2024, The Grapevine is an Older People’s Connection Hub based in 2 Royal Avenue, The Grapevine is currently staffed by two Age Friendly Volunteers with support from Age Friendly and Volunteer Now staff. The number of older people dropping in each week is approximately 15-20 and to date there have been approximately 954 visits recorded. Funding received from BHSCT Loneliness Network has enabled the continuation of the Grapevine and development of a toolkit, so that similar projects can be replicated across other areas. 

Tea dances 

Tea dances are held on a regular basis in venues across the city including Belfast Castle and 2 Royal Avenue with an average attendance of around 100 people per event. A recent evaluation was completed and out of the 97 people who completed the questionnaire, 78 people said they attend them on a monthly basis. People were asked if they felt less lonely as result of attending the tea dances and 59 people strongly agreed and 18 agreed that they do feel less lonely. (79 per cent in total). A sample of responses from the evaluation include comments that events are “Very enjoyable and very good for my mental health” and “so glad you have the Tea Dances- just great to meet and chat with different people- helps me get out from four walls” and “It has given me a lifeline.”

Volunteering Never Gets Old

In partnership with Volunteer Now, Age Friendly Belfast developed a Volunteer Campaign called ‘Volunteering never gets old’ to encourage older people to volunteer in an effort to increase connections and wellbeing. Supported by funding from Public Health Agency a number of adverts with older volunteers were placed on adshels, buses and radio, and a volunteer fair, attended by 120 people was held at 2 Royal Avenue on 25 March.

Celebrating and supporting our Children and Young People

Partners aim to create a seamless developmental pathway for children in their early years (eight and under) as well as increasing the resilience, empowerment of children and young people across all cohorts. 

The Belfast Child

Produced by Belfast Area Outcomes Group partners, comprised of the city’s early interventions and family support delivery bodies, “The Belfast Child” blueprint document presents a child-centred approach to aligning services and activity to ensure that every child in the city aged 0-8 can be supported to thrive. This provides a roadmap which aspires to deliver more equitable outcomes for all children.

We aim for this work to create a supported eco-system around each child, where the players at each stage of the journey know their part, families, communities and support services in one shared mission. This represents a shared commitment to a whole child, whole family, whole community and whole system way of working that aims to ensure all Belfast children can thrive and reach their full potential. 

Youth Council

The Belfast City Youth Council (BCYC) continue to meet on a fortnightly basis since launching in January 2020. The Council welcomed new members in April 2025 taking membership to 30.

Delivery highlights and progress

• Facilitated a presentation on lowering the voting age to 16 at a recent special People and Communities committee meeting; young people concluded in favour of lowering the age.
• Participated in Queen's University Belfast (QUB)’s RADICAL programme residential in July 2025, exploring how children and young people experience respect and disrespect generally. Young people worked on research methodology such as critical dialogue and created literature through the medium of poetry to articulate their views and opinions. This innovative work aims to advocate on behalf of young people for the protection of the UN Convention rights for children and young people through the lens of respect and disrespect.
• Developed the mental health ELPH campaign (Enjoy, Learning, Positive, Health).
• The Chair of the BCYC represented Belfast City Council at the One Young World Summit in Munich in November 2025.
• Supported the Lord Mayor with civic engagements, including meeting with the Harvey Milk Foundation.
• Engaged the Climate Commissioner to discuss climate change in Belfast.